By Hannah Thompson

Between tuition, textbooks and everyday expenses, finding an affordable meal near campus can be difficult. Whether you have 20 minutes between classes or need a quick dinner before studying, here are four spots Toronto Met sudents recommend.

Yonge Street Warehouse

Second-year sport media student Marie-Giselle Passero’s go-to is Warehouse at 336 Yonge St.—especially on Mondays.

“It might be pretty basic, but I say Warehouse,” Passero said.

Her picks include the loaded fries, which are currently $7.75 and fingers and fries for $10.95. Warehouse’s current menu also lists a number of other meals for under $13.

Hero Dumpling

Also recommended by Passero: Hero Dumpling at 437 Yonge St., just north of campus.

The restaurant’s current menu lists six steamed pork and cabbage dumplings for $3.99, six soup dumplings for $4.99 and 10 pan-fried pork and cabbage dumplings for $6.99.

“They have, like, really great deals that you can grab from,” Passero said.

H-Mart

First-year early childhood studies student Marlie Aguinaldo said H-Mart, a grocer located across from the Student Learning Centre, has recently become one of her favourite places to grab lunch.

“It’s really good, and there’s so many different things to try,” Aguinaldo said.
For a quick meal between classes, Aguinaldo said she recently picked up spicy chicken and rice from the hot table.

“It was so freaking good. I’m gonna go get it again,” she said.
For Aguinaldo, having affordable food close to campus is especially important when students are balancing school with other expenses.

“We work really hard already, and our body needs to be fuelled throughout the day,” she said. “It’s really important to have just a quick, easy, cheap meal to get us through the day.”

Chipotle

Second-year business management student Michael Barry said Chipotle is one of his favourite options, especially when he wants to customize his order.
“My favourite cheap eat around campus is Chipotle, especially with the build your own [tacos] hack,” Barry said.

Chipotle’s Yonge Street location at 323 Yonge St. can be expensive, but Barry said he likes getting kids tacos with 3 sides for about $8.

With tuition, textbooks and living expenses already adding up, Barry said affordable food is important for students.

“There’s so many options for accessible, affordable meals,” he said, also pointing to the TMU Good Food Centre as another option for students when cooking meals at home.