10 Best Lunch Deals Under $10 in Naperville
Real, price-checked cheap lunch in Naperville and Aurora — hot dogs, burritos, tacos, subs, and mac & cheese, all under ten bucks.
By Naperville Guide · Published October 1, 2026
Part of our permanent Naperville cheap eats guide, refreshed monthly with the newest verified deals.
Lunch in Naperville doesn't have to mean a $16 salad. We checked actual menus and receipts-side price listings to find meals under $10 that are worth eating — not just cheap, but good. Every price below was verified against a public source this week. Prices move, so confirm at the counter, but each of these sat under ten dollars when we read its menu.
Naperville: the under-$10 lunch list
1. Chicago-style hot dog — Portillo's, $3.99
The benchmark cheap lunch in Naperville, IL. A regular Vienna Beef dog dragged through the garden — mustard, relish, onions, tomato, pickle, sport peppers, celery salt — on a steamed poppy seed bun. At $3.99 on the Naperville menu (950 E Ogden Ave), you can add a regular fry and still land under eight bucks.
2. Small Wisconsin Mac & Cheese — Noodles & Company, $4.49
The small bowl at 207 S Washington St is the sleeper pick on this list. It's genuinely cheesy, it's hot, and at $4.49 it's one of the cheapest real lunches downtown — fine on its own, and a good anchor if you want to add a side salad and stay under ten.
3. #4 Turkey Tom — Jimmy John's, ~$7.99 in store
The #4 Turkey Tom is officially Jimmy John's most-ordered sub, and 2026 menu trackers put it at $7.99 in store — the same sandwich runs about $9.41 on delivery apps, so this is a walk-in win. Fresh-baked bread, fast, no assembly-line guessing. (The 8 W Gartner Rd location is on the south side; there are several around town.)
4. Mini burrito — El Famous Burrito, $8.29
El Famous (598 IL-59, on the Route 59 corridor) does giant burritos, and the mini is the move for lunch: same fillings — beans, cheese, lettuce, tomato — with your choice of chicken, steak, beef, or pork, at $8.29. For most people the mini is plenty.
5. Chile relleno burrito — El Famous Burrito, $9.70
If you want the full-size experience and still stay under ten, the chile relleno burrito comes with rice and lands at $9.70 — comfortably the most food-per-dollar on the Naperville side of this list.
6. Burrito bowl — Chipotle, about $8–10
Nothing fancy here, just math: a chicken burrito bowl at the downtown Naperville Chipotle (22 E Chicago Ave) runs in the $8–10 range, and it's a genuinely filling lunch. Skip the guac and the drink and you're under the line.
Aurora: taquerias do the heavy lifting
Aurora is where the under-$10 lunch game gets serious. Taqueria Aurora on Elmwood is a full menu of sub-$8 meals — here are the best of them, all read straight from the restaurant's own menu.
7. Pollo burrito — Taqueria Aurora, $7.75
Chicken burrito with beans, cheese, lettuce, and tomato for $7.75 — the kind of lunch that doesn't feel like a compromise. This is the best-value Mexican lunch in Aurora under ten, full stop.
8. Two-taco dinner — Taqueria Aurora, $7.25
Yes, it's called a dinner, and yes, it's perfect at noon: two tacos with rice and beans for $7.25. Pick your meat — pastor is $2.05 a taco, cabeza $1.95.
9. Torta sencilla — Taqueria Aurora, $6.99
The sencilla torta with choice of meat, beans, lettuce, tomato, cheese, and avocado is one of the cheapest sandwiches in either town — under seven dollars and it eats like a meal twice the price.
10. Giant quesadilla — Taqueria Aurora, $3.99
The single cheapest real lunch on this list: a giant quesadilla for $3.99, or $2.95 with meat added. At these prices you could double it and still be under ten.
11. B.M.T. — Subway (Aurora), $8.98
The Italian B.M.T. showed up at $8.98 on the Aurora DoorDash storefront menu — delivery-app prices run higher than the counter, so ordering in person should come in under that. A solid fallback when the taqueria line is out the door.
How to keep lunch under $10 (the pattern)
- Walk in, don't deliver. Delivery apps mark up prices and add fees — the Jimmy John's and Subway entries above are cheaper at the counter.
- Order the small size. The Noodles & Company small bowl, El Famous mini, and Portillo's regular dog are all deliberately sized for lunch.
- Skip the drink. Fountain drinks are $3–4 now; water keeps a $7 sandwich a $7 lunch.
- Aurora taquerias beat Naperville chains on value. If you're near the Elmwood corridor, the sub-$8 items at Taqueria Aurora are the best cheap lunch near Naperville, period.
FAQ
Where can I get lunch under $10 in Naperville?
Portillo's ($3.99 hot dog), Noodles & Company ($4.49 small mac & cheese), Jimmy John's (~$7.99 Turkey Tom), El Famous Burrito (mini burrito $8.29), and Chipotle (burrito bowl ~$8–10) all come in under ten dollars with verified menu prices.
What's the cheapest lunch in Aurora?
Taqueria Aurora's giant quesadilla at $3.99 is the cheapest verified lunch we found in either town; their torta sencilla ($6.99), two-taco dinner ($7.25), and pollo burrito ($7.75) are all under eight.
Are these prices current?
All prices were verified against public menus between late September and October 1, 2026. Restaurants change prices — confirm at the counter before ordering.
Do these count as affordable lunch "near me" if I'm in downtown Naperville?
Portillo's on Ogden, Noodles & Company and Chipotle downtown, and Jimmy John's on Gartner are all a short drive from the Riverwalk. Pair lunch with a walk on the Naperville Riverwalk, and check the Naperville events page or the Aurora events page for what's on this week.
Know a cheap lunch we missed?
Tip us off — we verify every tip before it goes live
Spotted a lunch under $10 in Naperville or Aurora that isn't on this list? Send it in. Every tip is checked against a real menu before it's published — nothing goes live on a stranger's word alone.
Sources & verification. Details verified October 1, 2026 against restaurant menus and public menu listings (11 sources read); hours and prices change — confirm before heading out.