Top Five Meals Under $5 in San Francisco

Categories: Top Five

Golden_Boy_Sign.jpg
Thomas Hawk/Flickr
Cheap eats here.
​Now that burritos and falafel wraps cost $8 and a bowl of pho can't be found for less than $6, the under-$5 meal has become a rarity in San Francisco. Damn that Healthy San Francisco. (Kidding.) But the cheap meal is not a unicorn, and there's no need to resort to frozen burritos or step into McDonald's. It's still possible to find meals at local restaurants for $5, including tax and even tip.

Here is where SFoodie eats on the cheap:

Yong_Kee_Dai_Bao2.jpg
Cherylynn N./Yelp
Yong Kee's dai bao.
5. Combination bun, aka dai bao, from Yong Kee Bakery (732 Jackson -- watch out, there's no sign in English)

Grab-and-go dim sum shops rarely advertise their steamed combination buns, or dai bao (big bun). But a few of them -- Wing Lee in the Richmond and Good Mon Kok in Chinatown, for instance -- make them. Yong Kee's dai bao is the largest. It's bigger than a grapefruit, heavier than a Big Mac, and stuffed with gingery chicken, shiitake mushrooms, Chinese sausage, and half a hard-boiled egg. If that doesn't seem like enough food, just double your order -- Yong Kee's combination bun costs $1.25 -- and then grab some mangos or apples from the Stockton markets to go with your bun.

Location Info

Saigon Sandwich

560 Larkin (at Eddy), San Francisco, CA

Category: Restaurant

Like this Story?

Sign up for the Dining Newsletter: The week's top local food news and events, plus interviews with chefs and restaurant owners, dining tips, and a peek at our print review.

Privacy Policy
Sign up for free stuff, news info & more!

Tools