The Top Cheap Eats in Apia & Upolu

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Cheap Eats in Apia – $10 and Under

The great thing about Apia is that you’re never too far from an affordable dining experience. Here are some of the cheapest restaurants, cafes and takeaways in Samoa’s capital.

Markets

A congregation of cheap eats await at Apia’s monthly Night Market (Samoa Tourism Information Centre, Beach Road), happening on the last Friday of the month from around 4 pm. Aside from cotton candy, popcorn, cupcakes and cookies for a couple of bucks, feast on nachos, hot dogs, kebabs, palusami, fai’ai elegi and oka typically for around ST$5-$6 each.

Otherwise, Fugalei Market (Fugalei Street) is your all-day everyday market except, ya know, Sundays. Although hard to find between the mounds of fresh fruit and vegetables, you’ll find stalls selling hot local meals like palusami and fai’ai elegi (see 20 Foods to Try in Samoa) for less than ST$10. Additionally, there’s a food court section to the market selling deep-fried and barbecue chicken meals for ST$5-$10.

Deep-Fried Takeaway Food

If you’re willing to put that diet on hold, then you’ll find no lack of cheap deep-fried takeaway options across Apia. Kardenia’z (Faipule Road, Fa’atoia), Mr.Chicken (Convent Street, SNPF Plaza), Chick-a-licious (Cnr Vaitele and Lalovaea Street) and Mr Chippy (Lotopa Road) are just a few takeaways offering deep-fried delights, kebabs and burgers between ST$5 and $20. Raynims Fast Food (Lepea) is famous across Apia for its ST$5 fish/chicken/sausage and chips!

A Local Favourite

Recommended to use by locals, Pinati’s Restaurant (Togafu’afu’a Road) is famous for its chop suey, rice and curry meals usually around ST$5! Get the “mix”, which is everything that will keep hunger locked away for the rest of the day!

Something Sweet

And for a cheap and cheerful treat or dessert, try one of Apia’s ice cream parlours like Chillz (Faatoia Road, Leone), whipping up real fruit ST$6 cones and ST$8 smoothies – approximate prices, of course. They also do very reasonably priced hot meals like chicken wings and spaghetti for around ST$12-$15 and combos like two waffles or a waffle and a thick shake for ST$20.

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Cheap Eats in Apia – $11-$20

For those with a little more budget to spare, ST$10-$20 opens up plenty of options between Chinese takeaways, gourmet burgers and more.

Cheap Asian Food in Apia

With many Samoans also of Chinese descent, not to mention the abundance of fresh seafood making Japanese-style meals like sashimi and sushi all too easy, you’ll find plenty of value when it comes to Asian cuisine.

Ok, so Bella’s Kitchen (Beach Road) offers a huge mix of dishes at fair prices, but some of the best picks are the noodle boxes and comforting soups from ST$20–$30. They also serve Mexican-inspired favorites like quesadillas, chillidogs, and chilli cheese fries, all tasty and filling for around the same price.

For all your bubble tea needs, LJ Cafe (Lotopa) offers the best value with drinks for ST$12-$15. Otherwise, Chada Cafe‘s (Vaitele Street, Vailoa) bubble teas are a little pricier but they also do Thai food like ST$15-$20 som tum Thai and peek kai tod.

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Craving Chinese? Fried rice and fried/soup noodles at Yummy Fast Food are also very reasonable at ST$11-$16 each. If Indian is more your style, there are plenty of vege and meat curries on the menu of Tifaimoana Indian Restaurant (Fugalei Street) for around ST$16-$18 with adding rice for just ST$4. Otherwise, Cafe 1962 (Salenesa Road) does a butter chicken curry with rice for approximately ST$20, as well as six sushi rolls for around ST$10.

Cheap Burgers in Apia

Burgers aren’t exactly hard to find in Apia, but some of the best-priced can be found at Kilo’s Shack (Saleufi Street), selling cheeseburgers and fries for only ST$10! You can double up or get some more insane creations, like the chilli burger or “Big Boss Burger” for ST$15-$18.50. Skippys Restaurant (Mulinuu Road) is also very cheap with burger meals for ST$10-$16.

For something more gourmet but still well-priced, Kofe Hous (Vaitele) does decent burger meals for ST$18-$22.

Fast-Food Chains in Apia

Samoa’s homegrown fast-food chains are also present in Apia, such as DMC and Hungry Franks of the Frankie Supermarket chain. DMC can be found in SNPF Plaza, Vailoa, Motootua and Fugalei and boasts meals like burger-fries and-drink combos and fish/chicken-chips-and-drink combos to range from ST$17-$25 each, while large sharable meals and buckets of chicken are in the realm of ST$38-$56.

Hungry Franks has branches in Lotopa, Vaitele and Fugalei where you can get a burger, fries and a drink for ST$14-$17.50.

Although Apia has a McDonald’s (Cnr of Togafu’afu’a Road and Vaea Street), note that it definitely one of the more expensive fast-food options in Apia.

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Food Deals to Scout Out in Apia

We picked up these fantastic food tips on our last research mission in Samoa, and we’re excited to share them with you! Don’t worry; we’ll keep updating this section as we discover more delicious deals.

Paddles Restaurant (Beach Road) offers a clever way to access their best deals. You’ll love their QR code on the menu that you can scan to find specials and set menus.

This option is particularly helpful for budget-conscious guests, giving you access to better value options that may not be printed on the main menu.

If you’re craving some Chinese cuisine, we recommend checking out Tauese Restaurant (Beach Road) at Tauese Seaview Hotel. It’s described as a good Chinese restaurant, and from what we’ve experienced, it’s known for its large portions. Rumour has it that their fried rice is big enough for eight people! (You might want to bring some friends along for this feast.)