15 under $15: Where to find a great lunch for less in Sydney's CBD

If your Sunday leftovers have been left to languish at home, your weekly budget need not suffer - you can still find a good lunch for less, even in Sydney's CBD. We've rounded up some of the best cheap lunch deals within walking distance of the office, with options for all preferences.

Dopa Donburi and Milkbar

Vegetable curry don, $15

This charming, 70-seat eatery in Darling Square offers 20 varieties of Japanese donburi, ranging in price from $8 to $33. The restaurant uses the highest quality Australian ingredients, sourced from small-scale farms with a strong focus on sustainability. Our pick is the $15 vegetable curry don, which is served with eggplant tempura, steamed pak choy, koshihikari rice, pickled onion and scrambled egg.

Open Mon-Sun 11am-10pm.

Shop 5/6, 2 Little Hay Street, Haymarket, dopa.com.au

Sammy Junior

Caprese baguette $12

Seeking a "suave" selection of sandwiches and salads, designed to be eaten on the run? Sammy Junior has you sorted. The follow up to award-winning bar Maybe Sammy takes its coffee and food as seriously as its cocktails, with some delicious options for under $15. The caprese baguette with tomato, vannella mozzarella and basil pesto costs just $12, with the option to add grilled vegetables for another $3.

Open Mon 7am-4pm; Tues-Wed 7am-8pm; Thu-Fri 7am-10pm.

66 King Street, Sydney, maybesammyjunior.com

Sandoitchi

Buttermilk chicken sando, $13.50

Nab an adorable little "sando" at Sandoitchi, a Japanese-inspired cafe specialising in shokupan katsu sandwiches. A firm favourite is the $13.50 buttermilk chicken sando, which features pickles and fried chicken brined in a fragrant mix of lemongrass, coriander root and palm sugar. Putting the sandwich together is an exercise in the art of precision, as Sandoitchi prides itself on mastering the perfect ratio of fluffy white bread, to protein, to sauce.

Open Tues-Fri 7am-3.30pm; Sat-Sun 8am-3.30pm.

Shop 3/113-115 Oxford Street, Darlinghurst, 0491 092 958, sandoitchi.com.au

Per Kilo

Corrientazo (Colombian lunch box) $14.60

Per Kilo offers an authentic South American street food experience in the heart of the CBD. The buffet-style eatery allows you to choose from a selection of arepas, burritos and tacos that are priced according to weight. For those seeking a quick takeaway option, the traditional Colombian lunch box offers a hearty selection of rice, beans, and salad, with your choice of filling, such as pulled pork or chorizo, and house-made condiments, such as spicy aji salsa or zingy chimichurri.

Open Tues-Wed 12pm-6pm; Thurs-Sat 12pm-9pm.

Level 1, 378 Pitt St, Sydney, 0405 522 336, perkilolatino.com

The Sambal on Kent

Nasi goreng, $13

Take your tastebuds on a trip to Bali at The Sambal on Kent, a small CBD restaurant which serves halal Indonesian food. The extensive menu contains beloved classics, such as mie goreng ($13.50), alongside more adventurous options, such as the soto babat Jakarta ($14.50), a coconut milk soup filled with beef, tripe and potatoes. The nasi goreng is always a good choice. For $13, the traditional fried rice is served with egg, pickles and vegetable crackers. Add beef or chicken for another $3.

Open Mon 11am-3pm; Tues-Sat 11am-8pm.

Shop A/432 Kent Street, Sydney, 0423 636 793, thesambalonkent.com.au

Humble

Hambo sandwich, $14

The team behind Porteno, WyNo X Bodega and Bastardo opened the second Humble bakery in Circular Quay earlier this year. They've brought their signature pink-iced finger buns and freshly-baked bread to the CBD, alongside a delicious selection of sandwiches and healthy lunchtime meals. The hambo sandwich is just $14, and features free range ham, gruyere cheese, zucchini butter pickle and French dijon mustard, all served in a freshly baked baguette.

Open Mon-Sat 10am-2pm.

Shop 19, 16-20 Loftus Lane, Sydney, 02 9435 0801, humblesydney.com

Xi An Cuisine

Chilli oil noodles, $7.50

This hole-in-the-wall restaurant could have one of the best lunch deals in Sydney. For just $7.50 you can slurp down handmade Xi'an noodles smothered in garlic, vinegar, soy, chilli and spring onions. The pita bread stuffed with pork and capsicum also comes highly recommended, and at $4, you can't really go wrong.

Open Mon-Sun 11am-9pm.

4/90 Hay Street, Haymarket, 0433 810 933.

Marrickville Pork Roll

Barbecue pork banh mi $7

The hype is real: The banh mi at Marrickville Pork Roll are among the best in Sydney and, with the opening of their Darling Square location, there's no longer any need to make the trek into the deep inner west to get one. The crunchy Vietnamese baguettes are prepared fresh, packed with barbecue pork, fresh herbs, chilli and pickles. Depending on your choice of filling, they range between just $6-8. For the gluten-free among us, the eatery also serves up rice paper rolls for $8 on weekdays.

Open Mon-Sun 9am-4pm.

16 Steam Mill Lane, Haymarket

Normcore coffee roasters

Pastrami sandwich $15

Do you want what she's having? The pastrami sandwich at Normcore might not have the same star appeal as the sandwich from Katz's deli in New York, but it should, nevertheless, hit the spot. This one comes loaded with pepper-smoked pastrami, crispy fresh lettuce and sauerkraut, served on turkish bread with a generous swiping of homemade seed mustard mayo.

Open Mon-Fri 7am-4pm; Sat 8am-2pm.

Shop 1/37 York Street, Sydney and 209 Castlereagh Street, Sydney, normcorecoffee.com.au

Mamak

Nasi Lemak $12

This Haymarket favourite is known for its buttery, flaky roti which comes served with curry dips, spicy sambal sauce and your choice of fillings from just $9. But turn the page of Mamak's menu and you'll find a selection of equally delicious curries, including the nasi lemak. The dish, ("arguably Malaysia's national dish" says the restaurant), comes with fragrant coconut rice, sambal, peanuts, crispy anchovies, cucumber and a hard-boiled egg.

Open for lunch Mon-Fri 11.30am-2pm; Sat-Sun 11.30am-3pm.

15 Goulburn Street, Haymarket, 02 9211 1668, mamak.com.au

Mappen

Signature Mappen ramen $12.90

Mappen is a self-serve, cafeteria-style noodle bar that allows diners to customise their noodle soup as they see fit. Choose your preferred style of noodles (ramen, udon and soba are available, each made to order), then help yourself to a large selection of toppings. There's everything from fresh, shredded vegetables to crunchy tempura flakes. The signature ramen is perfect for chilly, winter days, with chashu (sliced pork), black garlic oil, bamboo shoots and pickled mustard greens for $12.90.

Open Mon-Sun 11am-8.30pm.

Shop 11/537-551 George Street, Sydney, 02 9283 5525, mappen.com.au

Boon Cafe

Padt ma-ma $15

This Thai-fusion restaurant is serving up traditional Issan food with a distinctly Australian edge, all within the bounds of a bustling produce store. There's plenty to be found for under $15. Pick ever-popular pad thai, which comes served with fresh tofu, thin rice noodles and flavoured with garlic, dried shrimp, chives, tamarind and palm sugar. Or change it up a little with the padt ma-ma, a spicy, egg noodle dish packed with chicken, garlic, cabbage and chilli.

Open Mon-Thur and Sun 8am-9pm; Fri-Sat 8am-10pm.

1/425 Pitt Street, Haymarket, 02 9281 2114, booncafe.com

Skittle Lane

Double egg, truffle oil, chives and gruyere cheese toasted sandwich $12

Specialty coffee roaster Skittle Lane offers a selection of gourmet toasted sandwiches to go from just $12. These toasties are far from basic. There's the breakfast-adjacent double egg toastie, with a bougie dash of truffle oil, chives and gruyere cheese; or the fancy ham and cheese sandwich, with smoked ham, mustard mayo and Westmont pickles.

Open Mon-Fri 7am-3pm.

40 King Street, Sydney, 0448 887 728, skittlelane.com

Bar Mammoni

Mammoni slice (minimum two) $6-8

Bar Mammoni is a one-stop shop for Italian-inspired snacks, sweets and coffee. The all-day menu includes a lengthy list of snacks, with standouts such as the burrata with smoked olive oil ($15), grilled scallops with garlic green sauce ($6.50) and Sicilian arancini ($6). An easy meal can be made of the "Mammoni" (pizza) slices, which come topped with everything from stracciatella and truffle honey to lamb meatballs with fermented chilli. Add salad or fries for $4.

Open Mon-Wed 7am-3pm; Thur-Sat 7am-11pm.

Shop 3 Loftus Lane, Sydney, 02 7228 1400, barmammoni.sydney

Kwan Noodle Bar

Cart noodles from $14

Head to the Sussex Centre Food Court for authentic Hong Kong-style cart noodles from just $14. The soft bone pork noodle soup comes highly recommended, with deliciously fatty, slow-cooked pork that falls away from the bone into the dark, aromatic soup. The yum cha-style menu is highly customisable, with different levels of spice, sourness and noodle thickness available.

Open Mon-Sat 11am-8pm.

Shop F6a/401 Sussex Street, Haymarket, 0408 883 366.