Good meals for $10 or less Pat Bruno: The cost of eating out keeps going up. Sure, you can hit one or two of the major chains and fill up for a bit less, but that's not going to do it in the long run (read: boring). So, you might ask, what are my options? Folks, take a fling at a neighborhood joint, where the food is more connected to fine than faux, the quality is high, and the prices are low.