Show HN: CheapFoodMap – A map of good meals under $10

7/29/2026 at 6:32:06 PM

This feels like GasBuddy, but for food.

One of the reasons GasBuddy took off was that it wasn't just based on community reports; there was an incentive for gas stations themselves to accurately report their prices and keep them up to date.

It seems like you're trying to discourage businesses from participating (e.g. by not accepting sponsored placements), and that will have implications for your growth rate. I think you should look for ways to give businesses an active role, without eroding user trust in the recommendations, of course.

Think of the possibilities:

- Business can add coupons to its listing, making cheap food even cheaper

- Business can confirm a reported deal, adding to its credibility

- Business can provide full menu and a link to order takeout

I don't think any of those features would make users feel like the business is "buying" a listing it didn't earn.

by jawns

7/29/2026 at 6:37:25 PM

Wow, thank you for this suggestion. This might be most sustainable way to update prices, as long as I set boundaries correctly. I will research how GasBuddy set up their data pipeline this week to see if we can benchmark.

by jaep1

7/29/2026 at 6:50:15 PM

Man.. I feel like I owe you lunch for making this suggestions. Noted and definitely taking this to heart

by jaep1

7/29/2026 at 8:38:32 PM

Also good for time-based deals (for example, happy hour specials) where businesses really do want to get more customers in the door at certain times.

by elo2000

7/29/2026 at 9:27:13 PM

Yes, rather than relying 100% on customers. Business will be better at updating correct cadence.

by jaep1

7/29/2026 at 9:30:00 PM

Not really.

GasBuddy has a standard: price per gallon

But this is just a map of the lower-priced items, which are available everywhere. You can find a cheap sandwich, bowl of soup, slice of pizza, or taco virtually anywhere. There is no corresponding standard point of comparison (no "gallon").

by tantalor

7/29/2026 at 9:33:22 PM

How do you vet 'a meal'? Manually? I ask because some places will have say fries, or sides or $1 oysters or others will have $2 wings but with a minimum purchase of 6.

Otherwise, great job. I like it.

by chirau

7/29/2026 at 9:37:05 PM

Tried to add a spot in New Zealand and couldn't select the address.

Bahn Bi at Miss Saigon in BNZ Centre, Christchurch if anyone is looking!

by timack

7/29/2026 at 9:43:42 PM

O man, I should really aim internationally

by jaep1

7/29/2026 at 9:40:28 PM

You mean the baguette? It should be "banh mi" :)

by winstonlee

7/29/2026 at 9:13:08 PM

it's not working for me. probably just slammed.

it'd be nice to be able to actually just click on a restaurant listing in the map rather than having to search for it.

also, happy hour options might make sense -- maybe some way to filter out (or see) results that are only available during a happy hour. Users could check "happy hour item" and enter the times for the happy hour.

finally, if people enter cheap items that aren't large enough to be a "meal" (like one taco for $3.50) this might become less useful.

by sshanky

7/29/2026 at 9:29:56 PM

Man, that is brilliant idea. Adding "Meal" or "Snack" as mandatory field should help solve noise submission out.

Happy Hour filter option will be added soon! Thank you for your suggestion!

by jaep1

7/29/2026 at 9:28:19 PM

It should work now, so many people trying this out, never had this much traffic since we started haha

Upgraded server so it should work now

by jaep1

7/29/2026 at 9:21:23 PM

give it a minute, it will load. I am sure it is slammed right now. That's what I had to do.

by chirau

7/29/2026 at 9:27:34 PM

Yes, just upgraded my server so it should be able to handle it haha

by jaep1

7/29/2026 at 7:29:10 PM

Could see this being useful for people who are on the road for a living, or regularly operating in areas where they’re not familiar with the offerings. Truck drivers, salespeople, etc.

That said, kneejerk after using it is: price is a challenging anchor, because food is not uniform. I’d be curious if users are more interested in “under $10, ignoring all else” or “a better deal than comparable” - though, there’s a lot of subjectivity in that.

Gasbuddy works because 1 gallon of gas = 1 gallon of gas, so price is a useful anchor.

$5 for sushi at one place could be a bad deal, while a great deal at another place.

An $8 steak would be cheap. An $8 hot dog would be a ripoff.

I’d be skeptical of restaurants luring people with a single cheap item, or about quality/portion changes.

All this said, Ikea is known for designing furniture _around_ the price their target customer thinks a table should cost. Restaurants are likely (hopefully!) aware of where these price thresholds are for their customers … and your site could be an interesting way of sending them a different type of customer than they’d historically targeted. Or, allow them to refine an offering to maximize profit at the $10 price point.

As others have said, engage restaurants and make them part of the equation. They’re not your adversary.

In short: cool! Do lots of experiments and research!

by gffrd

7/29/2026 at 7:34:59 PM

Thank you so much gffrd.

You know, my dream is to have some kind of movement where people rally to fight inflation and tipflation. Last few years, we seen some crazy food price increases and it seems like its gonna get worse.

If enough people find value in affortable prices, and people go to those restaurants that offer good deals, either as lunch special or weekly promotion, more restaurant will try to offer these kind of deals. Win for customers, win for restuarant.

Might be getting a head of myself there.. but that's the vision. (If you check "About" page, I put another dream which is to make this website turn non-profit later down the road if we make money lol)

by jaep1

7/29/2026 at 9:47:19 PM

To really stop inflation, the fed would have to ramp up interest rates, stop printing money, and Congress would have to cut spending and raise taxes. It's worth it to reward businesses who offer cheap prices, but inflation is inevitable without severe austerity measures.

by mminer237

7/29/2026 at 5:54:18 PM

I love the idea, but a quick glance (randomly at SF) reveals entries that aren't "meals" (IMO, anyway) but rather snacks - like two spring rolls for $8, or a slice of pizza for $5.53. Also, the days of a $1 slice may have (long) gone, but $5.33 for a slice seems median at best, not "cheap".

Have you thought about either some guidance, or even a filter, for meal size?

by mft_

7/29/2026 at 8:52:17 PM

Too Good To Go has full meals under 10 dollars, but you can't choose what you're gonna get.

by satvikpendem

7/29/2026 at 9:40:01 PM

Ah.. i thought Too Good To Go was a restaurant, couldnt post it.

by jaep1

7/29/2026 at 6:13:28 PM

Yeah a quick glance and none of the ones I saw around my office are meals. I'm honestly not sure a $10 meal exists in SF anymore...

by mkw5053

7/29/2026 at 9:11:16 PM

Depends what you mean by meal, the parent didn’t like pizza slices but I believe one of the thick granny slices at Outta Sight pizza is still under $10, I’d consider that a lunch.

It’s a fair point that generally it’s focused on single items rather than say a main, side, and drink for $10.

by andy99

7/29/2026 at 9:43:16 PM

Two egg rolls is also a meal by calorie content.

by throwway120385

7/29/2026 at 6:21:14 PM

It is becoming harder to find them. Just few lunch specials and hidden gems.

I hope this app can help share these hidden gems.

Maybe I should just delete bad data and just put few legit places only?

by jaep1

7/29/2026 at 6:34:45 PM

You're right, and it's on me — I seeded SF from published menus to bootstrap the map, and some entries are snacks, not meals. Seeded rows are labeled "Posted on [date]" vs "Price verified [date]" for ones a human actually confirmed, but the meal/snack line needs to be a rule.. This week: pruning the non-meals and adding submission guidance

Thank you again for suggestion!

by jaep1

7/29/2026 at 6:42:31 PM

maybe, the calories for that item, and a lower limit that counts as a full meal?

by foolinaround

7/29/2026 at 6:44:21 PM

I can sell you a nice spoonful of old vegetable oil for less than $1 and topping the chart calorie-wise :D

by xandrius

7/29/2026 at 5:58:00 PM

thats really good point. I should put more guidance on the submission.

Basic rules were no franchise, actual meals only. I was filtering manually in DFW area for now, but should actually add more features and guidance in general.

This is actually critical point. Thank you for pointing that out.

by jaep1

7/29/2026 at 9:01:38 PM

Neat idea.

I don't like giving my location, zip code should be good enough. I think if I tap List it kind of works but not really. I'm in SoCal for what it's worth.

by gabrielsroka

7/29/2026 at 9:13:44 PM

Yes, I should make that easier for people. You can enter zip code or city name on search box and it should take you there. (Under List in mobile)

by jaep1

7/29/2026 at 9:32:02 PM

You can, but it gives me New Mexico and NorCal.

I'd prefer to sort by location or filter more closely.

by gabrielsroka

7/29/2026 at 9:33:36 PM

neat site. just added a spot for Savannah, GA. I submitted my email for a magic link, but nothing arrived (yet) fyi.

by eightturn

7/29/2026 at 9:02:08 PM

I tried to add some spots in Berlin, but when I'm looking at the spot on the map and then click "Drop a spot" and type the restaurant name it's not finding it.

by dewey

7/29/2026 at 9:12:40 PM

Currently it is limited to US spots only. (In US, restuarant and places auto populate for you) I see this will be userful in Europe as well, so we will get to work!!

by jaep1

7/29/2026 at 8:37:32 PM

The leaderboard with acorns is a smart touch. gamification might actually solve your price freshness problem better than anything else. If updating a price earned acorns too, your top contributors would keep the data current for you. Nice project, and the 10% to food banks commitment on the about page is a good look.

by fibuladev

7/29/2026 at 8:46:30 PM

Thank you! Yes, updating prices give you acorn and badge as well. I might expand more incentives to update prices, like suggestion from comments, for restaurants.

Food bank commitment is built in from start. I plan to display transparent donation amount if we ever make money. (fingers crossed!)

by jaep1

7/29/2026 at 9:12:08 PM

Smart, the transparency on donations will build trust fast. Good luck with the 100 days!

by fibuladev

7/29/2026 at 9:32:39 PM

Thank you... I am documenting this on YouTube as well. Uploading one video everyday for 100 Days straight. https://www.youtube.com/@firedupman

by jaep1

7/29/2026 at 9:38:27 PM

Great app. Not a great sign for global economy.

by zuzululu

7/29/2026 at 9:42:51 PM

It's crazy how expensive things gotten last few years...

by jaep1

7/29/2026 at 8:38:23 PM

Nice! I've always wanted something like this clubbed with Coupons, Offers and combos that can be a steal deal sometimes.

by conqrr

7/29/2026 at 8:47:14 PM

Yes! Food and saving money is two of my favorite things so this project is fun =)

by jaep1

7/29/2026 at 6:58:49 PM

Define "good" and "meal"

by effnorwood

7/29/2026 at 7:18:26 PM

Good question! Good : Google Review 4.2 with 500+ reviews Meal : Proper meal that can qualify as lunch or dinner

But honestly... not fulfilling all the requirement just yet >_<

by jaep1

7/29/2026 at 8:41:06 PM

FYI: When looking around my favorite spots for decent, cheap food in the small towns in Ohio where I hang out, it's easy to find plenty of them with a score of at least 4.2 on Google.

But it's somewhat difficult to find some that have over 500 reviews, even for places that have been there for quite a long time.

I agree that barriers are necessary, but might there be a way to soften them?

As it is, it looks like my choices will remain pretty limited even if the website does gain popularity, unless I'm willing to drive further out to a "real" city where places have more traffic. (And by that point: It's not cheap anymore.)

by ssl-3

7/29/2026 at 7:47:37 PM

now do French Laundry and glyphosate

by effnorwood

7/29/2026 at 7:56:42 PM

Error 406 Not Acceptable: FrenchLaundry exceeds MaxBudgetLimit

by jaep1

7/29/2026 at 8:42:27 PM

curl errordodge/budget/glyphosate

by effnorwood

7/29/2026 at 8:50:49 PM

glyphosate throws a fatal ToxicityException. Please check your inputs :)

by jaep1

7/29/2026 at 7:21:43 PM

Succulent... Chi... Meal?

by ge96

7/29/2026 at 7:59:25 PM

What is the charge! Eating a meal?

by jaep1

7/29/2026 at 9:30:17 PM

This might be the better application. Some of us from outside the US do not want to eat ANY American food unless it has come from the actual ground or a tree, seen actual daylight and not been processed in special American ways.

So all that artificial food is off the menu, yet Americans consider this stuff to be food. Nothing in any of those fast food places is food to anyone from the old world, unless they are under five.

Hence an 'actual food map' would be useful, not least to people not from the U.S. and wanting more than this nonsense Americans call 'food'. In short, a cheap burger is of no use to my nutritional needs and is neither 'food' nor 'cheap', just a waste of money on a non-food item.

by Theodores

7/29/2026 at 9:41:57 PM

Oh, you are giving me another idea for a webpage called "RealFoodMap" or "GoodFoodMap"? Health / Nutrient scored map?

by jaep1

7/29/2026 at 7:23:39 PM

At the bottom of the lists, after you've scrolled through and clicked on some restaurants, you should have a "I'll do it myself" button that uses some llm to create a $10 meal recipe using the restaurants you clicked as inspiration.

by chasd00

7/29/2026 at 7:26:29 PM

Like you can create similar meal yourself? That might actually help get more engagement from users.. not sure how much it will cost me though, AI API costs a lot these days T-T

by jaep1

7/29/2026 at 6:15:00 PM

I like the idea. It would be nice a worldwide map. I mean, not only across the US.

by chesscoachx

7/29/2026 at 6:22:07 PM

Wow, I am surprised to see so many recommandation for global app. We will definitely work on this soon.

by jaep1

7/29/2026 at 7:19:39 PM

+1 wanted to add some for Germany (would require additional currency)

by ye1le

7/29/2026 at 7:29:15 PM

Let me try to add it tonight's dev session =)

by jaep1

7/29/2026 at 6:15:17 PM

I like that I can filter by a specific area, but I wonder if people would be better served to get down to regions instead of a city. Dallas is pretty big, and I don't want to drive from Love Field all the way to Lakeside for lunch...

It would be great to somehow either

- Get to the map from a city list

- refine the city to a neighborhood level

by Neff

7/29/2026 at 6:27:36 PM

We have "Cities" section that support DFW area and divide it into more neighborhoods. https://cheapfoodmap.com/cities will this work?

by jaep1

7/29/2026 at 5:49:37 PM

Would love to see restaurants in Canada included

by fl4regun

7/29/2026 at 5:58:56 PM

O man, I would love to expand to other countries! Once we polish the website, Canada will be the first global launch for sure!

by jaep1

7/29/2026 at 7:44:57 PM

When visiting the US, I lerned that a meal that costs 10$ is actually 10$ + some random tax + a tip = 20$

by BrandoElFollito

7/29/2026 at 8:41:27 PM

It depends on the type of establishment.

A full service restaurant where you are directed to a table, someone takes your order, then brings food to you, and then you pay would require a tip, because that is considered service.

A counter service restaurant or cafe where you walk up to a counter, give your order, pay, then pick up your food and find your own table would not require a tip.

by jerlam

7/29/2026 at 7:51:59 PM

Yes, tip use to be around 15%, but now default close to 20%. We call it tipflation.

We added tip + tax calculation on the page so you know what you are getting into as well =)

by jaep1

7/29/2026 at 8:33:32 PM

I wish this had existed when I was a student. Please support non-US locations as well.

by trnsprnt-pgss

7/29/2026 at 8:47:42 PM

For sure! Coming soon!

by jaep1

7/29/2026 at 9:13:30 PM

It will end up like this:

- $9.99 (slob food that much cheaper if you bought it from any grocery store)

- $5.99 delivery

- $7.99 tip

- $2.99 service fee

- sales tax on all that

Total: ~$30.

by tamimio

7/29/2026 at 9:31:19 PM

Man, this has been story for me lately, eating out.. so hopely greater group intelligence by crowdsourcing can find hidden gems that are actually good??

by jaep1

7/29/2026 at 7:25:57 PM

거지맵 meaning beggar is a generous translation of the word

by OsrsNeedsf2P

7/29/2026 at 9:44:55 PM

There aren't that many interesting ways to translate 거지. I suppose you could use bum, vagrant, lowlife, but beggar is close enough.

by tekla

7/29/2026 at 7:27:52 PM

yes, beggar map, I thought about using beggarmap.com but didn't sound right in English. I plan to give that domain name back to Korean founder. (I sent him an email already offering free transfer)

by jaep1

7/29/2026 at 6:21:45 PM

Dropped a couple spots in my area. I like seeing the deals in the community section.

by loco5niner

7/29/2026 at 6:25:11 PM

Thank you! We are trying to share best deals on there =)

by jaep1

7/29/2026 at 7:13:29 PM

Do you filter out snacks/appetizers?

by mandeepj

7/29/2026 at 7:17:09 PM

I do for Dallas area, which is our launch city. I will add filter to remove all the appentizers and snacks, and only post proper "meals" adding guidance as well. This community gave me so many good advices!

by jaep1

7/29/2026 at 7:30:28 PM

For places like Fuel City in Dallas you may want to add an icon for "don't go alone after dark" ;)

by chasd00

7/29/2026 at 8:01:35 PM

LMAO same goes to Deep Elllum on the weekend after midnight

by jaep1

7/29/2026 at 8:19:20 PM

What about just linking their Google Business instead of filling out a submission and uploading photos? That actually helps the business rank more.

by thrownaway561

7/29/2026 at 9:16:26 PM

Google API costs way too much to scale. (photos and location info cannot be cached per their rules, so you need to fetch it every month)

by jaep1

7/29/2026 at 5:46:40 PM

I love it, but I want EU support!

by gghootch

7/29/2026 at 5:59:37 PM

YES! Would love to expand internationally! If you visit, look for good lunch on the map =)

by jaep1

7/29/2026 at 8:51:28 PM

See also, Too Good To Go, which has full meals at the end of the day and often comes under 10 dollars. I use this quite a lot as you basically get the same food, you just can't choose what you want, they just give you whatever, but it's supposed to be 3x worth the sticker price ie an 8 dollar TGTG meal must be worth 24 bucks retail.

by satvikpendem

7/29/2026 at 9:14:46 PM

o man, this is in San Francisco? I will add that to the spot =)

by jaep1

7/29/2026 at 6:49:49 PM

A lot of things aren't healthy like pizza and fried chicken.

They should add the cost of future open heart surgery to the cheap meal.

by the_real_cher

7/29/2026 at 7:32:41 PM

Man cannot live on lettuce alone.

by gffrd

7/29/2026 at 8:03:13 PM

That's why God gave us friend chicken and bacons :)

by jaep1

7/29/2026 at 6:50:52 PM

LMAO, hey might be still worth it for $6.99 =D

by jaep1

7/29/2026 at 6:35:20 PM

Why wouldn't you just use Google Maps with a single-$ price filter?

by esafak

7/29/2026 at 6:44:07 PM

I guess we are trying to remove couple of steps. single $ sign mostly gives you fastfood chain restuarants. You wouldn't be able to find killer lunch special deals or local hidden gem menues. You can still find them, but it take efforts through trial and errors. I felt difficult finding killer deals, and having a website that shows these killer deals can bring value. But this is just me.. maybe this is my hopeful thinking?

by jaep1

7/29/2026 at 5:05:48 PM

No results in my particular metro area, but I love the idea!

by stalfosknight

7/29/2026 at 5:06:48 PM

Thank you, which metro area? We need to expand

by jaep1