Cringila pub’s $12 lunch menu wins NSW Best Cheap Eats

Sometimes it pays to be cheap, or at least offer cheap, quality meals in a cost of living crisis.

Five Islands Hotel in Cringila, south of Wollongong, has taken out the Australian Hotel Association NSW’s Best Cheap Eats (under $20) award for doing just that.

Buoyed by the success of the hotel’s menu, licensee Nathan Goode is now urging other venues to rethink their pricing as cost-of-living pressures bite.

Goode told Yahoo Lifestyle that the cost of living was a “massive issue for the majority of people” and said the pub was proud to offer patrons an escape from it.

“Hospitality venues need to provide offerings that give the guests a reason to go out,” he said.

“One of our offerings is to provide a good pub feed at a great price. We’ve been doing this for over three years.”

Twelve dishes, $12 each

The winning lunch menu runs Monday to Saturday from noon to 3pm and features 12 dishes priced at $12. Options include chicken schnitzel, vegetarian nachos, bangers and mash, and fish and chips.

The standout is a 200-gram “Hot Rok” rump steak, which Goode said sells out most days.

“It’s pretty hard to get a steak, chips and salad with gravy for $12 anywhere these days. It can’t be beat,” he added.

Outside the lunch deal, the same steak sells for $29 to $31, the burger rises to $19, the schnitzel to $21 and fish and chips to $29.

While many pubs run single-item specials such as Taco Tuesdays or Thursday schnitzels, few offer a dozen discounted meals at the one price point.

Back-to-back success

The venue also won the category in 2024 and was Highly Commended in 2025.

Goode declined to reveal how the pub holds its prices while others are lifting theirs, saying only: “It starts at the beginning with our suppliers, all the way through to the execution onto the plate for our guests.”

Industry cost pressures

The win comes as dining-out costs continue to climb. It is widely reported that $40 schnitzels could be on the horizon. Meanwhile, one Perth diner recently complained about paying $91 for a pizza, a pint, a steak sandwich and a ginger beer, including a Sunday surcharge.

CBRE research analyst Katya Ezhova told Development Ready that labour shortages, rising rents and produce prices, and tighter regulations were driving up costs.

Jonathan Jackson, 9th November 2026