24 editor picks in San Luis Obispo.
24 cheap eats places in San Luis Obispo, editor-picked. the best low-budget spots in San Luis Obispo: the places editors actually return to. All San Luis Obispo food.
Every Thursday the barbecue pits roll onto Higuera Street, grilling ribs, chicken and tri-tip in the open air at San Luis Obispo's farmers' market.
OrderRibs, tri-tip and chicken off open pits
TipF. McLintocks' crew grills ribs, kebabs and tri-tip mid-market; plates sell down before the bands finish.
High Street Market & Deli has stacked sandwiches in a 1927 corner grocery since before San Luis Obispo had a food scene, with a cult 4:20 pm discount.
OrderAny signature sando made stoney, which piles on extra ingredients.
TipAfter 16:20 every day the sandwich price drops; students with ID get the deal all day Tuesday.
High Street Market & Deli drops sandwich prices after 16:20 every day, the 1927 corner grocery that feeds San Luis Obispo students on a budget.
OrderStacked deli sandwiches
TipTuesday is student day: any High St sando for $9 with college ID, one per card.
Lincoln Market & Deli, a 1941 corner store on Broad Street, stacks sandwiches like the Pastrami Sensation for San Luis Obispo families and Cal Poly students.
OrderThe Pastrami Sensation on Dutch crunch, plus a fresh-baked cookie.
TipMorning pastries come from Back Porch Bakery and the coffee is Joebella; go early for the breakfast burrito.
SloDoCo Donuts fries around 100 varieties around the clock near Cal Poly, the 24-hour common room where San Luis Obispo studies, flirts and sobers up.
TipThe bacon maple bar is the 03:00 order; a second SLO shop runs on Higuera Street downtown.
Linnaea's Cafe is San Luis Obispo's bohemian living room on Garden Street, pouring organic coffee over a garden patio, art walls and evening music sets.
TipHead through to the back garden; evenings often bring acoustic sets and open-mic nights.
SloDoCo Donuts never closes, frying through the night near Cal Poly while San Luis Obispo studies, sobers up and argues over 100 donut varieties.
OrderDoughnuts and drip coffee
TipThe bacon maple bar is the 03:00 order; a second SLO shop runs on Higuera Street downtown.
Lincoln Market & Deli feeds San Luis Obispo's north side from a 1941 corner store, with breakfast burritos and Dutch crunch sandwiches under $15.
OrderBreakfast burritos and specialty sandwiches
TipThe Almost Famous Breakfast Burrito sells out by late morning on weekends.
SloDoCo Donuts sells a hundred varieties for pocket change 24 hours a day, San Luis Obispo's cheapest, latest and most democratic institution.
OrderDoughnuts around the clock
TipThe bacon maple bar is the 03:00 order; a second SLO shop runs on Higuera Street downtown.
McCarthy's Irish Pub has poured in San Luis Obispo since 1952, opening at 10:00 daily with Guinness, whiskey and zero pretension on Marsh Street.
TipHappy hour takes a dollar off drinks 17:00-19:00 daily; the room packs shoulder to shoulder on weekend nights.
Taqueria Santa Cruz Express turns out fast al pastor tacos and burritos on Monterey Street, the taqueria San Luis Obispo locals default to on a work night.
OrderAl pastor tacos with everything, plus a horchata.
TipThe Foothill Boulevard branch at 862 Foothill runs later into the evening for the campus crowd.
Ziggy's flips plant-based burgers and black bean taquitos near the Cal Poly edge of San Luis Obispo, with shakes that hide their dairy-free build well.
OrderBlack bean taquitos under kale slaw and chipotle sauce.
TipThe vegan menu is clearly labelled; order the house Ziggy patty over the Impossible if you want the original.
Taqueria Santa Cruz Express keeps tacos in the single digits on Monterey Street, the cheapest dependable hot meal in central San Luis Obispo.
OrderAl pastor tacos and burritos
TipThe Foothill Boulevard branch at 862 Foothill runs later into the evening for the campus crowd.
Ziggy's proves plant-based fast food can undercut the drive-through in San Luis Obispo, with taquitos and house-patty burgers at counter prices.
OrderPlant-based burgers and taquitos
TipThe vegan menu is clearly labelled; order the house Ziggy patty over the Impossible if you want the original.
The Nautical Bean has run as a family coffee bistro in San Luis Obispo since 1998, cooking a full breakfast and lunch board behind its espresso bar.
TipTwo more branches pour at 2010 Parker Street and 810 Orcutt Road; the original keeps the biggest kitchen.
Blackhorse Espresso & Bakery pairs espresso with its own pastry case on Higuera Street, a San Luis Obispo morning fixture open daily from 06:30.
TipThe Broad Street shop at 3590 Broad keeps the same daily hours if you are headed toward the Edna Valley wineries.
Frog & Peach Pub has run live music seven nights a week since 1994 on Higuera Street, the reliable free stage of San Luis Obispo's bar crawl.
TipMost nights there is no cover; the craft tap list outclasses the divey room around it.
San Luis Taqueria grills burritos and enchiladas on Chorro Street until 01:00 on weekends, downtown San Luis Obispo's dependable after-bars kitchen.
OrderA carnitas burrito, which also happens to be downtown's best 00:30 decision.
TipThursday to Saturday it serves until 01:00, later than nearly every kitchen downtown.
Bull's Tavern is San Luis Obispo's historic dive, a long wooden bar on Chorro Street that has outlasted every polished cocktail newcomer around it.
TipCash keeps the line moving on weekend nights; the jukebox is half the point.
The Foothill counter of Taqueria Santa Cruz Express hands tacos and foil-heavy burritos over the counter until 22:00 by Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo.
OrderTacos and burritos to go
TipIt runs later than the Monterey Street original; the salsa bar does the heavy lifting.
San Luis Taqueria hands over foil-wrapped burritos until 01:00 on weekend nights, the after-bars ritual of Chorro Street in San Luis Obispo.
OrderBurritos and quesadillas
TipThursday to Saturday it serves until 01:00, later than nearly every kitchen downtown.
San Luis Taqueria plates burritos and enchiladas at counter prices on Chorro Street, staying open past midnight when San Luis Obispo needs it most.
OrderCarnitas burritos
TipThursday to Saturday it serves until 01:00, later than nearly every kitchen downtown.
The Kitchen Terminal, a commissary since 2013, opens its yard for rotating food trucks and ghost kitchens close to the San Luis Obispo airport.
OrderRotating food trucks and ghost kitchens
TipRunway Wednesdays bring the truck line-up 11:00-15:00; ring ahead since the rota shifts weekly.
The Library packs the Cal Poly weekend crowd into a two-level room on Higuera Street, the loudest three nights of the week in San Luis Obispo.
TipIt only opens Thursday to Saturday; arrive before 22:00 to skip the queue.
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