With food prices high, it can be hard to eat out on a budget--especially while traveling. Luckily, Bellingham and Whatcom County have a ton of restaurants where you can eat affordably. You may not be able to order steak or salmon, but these options for an affordable breakfast, lunch, and dinner in Bellingham don't lack in quality or flavor. Enjoy sandwiches, burgers, breakfast wraps, and more all for under $10 (or close).
This is your best bet for a scratch-made, locally sourced, organic breakfast on a budget. Grab a Classic Breakfast for just over $10. It comes with two eggs, home fries or black beans, and toast or corn tortillas.
Even cheaper is the Simple Egg Sandwich. You get two scrambled eggs with cheese on toast or an English muffin, with the option to add meat or tofu.
For something sweet, a stack of four whole-grain buttermilk hotcakes is also less than $10. And here's the kicker: breakfast is available all day long.
This adorable cafe in Fairhaven Village boasts a small breakfast menu with a small price tag to boot. Choose from various toasts and frittatas all for under $10. Or drop by on Sundays to grab a house-made everything bagel. They also offer a scrumptious selection of pastries and sweets.
Mix and match from a long list of bagel and cream cheese options at this affordable breakfast spot in Downtown Bellingham. Keep it classic with plain, sesame, or everything, or get interesting with a rosemary salt bagel. You'll find the same spectrum or familiar to unusual options on the cream cheese side, with flavors like pineapple, pimento olive, and garlic-feta-dill. All bagels with cream cheese are less than $5.
The Breakfast Special, with your choice of buttered bagel, two eggs, and a coffee or tea, is only $6.50.
The Bagelry also offers a selection of affordable breakfast sandwiches, all $10 or less, along with several under-$10 sandwich options for lunch.
Make your way to Horseshoe Cafe in Downtown Bellingham for egg sandwiches, cinnamon French toast, and biscuits and gravy all for under $10. More good news: Breakfast is served all day!
The lunch menu also has a few items for under $10, including the Seattle dog and the chili with cornbread.
Locus serves up a variety of veggie and meat breakfast sandwiches, bagels, and "toast-acados" for under $10 a pop, all day long.
Locus is known for their unique and unexpected flavor combinations, which you'll find in full force on the breakfast menu. The Sweet Toast-acado, for instance, features avocado and cocoa, maple syrup, topped with banana, strawberries, honey, coconut and cinnamon on sourdough.
Accomplice is the burger, fried chicken, & sandwich shop next to Carnal, brought to you by the same team. Their food and drinks are fast, fun and delicious, and their sauces and flavor combinations are unique, creating an experience like no other.
Cheba Hut came onto the Bellingham food scene in 2022, bringing delicious toasted subs to the heart of downtown. Though this sub shop leans heavily into its weed-themed branding, you don't have to be a stoner to crave their food. And you don't have to be the Monopoly Man to afford it.
Grab a 4-inch "nug" version of any sandwich for under $10 (you can also upgrade to the "dinner" version for a few more bucks). Choose from a variety of sub creations, both meaty and vegetarian, all of them perfectly toasted.
The menu also features a selection of affordable "Munchies," like Garlic Cheese Bread, Pretzel Nugs, and Marinara Bowl O'Balls.
This cheerful Mexican cantina in Ferndale is a great option for lunch on a budget. Lunch specials are under $10 Mondays through Fridays, with lots of mix-and-match entrée options to choose from. Plus, you'll find lime margaritas for under $5 during the restaurant's happy hour, which runs from 11-6 p.m. every day of the week.
The portions are big and the restaurant is spacious, so it's the perfect crowd-pleaser for a big family meal, an afternoon out with coworkers, or a happy-hour destination with friends.
Fill up for cheap at this staple burger joint in Bellingham. With two locations - one in Fairhaven Village and another in the Sunnyland neighborhood, just across from Trader Joe's - you're never far from a filling, affordable burger.
The real deals at Filling Station are the combos. Combo #1 gets you a burger and a side of fries for $10. Combo #2 gets you all that plus a soda for only a couple bucks more. Combo #3 gets you a burger, side, and a ridiculously tasty milkshake for just $14. Not too shabby.
Nothing hits the spot like a Cornish pasty, and Holly's Meat Pies are made from scratch. Everything on the menu is less than $13, so you can always get a hot, filling meal for an affordable price. Choose from Veggie, Vegan, Meat, or a breakfast pasty in flavors ranging from Chicken Pot Lie to Broccoli Cheddar and Lentil Curry. Need even more pasties in your life? Buy them frozen to reheat at home.
Pay by the dish at KuruKuru Sushi, a conveyor belt sushi restaurant located near Squalicum Harbor and Hotel Bellwether. Choose your favorite Japanese sushi rolls as they cruise by you on the sushi-go-round, taking as much or as little as you'd like.
Everything at KuruKuru is priced according to the color of the plate--yellow, red, blue, purple, or black--so you know what every item will cost you. Sample different sushi until you're full, or stop when you've reached your budget. The cheapest options (like edamame, California rolls, and inari) are only a couple bucks, while premium items (like sashimi and specialty rolls) are a couple dollars more.
KuruKuru also offers a small selection of bottled beer and wine.
For fast, cheap pizza by the slice, head to this walk-up pizza window in Downtown Bellingham. Operated by La Fiamma Wood Fire Pizza, Pye Hole is a great stop for a quick bite of comfort food while you're out downtown. A slice of cheese is just under $5; pepperoni is only a dollar more.
Easily one of the best sandwich spots in Bellingham, Cafe Rumba serves up mouthwatering Peruvian sandwiches seven days a week. Though the meat sandwiches can get kind of pricey, the cafe offers daily specials Monday through Friday that mean an affordable meal is never far away.
The best deal is on Mondays, when their Butiffara sandwich (normally $15) is two for the price of one, and on Wednesdays, when their pulled pork sandwich (normally $15) is two for the price of one! Plus, every Thursday, all sandwiches are just $9.99!
Beef dumplings. Potato dumplings. A side of rye bread and sour cream. That's the full menu at Pel'meni, a classic destination for Bellinghamsters looking for cheap eats, especially late at night. Though Pel'meni is great for an afternoon snack or an evening meal, it's especially popular after a night of bar-hopping or catching a show in Downtown Bellingham.
A serving of dumplings is less than $10, a price tag that's hard to beat for a plate of delicious, hot food.
