Abbotsford has a genuine advantage when it comes to eating affordably: Victoria Street. The Vietnamese food corridor that runs along the suburb’s southern border serves some of Melbourne’s best value meals, and the prices have stayed reasonable even as rents have climbed everywhere else.
Here is where to eat well in Abbotsford without spending more than $20 a head.
Victoria Street Vietnamese — The Core of Cheap Eating
The stretch of Victoria Street between Hoddle Street and Church Street is where your food budget goes furthest.
Pho runs $14-$17 for a large bowl. The older restaurants with laminated menus and plastic chairs tend to serve the best broth. They have been doing this for decades and the consistency shows.
Banh mi costs $10-$13 from the bakeries and sandwich shops along the strip. Crusty baguette, proper pate, pickled daikon, coriander, chilli, and your choice of protein. For the price of a mediocre CBD sandwich, you get one of Melbourne’s best lunch options.
Rice plates and bun (vermicelli) dishes sit around $15-$18 and come loaded with grilled meats, spring rolls, fresh herbs, and dipping sauce. These are proper meals that will carry you through an afternoon.
Beyond Vietnamese
Jinda Thai at 1-7 Ferguson Street does green curry for $17 and jungle curry for $18. Both are properly spiced, not the diluted-for-tourists version. The larb moo at $15 is solid value for an entree-sized portion that works as a light meal.
Bodriggy Brewing Co at 245 Johnston Street runs $10 pint-and-pizza deals on Tuesday nights. The pizza is decent, the beer is house-brewed, and $10 for both in the inner east is hard to argue with.
The Farm Cafe at the Abbotsford Convent does a ploughman’s lunch for $18 that is big enough to share. Not the cheapest option on this list, but the setting (heritage convent grounds, riverside) makes it feel like more than the price suggests.
Grocery Savings
Victoria Street’s Asian grocery stores sell fresh produce, herbs, rice, and noodles at prices that undercut Coles and Woolworths by 20-40%. Lemongrass, ginger, bok choy, and rice noodles are all cheaper here. If you cook at home, stocking up on Victoria Street will stretch your weekly grocery budget significantly.
The Comparison
Abbotsford’s cheap eats compete well against neighbouring suburbs. Richmond shares the Victoria Street strip and has similar prices. Collingwood has Smith Street options but trends slightly more expensive for equivalent quality. Fitzroy has fewer genuinely cheap options outside of kebab shops.
FAQ
What is the cheapest meal in Abbotsford? A banh mi from one of the Victoria Street bakeries at $10-$13 is the best value meal in the suburb. A bowl of pho at $14-$17 is the best value sit-down meal.
Can you eat out cheaply in Abbotsford every night? If you lean into Victoria Street Vietnamese, yes. A pho and Vietnamese iced coffee dinner costs about $20. Doing that several nights a week keeps your food budget well below inner-Melbourne averages.
Are the cheap places actually good? The Victoria Street Vietnamese restaurants have been running for decades on repeat customers. The food is the reason they survive, not the decor. Quality is consistently high.
Verdict
Abbotsford is one of the better inner-east suburbs for eating on a budget, almost entirely because of Victoria Street. The Vietnamese food corridor keeps prices honest and quality high through decades of competition. Add in Tuesday pizza-and-pint deals at Bodriggy and the Asian grocery savings, and a food-conscious renter can eat very well here without stretching.
More Abbotsford guides: Abbotsford Suburb Guide · Best Restaurants · Cost of Living
Nearby suburbs: Collingwood · Richmond · Fitzroy
💬 Discussion
Join the conversation — no account needed