Food is an important part of any student’s life, but for students looking to eat affordably at the University of Saskatchewan, options may seem limited. Luckily, if you’re willing to get creative then it’s possible to both fill your stomach with eats and your wallet with savings.

Through some intense — and delicious — investigating, I discovered several U of S lunch options that all cost approximately $5 or less.

I’ve provided the top 10 cheap eats on the U of S campus, ranked from worst to best.

10. Hotdogs from Mac’s Convenience Store: the very bottom of the barrel when it comes to campus food — even referring to them as “food” is being generous. However, if you’re super broke, it’s about the cheapest thing you can buy. Cost: two hotdogs for $3.69.

9. Microwave popcorn from the Sheaf office: before Christmas, our photo editor Caitlin Taylor left a giant box of microwave popcorn in the newspaper office. This is basically all I ate during finals when I had two exams, three papers due and got dumped by my boyfriend, all in the same week. Thanks, Caitlin! Cost: free!

8. Half of your friend’s sandwich: if you’re lucky enough to have friends that are responsible and pack their lunches, you might be able to convince one of them to share with you. Cost: technically free, but you may owe your friend a favour at some point.

7. Free food being given out by campus clubs: if there’s one thing that university students love, it’s free food. Campus clubs will take advantage of this to get you to join their clubs. Take advantage of them by eating their free food and not joining the club. Cost: free, but quality may vary depending on the club.

6. Bagel and coffee from Tim Hortons: Tim’s continues to feed hoards of university students for surprisingly low prices. I don’t know how they do it, but it allows me to get cream cheese on my bagel and remain caffeinated enough to meet my Sheaf deadlines! Cost: $3.66

5. Smoothie from PurBlendz: located in Lower Place Riel as part of Extreme Pita, PurBlendz actually has a pretty decent selection of smoothies. If you aren’t a fan of traditional lunch items, or are trying to stick with your New Year’s resolution of eating more produce, this one’s for you. Cost: a regular size smoothie will run you about $5.89.

4. Soup from the Arts Café: soup is the reigning champion of cheap eats. It’s warm, tasty and filling. The soup from the Arts Café isn’t anything special, but it does the trick. It also comes with two free packets of crackers — because tomato soup demands crackers. Cost: $4.75.

3. Soup from Extreme Pita: did you know that Extreme Pita serves soup? I didn’t until very recently, and I’m fairly pleased with my discovery. For just under $5, you can get a bowl of soup and a bag of house-made pita chips with hummus or tzatziki. Cost: $4.47.

2. Soup from Louis’ Loft: sensing a theme? I hope you like soup. The soup at Louis’ Loft is a step up from the previous soup options. The kitchen at Louis’ has recently started offering more interesting flavours, such as seafood chowder and roasted red pepper. Grab yourself a bowl and hunker down in the sunny Loft, which is definitely the best study spot on campus. Cost: $3.

1. Soup and a biscuit from Choices: Choices is probably the best kept secret at the U of S. Located within St. Thomas More College, Choices offers fresh and tasty homemade food. Two soups are available each day, and fresh baked biscuits come with each bowl. Vegan and gluten-free options are always offered. If I could buy entire pots of Choices’ soup to take home with me, I definitely would. Cost: $5.

While some of these food options might be more appetizing than others, I don’t think I’m completely out to lunch when I say that eating on campus can be affordable. At approximately $5 a meal, it’s possible to eat lunch all week for less than it would cost you to order dinner and a drink at any decent restaurant.   

There’s still microwave popcorn in the Sheaf office, if anyone’s interested. Stop by if you find yourself in a crunch for lunch. There’s no need to go hungry, students. The Sheaf has got your back.

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Photo: Caitlin Taylor / Photo Editor