🍊 Knoxville Meal Deals

Best Cheap Eats in Knoxville
Two People, Under $20

🍊 Knoxville  ·  17 verified deals  ·  Updated August 2026

Vol country eats like a Southern town that's been everywhere: Knoxville hot chicken and scratch soul food, a serious taqueria scene, the famous falafel at Yassin's, and UT-strip institutions open till the small hours. Two people can eat extremely well here for around $15 — leave room for a slice on the way out.

🍊 Local Knoxville Meal Deals

🧆 ✓ verified

Yassin's Falafel House

Falafel Wrap $8.24 · Gyro $9.38

Knoxville's famous, fiercely welcoming falafel house (once named the nicest place in America). Falafel wraps are $8.24, gyro sandwiches $9.38, and the generous shawarma and falafel plates ($12–16) easily feed two. Two eat for around $16–18, or share a plate. The downtown spot is temporarily at Marble City Market during construction.

📍 Knoxville, TN (Marble City Market)  ·  ⏳ Daily 11a–9p
🗺️ Map🌐 Site
🍗 ✓ verified

Jackie's Dream

Combo Meals $4.99–6.99

A scratch-made soul-food gem known for Knoxville hot chicken. Combo meals (sandwich, side and drink) run $4.99–$6.99, a 3-wing meal is $9.25, and hot-chicken plates start around $9 — and the portions are big enough for two or three. Two eat for around $14–18. Closed Mon & Tue.

📍 Knoxville, TN (1008 E Woodland Ave)  ·  ⏳ Wed–Sun (hours vary); closed Mon–Tue
🗺️ Map🌐 Site
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Elidio's Pizza

Cheese Slice $2.80 · 14" Pie $9.99

NY-style by the slice from a family that's been slinging pizza in Knoxville 40+ years (once on the Cumberland Strip, where it fed Peyton Manning). A cheese slice is $2.80, a combo slice $3.75, and a whole 14-inch cheese pie just $9.99 — two eat for well under $20. Calzones and strombolis too. Closed Sun.

📍 Knoxville, TN (Central Ave Pike)  ·  ⏳ Mon–Sat 11a–8p (closed Sun)
🗺️ Map🌐 Site
🌮 ✓ verified

Taqueria La Herradura

Best Tacos in Knoxville

A no-frills N. Broadway taqueria many locals call the best tacos in town — carne asada, homemade ranchero sauce, fresh and fast. Tacos run a few dollars each and a carne asada meal with a big horchata is a steal, so two eat for well under $20. Open daily 9a–10p.

📍 Knoxville, TN (N Broadway)  ·  ⏳ Daily 9a–10p
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Victor's Taco Shop

5 Rolled Tacos + Burrito $15

A San Diego–style taco shop on the Cumberland strip (UT) that regulars call insane value — Point-Loma-style rolled tacos and a California burrito. Five rolled tacos plus a breakfast burrito ran one diner $15; the California burrito is $10. Two eat for well under $20, and the phone rewards knock off $3–5. Open daily.

📍 Knoxville, TN (Cumberland Ave)  ·  ⏳ Daily 10a–10p
🗺️ Map🌐 Site
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Zalate Taqueria

Quesabirria · California Burrito

A North Knoxville taqueria with knockout quesabirria, a hold-it-in-one-hand California burrito, street corn and great horchata. Reasonable prices and generous portions mean two eat for well under $20. Don't judge it by the drab exterior. Closed Mon.

📍 Knoxville, TN (Stekoia Ln)  ·  ⏳ Tue–Sun (closed Mon)
🗺️ Map🌐 Site
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Nick & J's Cafe

Diner Breakfast & Burgers

A spotless, beloved West Knoxville diner (4.8★, 2,300+ reviews) with down-home breakfast, big burgers, and a New-York-worthy pastrami on rye. Portions are large and prices are diner-cheap, so two eat for around $18–20. Breakfast served all day. Closed Sun.

📍 Knoxville, TN (Lovell Rd)  ·  ⏳ Mon–Fri 7a–4p, Sat 8a–2p (closed Sun)
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Gus's Good Times Deli

Steamed Hoagies & Burgers

A UT institution since the '80s, slinging steamed hoagies, a hefty double cheeseburger and piled-high sandwiches to generations of Vols. Generous portions at college prices, open absurdly late (2–3am) — two eat for well under $20. A Cumberland-strip rite of passage.

📍 Knoxville, TN (Melrose Pl)  ·  ⏳ Daily till 2–3am
🗺️ Map🌐 Site
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Denton's Burgers & Fun Foods

Burgers · Philly · Frozen Orange

A Kingston Pike drive-up throwback for burgers, Philly cheesesteaks made with real cheese, Polish-sausage dogs and a cult-favorite frozen orange drink — like the fair, minus the admission. Cheap and generous, so two eat for well under $20. Open daily.

📍 Knoxville, TN (Kingston Pike)  ·  ⏳ Daily (Sun till 9p)
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Knox Bros

Halal Gyro Plates ~$10–13

A halal favorite (4.8★) drowning your gyro in white sauce on request — gyro plates and wraps run about $10–13, and they're open gloriously late (till 2–5am). Two eat for well under $20. The kind of warm, generous spot people drive an hour for.

📍 Knoxville, TN (E Summit Hill Dr)  ·  ⏳ Daily, late (till 2–5am)
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Hot Birds @ Marble City Market

Hot Chicken Sandwich ~$10–13

A Marble City Market stall (4.7★) that locals swear out-does Nashville on hot chicken — juicy sandwiches and tenders with a habanero level that's spicy but flavorful, plus killer fries and pickles. A sandwich runs about $10–13, so two eat for around $20 or under. Open daily.

📍 Knoxville, TN (Marble City Market)  ·  ⏳ Daily 11:30a–8p (later Fri–Sat)
🗺️ Map🌐 Site
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Billie Rae's BBQ Soul Food

Soul Food & BBQ Plates

An East Knoxville weekend tradition (4.7★) for soul food and BBQ — oxtails (get there before they sell out), chicken & dressing, turkey ribs, smoked mac, and chess banana pudding. Hearty, shareable plates; come hungry and two can eat well for around $20. Open Tuesday–Sunday.

📍 Knoxville, TN (E Magnolia Ave)  ·  ⏳ Tue–Sun (closed Mon)
🗺️ Map🌐 Site

💡 Pro tip: All deals are community-verified but prices and availability change. Always check the restaurant's website or app before making a special trip — and if something's expired, flag it on our main directory so we can update it.

📍 Regional Chains

Bigger than one storefront, smaller than the home-page national list — regional chains with real Knoxville addresses.

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Zaxby's

Big Zax Snak Meals ~$20 for Two · Nibblerz $5.29

The Athens, GA-born chicken-fingerz chain (~950 stores across 17 states) keeps seven Knoxville stores per its own directory — Crippen Rd, Clinton Hwy and N Cedar Bluff Rd among them — open to 11pm with pickup, delivery and curbside; verified July 2026. Prices from our same-day read at the chain's Dallas store: the Big Zax Snak Meal (chicken fingerz, crinkle fries, Texas toast, Zax sauce and a drink) was $9.99 — two meals right at twenty — and 2 Nibblerz (chicken sliders) $5.29 an order, two orders feeding two for about $11. Prices vary by store, so confirm on yours in the app.

📍 Knoxville, TN (7 locations)  ·  ⏳ Open to 11pm · check store pricing
🗺️ Map🌐 Menu📊 Prices
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Whataburger

Breakfast Whatameals 2 for $12.78 · Burger Whatameals 2 for $17.98

The Texas 24/7 burger institution — founded in Corpus Christi in 1950, now ~1,030 stores across 16 states — where two Knoxville stores — including Cumberland Ave on the UT strip: the two-for-under-$20 math runs both ways: the Taquito with Cheese Whatameal is $6.39 with hash brown sticks included — two full breakfasts for $12.78, served 11pm to 11am — and the flagship Whataburger Whatameal (burger, fries, drink) is $8.99, so two land at $17.98 any hour; the bacon biscuit sandwich is $4.49 solo. Prices read from the chain's own store-selected online menu in July 2026 — Whataburger only shows prices once you pick a store and they vary by market, so check yours. Open 24/7.

📍 Knoxville, TN (Cumberland Ave + Merchant Dr)  ·  ⏳ 24/7 · breakfast 11pm–11am
🗺️ Map🌐 Site📊 Prices
🍗 ✓ verified

Bojangles

$5 After-5pm 2pc Dinners — Two Eat for $10

The Charlotte-born Cajun-chicken-and-biscuits chain (1977, ~800 stores) serves nine Knoxville stores with chain-published app deals with the price in the name: the $5 after-5pm 2-piece dinner (two people eat for $10), the Cajun Filet Biscuit with Bo-Rounds for $5, and a $19.99 8-piece family meal that feeds more than two. Cajun-seasoned chicken, scratch-made buttermilk biscuits and the legendary sweet tea; deals run at participating stores via the app or online ordering — confirm at yours. Verified on the chain's own ordering site, July 2026.

📍 Knoxville, TN (9 locations)  ·  ⏳ $5 dinners after 5pm · app deals
🗺️ Map🌐 Order📊 Prices
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Cook Out

Two Cook Out Trays — $15–18 · 40+ Shakes

The Thomasville, NC-born drive-thru cult legend (~380 stores across 11 southern states) serves four Knoxville stores — Cumberland Ave on the UT strip, Kingston Pike, Cedar Bluff and Parkside Dr — the famous Cook Out Tray: an entrée (burgers, BBQ, chicken tenders, quesadillas), two sides — a whole corn dog counts as a side — and a big drink, running about $7.50–9 depending on market, so two trays land at $15–18 with room for a couple of the 40-plus milkshake flavors. Cook Out publishes no prices online and takes no online orders — tray figures come from recent store boards, so confirm at the window. Drive-thru, open past 3am most nights.

📍 Knoxville, TN (4 locations)  ·  ⏳ Open to 3–4am · drive-thru
🗺️ Map🌐 Site📊 Prices
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Jet's Pizza

$5 Off Any Specialty Pizza Online — Medium All Meaty $17.87

The Detroit-style original — Sterling Heights, Michigan, 1978, the chain that made the buttery, caramel-crusted square a national thing — serves Knoxville from Farragut, at 11124 Kingston Pike. The play is the $5 Off Any Specialty Pizzas deal built into the chain's online ordering menu: a medium All Meaty (pepperoni, ham, Italian sausage, bacon, hamburger) listed at $22.87 on our August 2026 read at the chain's Denver store and rang up $17.87 with the deal applied — under the line with room for tax, and a medium is eight big slices, plenty for two. It's a deals-menu item so it can rotate out — and if it does, texting your order to your store takes 15% off menu-priced pizza. Prices vary by store, so run the math at yours before checkout.

📍 Farragut, TN (11124 Kingston Pike)  ·  ⏳ Online ordering deal · limited time
🗺️ Map🌐 Menu📊 Prices

🇺🇸 Also Valid Nationwide

These chain deals work anywhere in the country, including Knoxville.

🚒 ✓ verified

Firehouse Subs

Two $5 Snackers — $10.75 · Born in Jacksonville 1994

Jacksonville's biggest food export reaches here too: founded in 1994 by two firefighter brothers, now 1,200+ stores — and its own locator lists 8 stores inside Knoxville. The $5 Firehouse Snackers (BLT, Cordon Bleu, Sweet & Spicy Ham, Turkey Jalapeño half-subs) feed two for $10.75 all-in, and two small 4-inch Hook & Ladders run $12.78. The 8-inch mediums most people order run $10-plus — the only medium pair that stays near the line is the build-your-own ham or turkey. Priced on the chain's own ordering system at its Jacksonville San Marco store, July 2026 — prices vary by store, so confirm at yours.

📍 Knoxville, TN (8 locations)  ·  ⏳ Two eat from $10.75 · varies by store
🗺️ Map🌐 Site📊 Prices
🧀 ✓ verified

Buffalo Wild Wings

Pick 6 — Meal for Two from $19.99

The Pick 6 lets two people build a shared meal — choose six items across wings, tenders, and sides — starting around $19.99. A reliable two-for-$20 play at any BWW. Dine-in or takeout; pricing varies slightly by market.

📍 Nationwide  ·  ⏳ Ongoing
🗺️ Map🌐 Site
🍳 ✓ verified

Cracker Barrel

Early Dinner Deals — From $8.99

Mon–Fri 4–6pm, dine-in: smaller-portion favorites — Chicken n' Dumplins, Meatloaf, Fried Homestyle Chicken — from $8.99, so two people eat a full country dinner for under $20.

📍 Cedar Bluff & Merchants Dr + more  ·  ⏳ Mon–Fri 4–6pm
🗺️ Map🌐 Site

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