Famous for their handmade tortillas, the Estudillo family sticks to street food basics –rice, beans, pork tacos and tamales, rolled tacos, chorizo with eggs– and does them well. It’s cafeteria-style, cash only with a no frills menu here and there is almost always a line, but fans agree that, for a bite at the most authentic Mexican joint north of the border, it’s well worth the wait.

Cult favorite Sab-E-Lee opened a larger, still cash-only format shop in Linda Vista in early 2015. Here, people come for the Issan (Northeastern) style Thai curries, noodles soups and famed papaya salad with most dishes ringing in for well under $10. Menu staples include the creamy Pa-nang curry, drunken noodles and salted fish fried rice, but spice levels are HOT so be sure to order wisely.

Tucked away in an unassuming strip mall, TJ’s is one of the few places in San Diego to offer delicious 99-cent tacos all day, every day. While this popular, and highly affordable, hole-in-the-wall serves up traditional and not-so-traditional Mexican fare, including oysters, shrimp and whole fish too, it's the tacos that people line up for.

Proprietor/chef Lucky has been cooking and serving breakfast at his iconic North Park ‘spoon for more than 40 years. Cheap and cheerful, a full breakfast will set you back between $3 and $4, while coffee refills are free and plentiful. This North Park institution is filled with a cast of regularly returning locals most days until noon.

This bustling Vietnamese stop on Midway is open until late for pho, noodle and rice dishes as well as banh mi sandwiches. Menu standouts include the rare steak and meatball pho, and broken rice with barbecue chicken.

Those in the know come to this casual counter-serve joint in Midway Towne Center for its tender and juicy rotisserie-roasted chicken (and beef dishes too). The perennial favorite, #11, costs $7 and will get you tasty teriyaki chicken on a bed of rice plus a simple green side salad. Portions are more than generous so you’ll be sure to have leftovers.

Tourists and San Diegans alike line up on Newport for the juicy burgers, towering baskets of "frings" (onion rings and fries) and creamy milkshakes at this iconic sticker-covered dining room. Prices range from $4.25 for a mini hamburger to $14.75 for the popular bacon double cheeseburger.

In addition to doubling as a grocery store for Vietnamese cooking items this mom-and-pop shop is up there with the best banh mi in San Diego. Saigon’s sandwiches run around $4.50 with the barbecue pork being a top seller. Parking can be tough so phone ahead for pick up. Bonus Fact: buy two banh mi get one free!

Lourdes and Hector Parra have been serving up their generations-old family chicken soup recipe for over twenty-five years. Known to cure the gravest of maladies this abuelita–approved ‘sopa de pollo’ comes with rice, chunks of white chicken, fresh onions and cilantro topped with avocado and served with a flour or corn tortilla. A half bowl will set you back a bargain $5.99, and a full bowl $7.29.

If you’re looking for classic Filipino fare (we’re talking pancit, sinigang, sisig, adobo, halo-halo and barbecue pork on a stick) then head to this no-frills counter-serve spot in National City. Open from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily, $11 should get you any two-item combo, plus a skewer. Claim To Fame: Jsix executive chef Anthony Sinsay brought Bizarre Foods America host Andrew Zimmern here in 2013.

If Caribbean food is your jam – we’re talking classic Cubano sandwich, Ropa Vieja Dip and Creole picadillo with chimichurri sauce for under $8 – head to this Midway Towne Center gem. For dessert, don’t miss the Maduras Foster – caramelized plantains, vanilla ice cream and rum sauce with toasted coconut. Enjoy reduce priced appetizers during happy hour too, every Monday through Friday between 3 - 5 p.m.

Meat-eaters and vegetarians alike love this spot in the Midway district for its authentic Indian and Nepalese dishes, plus daily lunch specials, which include a cup of dal, naan, rice and choice of two entrees for $6.95.