Birmingham guide
The best cheap eats in Birmingham
Birmingham has 27 standout cheap eats worth your time — these are the ones locals actually send people to, ranked by how well-loved each spot is and checked by hand. Niki's West, Saw's Soul Kitchen and Eagle's Restaurant lead the list. No chains, nobody pays to rank.
Niki's West
Cafeteria-line meat-and-three. Cafeteria line by the Farmers Market. Pick your meat, pick your sides, find a seat. People have been eating here for decades.
Saw's Soul Kitchen
Pork & greens over cheese grits. Small, always-busy Avondale spot. White sauce barbecue with soul food sides.
Eagle's Restaurant
Friday catfish & meat-and-three. Black-owned soul food kitchen open since 1951. Eater sent visitors here in 2026, and Sunday lines go out the door.
Saw's BBQ
Smoked chicken with white sauce. The first Saw's, a small room on Oxmoor Road. Smoked chicken with white sauce.
Gus's Hot Dogs
Chargrilled dog with onion sauce. Greek-owned hot dog stand open since 1947, the longest-running one in town. A few counter seats; most people take it to go.
Green Acres Cafe
Whole fried chicken wings. The Gratton family's fried chicken counter, on Fourth Avenue North since 1990 and in Birmingham since 1950. Order the wings.
Savage's Bakery
Smiley-face cookies & meltaways. Homewood's bakery since 1939. It closed in February 2026 when the owner retired, and the owner of O'Carr's across the street reopened it a month later.
Davenport's Pizza Palace
Cracker-thin crust since 1964. Thin, cracker-crust pizza in a wood-paneled room. Been in Mountain Brook Village since 1964.
Big Spoon Creamery
Small-batch ice cream sandwiches. Small-batch ice cream in the MAKEbhm building. The sandwiches are the thing to get.
Miss Myra's Pit Bar-B-Q
Hickory-smoked chicken & white sauce. Hickory-smoked chicken with white sauce, and pig figurines on every surface. Cahaba Heights has been going here for years.
The Garage
Courtyard beer garden. Beer garden off Highland Avenue in a row of 1930s garages, with a courtyard full of antiques and statues. Sandwiches, cold beer, cash only.
Demetri's BBQ
Pork plate & Greek-dressed slaw. Barbecue opened by Demetri Nakos in 1961, on 28th Avenue since 1973 and run now by his son, Sam. It's in the Alabama Barbecue Hall of Fame. Opens early for breakfast.
Eugene's Hot Chicken
Hot chicken, pick your heat. Hot chicken north of the city center: pick the style and how hot, then the sides. Bham Now put it on its 25 best restaurants in Birmingham in 2026.
Fife's Restaurant
Southern breakfast & meat-and-three. Breakfast and meat-and-three in the Fourth Avenue district since 1956.
Ted's Restaurant
Greek-Southern meat-and-three. Meat-and-three near UAB since 1973, run by Tasos and Beba Touloupis since 2000. Meatloaf and greens next to souvlakia. Weekday lunch, Saturday breakfast.
O'Carr's Delicatessen
Deli lunch & Memory Lane ice cream. Deli lunches on 18th Street since 1975, with a retro ice cream parlor next door.
Gilchrist
Limeades & chicken salad. Old soda fountain in Mountain Brook Village. Order a limeade and a chicken salad sandwich.
Tortugas Homestyle Pizza
Pizza by the slice. Slice shop near Regions Field. Food Network picked it for Alabama in its 50 states of pizza slices.
Food Network: Alabama's best pizza slice
Taco Morro Loco
Fish tacos & fresh salsa. Hispanic-owned taqueria on 41st Street in Avondale. Get the fish tacos.
Big Spoon Creamery (Edgewood)
Ice cream sandwiches. The Edgewood shop from the Big Spoon folks, right across the street from Edgewood Creamery. Try both and pick a side.
Diplomat Deli
The Reuben. Old-school deli in Park South Plaza. Its Reuben made the state's 100 Dishes to Eat in Alabama list.
University Tacos
Quick tacos by UAB. Taco counter on University Boulevard, a block from UAB.
Crestline Bagel Co.
Bagels and a coffee across the street. Bagel shop on Church Street. Get one to go and walk over to the bookstore.
Kool Korner Sandwiches
Cuban sandwiches. Pressed Cubans and Caribbean plates on Highway 31. Mostly a lunch place, so check hours.
Edgewood Creamery
Old-fashioned scoops in Edgewood. Old-fashioned ice cream shop in Edgewood. Get a cone and walk the neighborhood.
Iz Cafe
Soup, sandwich and dessert. Longtime lunch spot on Rocky Ridge. Save room for the cake case.
The Daily Edition
Coffee and a breakfast sandwich. Neighborhood coffee shop in West Homewood. Good for an early meeting.
Good to know
What is the best cheap eats in Birmingham?
Niki's West — cafeteria-line meat-and-three. Saw's Soul Kitchen and Eagle's Restaurant round out the top of the list. Every place is locally owned and checked by hand.
How many cheap eats are on this list?
27, all locally owned and ranked by how well-loved they are. None of them paid to be included.
Which have a Michelin or James Beard honor?
Tortugas Homestyle Pizza.