8 Best Places to Eat in DC on a Budget

When I first moved to Washington seven years ago, I was an unpaid intern on a strict budget. Even though I prepped a lot of my meals at home, I still managed to eat out thanks in part because I found a ton of incredibly delicious places to eat in DC on a budget from the city’s diverse population.

Being one of the top three racially diverse cities in the United States, some of the best places to eat in DC on a budget are immigrant-owned restaurants. Better yet, budget eats in DC does not automatically equate to unhealthy fast-food options.

Instead, you can expect to dine on Ethiopian meals that are communal in nature, Cuban sandwiches coupled with refreshing glasses of $5 mojitos during happy hour, or iconic bowls of chili and half-smokes after a night out in the historic U Street Corridor.

The District of Columbia is filled with homegrown restaurants and fast-casual options that represent the variety of expat and immigrant communities that make up its resident population. And,…