The ₹30–50 bracket: carts and counters
Katwaria Sarai's cheapest reliable meals come from the row of carts near the bus stand — chole kulche, pav bhaji, and momos, mostly in the ₹30–50 range. These move fast enough that freshness generally isn't a concern, which is worth knowing if you're new to street food here.
The unspoken rule locals follow: go where the queue already is. A cart with a line at 1 PM is turning over stock fast; an empty one at the same hour usually isn't.
Sit-down without the sit-down prices
For a proper meal without street food, Sagar Ratna's counter section runs ₹150–200 for a filling South Indian meal, and it's fast enough to fit into a lunch break between classes.
Thali counters tucked into the market do a fixed daily plate — usually dal, sabzi, roti, and rice — for around ₹80–120, and they're the closest thing to home cooking most students find nearby.
When you want to spend a little more
The Yellow Brick Café runs ₹300–500 for two, which sounds steep by comparison but makes sense when you're paying as much for a quiet place to sit and study as for the food itself.
Save it for when you actually need the space — for a quick bite, the market's cheaper options do the job just as well.