Best Cheap Eats in Quito, Ecuador
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Where to eat in Quito without spending much
Quito’s cheapest real meals aren’t found in restaurants aimed at tourists, they’re at the markets and street carts locals actually use. An almuerzo (set lunch: soup, main, juice) at a market comedor runs a few dollars and beats any sit-down restaurant on value. Below are the cheap staples worth seeking out, one honest note on ceviche, and a single splurge if you want to see what Quito’s kitchens can do at the top end.
The cheap eats worth seeking out
- Mercado Central almuerzo, a few dollars. The 1952 market’s comedores serve a full set lunch, soup, a main like hornado (slow-roasted pork) or fritada, and a fresh juice, for less than a fast-food combo back home.
- Empanadas de viento, street-cart price. Cheese-filled, deep-fried, dusted with sugar, sold from carts all over the Old Town and especially good with a canelazo on La Ronda in the evening.
- Llapingachos, market or comedor price. Cheese-stuffed potato patties, usually served with a fried egg, chorizo, and avocado, a filling budget plate anywhere in the city.
- Locro de papa, market or comedor price. A creamy potato soup finished with cheese and avocado, the highland comfort food of choice on a cool Quito evening.
- Encebollado, cheap and everywhere. The fish-soup national dish, sold as a hangover cure at breakfast stalls and comedores alike, cilantro and lime on the side.
- Cuy, market-stall price. Roasted guinea pig is a genuine centuries-old Andean tradition, not a novelty dare, sold matter-of-factly at highland markets and worth trying with an open mind.
- Canelazo, a few dollars a cup. The warm cinnamon-and-aguardiente drink sold from doorway stalls on La Ronda, best on a cool evening walk.
- Ecuadorian chocolate, affordable for the quality. Brands like Pacari and República del Cacao sell bars and drinking chocolate that punch well above their price, a cheap souvenir that’s actually world-class.
Is Ecuadorian ceviche the same as Peruvian ceviche?
No, and it’s worth knowing before you order. Ecuadorian ceviche is tomato-forward and soup-like, usually shrimp-based, served with popcorn or plantain chips on the side, a genuinely different dish from Peru’s citrus-cured “leche de tigre” style. Don’t ask for leche de tigre in Quito expecting the Peruvian version, it isn’t the same drink or the same dish here.
One splurge worth the extra dollars
Casa Gangotena, the boutique hotel’s dining room on Plaza San Francisco, plates modern Ecuadorian food with Old Town views, a legitimate splurge if you want one proper sit-down meal on an otherwise budget trip. Zazu, Urko, and Nuema in the newer culinary district are the other names worth knowing if you’re stretching the budget for one night.
Do you need to tip in Quito?
Not strictly, but 10% is the standard courtesy at sit-down restaurants and appreciated by market comedor staff too, even if it’s just rounding up the bill. Street carts and market stalls don’t expect it.
For where those extra dollars fit into a daily budget, see our Quito travel tips .