New Asia, long a favorite for authentic Chinese food, also offers a solid lunch special.

Pop’s Comfort Kitchen in Bartlett has fried chicken livers with two sides and cornbread every Tuesday for $9.99. It also sells its chicken and dumplings by the gallon. 

Neil’s $8.95 home-cooking lunch special fits the $10 budget and if you’re not looking for that, you can find some mighty fine fresh onion rings there.

Happy Greek Café has plenty of economical choices, and you can’t go wrong with a hummus bowl topped with protein and a tangy little salad.

The crawfish étouffée is spicy, creamy and flavorful, the best of a bundle of good $10 (or less) bets at Parish Grocery.

These empanadas are large, well more than a handful each, about the size of a typical Southern fried pie. They’re sold from a food truck on North Germantown Parkway.

Las Delicias is a solid choice for Mexican food and a destination for guacamole and chips. It’s also a real bargain.

Pho Saigon has been sold, but it’s staying in the family and you can still get a hearty lunch for less than $10; try $7.99.

With empanadas, arepas, cachapas and more on the menu, Sabor Caribe has been a tasty Edge District anchor through a period of profound neighborhood change.

At $2 apiece, packed with beef and spice, Pop’s Tamales are one of the city’s best deals. And getting them, from Pop’s cash-only little Orange Mound shop, is an experience unto itself. 

Home-style cooking is served up quick and for $9.99, drink included, when you order the ‘fast lunch’ special at Wally Hatchet’s. 

Whether a hot plate of Papas con Chorizo y Huevos or a tray of sweet pan dulce, either pairs well with a cup of coffee at Caminos de Michoacan, perhaps the most breakfast-friendly Mexican restaurant in Memphis. 

In Cordova, you can find a $10 Deal for lunch on Monday at Friday Tuna.

The shrimp tempura special at Sakura, with soup and salad, might be one of the best lunch deals around. 

Corky’s has a $6.99 drive-thru special 10:30 a.m.-4 p.m. that includes a generous sandwich, an order of fries and a 32-ounce drink.

At Midtown’s Barksdale Restaurant, 10 bucks can get you a country ham & red-eye gravy platter, the kind of breakfast worth singing about.

Red sauce? Green sauce? Cheese sauce? El Gallo Giro on Lamar Avenue says, why choose?

Young Chow rice is a nostalgic and filling lunch or dinner at Golden City in Cordova, and the price tag is $8.50.

Sweet Pea’s Southern Cooking in Bartlett serves a nice vegetable plate and numerous lunch specials for less than $10.

A drive to the ’burbs for Thai food took a turn and it was burgers instead, but it was a good one at Memphis Mojo Café.

Emilio’s has been around since 1994 and claims to be the first store in Memphis to serve “authentic menudo, carnitas” and other items, including fresh specialty produce from Mexico and Latin America. The butcher counter is a contender for “best-kept secret in Memphis.”

RP Tracks has been around since 1987 and it’s not just home to the “world famous” BBQ tofu nachos, it also makes great french fries.

Panda Garden offers a lunch special with a selection of more than 20 meals, each under $10. The food is good, and the portions are generous.

A plate lunch with plenty of protein and vegetable options is available for $10 at Broadway Pizza for weekday lunch.

For $4, you can get a torta that’s roughly the size of a regular barbecue sandwich at a small taqueria on the edge of Bartlett.