London is one of the most expensive cities in the world. Couple that with the pathetically weak U.S. dollar, and it’s enough to make you want to pick up two pints of lager and a packet of crisps for dinner and call it a night. When we were there in May, it was just over two pounds to the dollar so it was easy to do the disheartening currency conversion — five to six bucks for a cup of coffee, eight to ten for a sandwich, etc. After a while, you just have to accept the fact that “budget” is a relative term. Still, there are plenty of great dining options that won’t break the bank.

Our number one budget-friendly restaurant is Wagamama. Sure, it’s a chain and there seems to be at least one in every neighborhood, but there’s a good reason for that. This pan-Asian, heavily Japanese-influenced noodle shop is fast, friendly, tasty, and doles out generous portions. There’s a wide variety of noodle soups, teppan-fried noodles, and fried rice as well as appetizers and freshly-squeezed juices. American pan-Asian dishes tend to be on the sweet side — too sweet for my preference — so one of the things I really like about Wagamama is that their flavors are much better balanced. My favorite dish is the yaki udon: teppan-fried udon noodles with curry oil, shiitake mushrooms, egg, leeks, prawns, chicken, grilled salmon fishcake, bean sprouts and green and red peppers garnished with spicy ground fish powder, mixed sesame seeds, fried shallots and pickled ginger. Main courses are a very reasonable £8 or so, inexpensive and good enough that it became our go-do dinner destination the three times we visited London.

London is a shopper’s paradise and their magnificent department stores put ours to shame, especially when it comes to food. Almost every department store has a food hall — pretty much a grocery store — under its roof, from posh Harvey Nichols to everyday Marks & Spencer. For a quick, inexpensive lunch, M&S offers ready-to-go prepared foods like salads and sandwiches packed into neat little triangular halves and a whole line of private label items including cookies, chips, and other snacks. I love M&S — it’s like going to Kohl’s to buy hand towels and socks and enjoying a nice quiche and a bottle of sancerre while you’re at it.

I’m completely enamored with Selfridges, my absolute favorite department store, not least because of their food hall. Part specialty grocery, part crazy food court, you can indulge yourself at the champagne and oyster bar, then walk three feet over and polish off a cup of gelato. You can have a slice of pizza at one stand or purchase lovely chutneys and delicate cheddar biscuits at the Daylesford Organic concession. Heck, if you’re feeling homesick, they even sell Krispy Kreme donuts, the first place in the UK to do so. There are also plain old sandwiches and deli items. With the exception of the oysters, there’s plenty of affordable eating here.

(By the way, pictured above are sweets from Liberty‘s tea room; ironically, Liberty is one of the few department stores that does not have a food hall, though they do have a couple of restaurants. And a lot of beautiful silk scarves — home of the famous Liberty print textiles.)

Continuing along the the food and shopping path, London’s outdoor markets are also great places to eat. We visited Spitalfields Market, which features a “fine food market” three days a week with stalls selling artisanal breads, pastries, and salumi. Spitalfields requires a post of its own, so more about it later. Other markets like Portobello Road and Covent Garden have small cafés mainly of the sandwich and soup variety, but a good alternative to Subway, which we were surprised to see a good number of. We unfortunately didn’t have a chance to visit Borough Market, a large fine food market that’s been around for 250 years. But it’s enough of an attraction that it deserves a mention here anyway. Vendors sell meat, fish, and produce, much of it organic, as well as cheeses, baked goods, olives — a real foodie paradise. Of course, a place like this includes expensive items but also offers many affordable options as well — you just have to look.

(Wagamama photo credit: www.wagamama.com)

Tomorrow: British cheese mecca