Local Restaurant Named One of the ‘Top 10 Best Cheap Eats in the U.S.'

Local Restaurant Named One of the ‘Top 10 Best Cheap Eats in the U.S.’

August 8, 2024

You don’t need to empty your wallet to enjoy a meal in Tucson! We occasionally share “Eating on the Cheap” articles featuring some of our favorite deals in town, but sometimes local, inexpensive bites get national attention.

CashNetUSA did a little digging and identified the top-rated low-cost restaurants in every state. They threw together a list for 2024 and ranked budget-friendly eateries by their five-star rating on Yelp in more than 500 U.S. cities.

Here in Tucson, Raptor Canyon Cafe at 75 E. Pennington St. made it into the top 10!

Raptor Canyon Cafe (Photo credit: Jackie Tran)

10 Highest-Rated Spots for Cheap Eats

“We checked out budget eateries in 500 American cities to find the best spots in the country,” said Matt Pelkey of CashNetUSA. “The highest rated in the land is Lola’s Kitchen in Hampton, New Hampshire, with an average rating of 4.97 stars.”

Raptor Canyon Cafe’s rating is a sweet 4.90 stars.

Birds of Passage

The Calello family opened Raptor Canyon Cafe in September 2018.

Dennis and Konni are originally from New Jersey, following their kids to Tucson. When they decided to open Raptor Canyon Cafe, they made sure it remained a family-run restaurant with a focus on scratch-made home cooking.

The name Raptor Canyon came from their love of birds of prey and is symbolic of the family’s move/migration westward.

Interior at Raptor Canyon Cafe (Credit: Jackie Tran)

The breakfast and lunch menus are birds of a feather, so to speak — everything is homemade. Raptor Canyon has something for most folks, from breakfast sandwiches and burritos in the morning to wraps, salads, plates, pasta, and even a dedicated mac and cheese menu for lunch.

The cafe is currently open from 7 a.m. – 2 p.m. on Monday – Friday (subject to change, as always).

Raptor Canyon Cafe is located at 75 E. Pennington St. For more information, call (520) 336-5698 or visit raptorcanyoncafe.com.

Read our February 2020 article, “Warming Hearts with Home-Style Cooking.”

For more cheap eats around the U.S., visit cashnetusa.com.

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Article By

Matt Sterner

At a very young age, Matt Sterner was gifted with the artistic ability to masterfully roll a burrito to the highest of standards, but the wrapped medley of delicious innards wasn’t his first love. Matt’s first true love was a combination of reading, writing, and creating. He grew up reading comics, the ingredients list of his shampoo and conditioner bottles, choose-your-own-adventure books, and the Scrabble dictionary — something he found useful when challenging his grandmother to a game.

He attended college at New Mexico State University and graduated with a degree in Digital Filmmaking. One of his favorite classes was screenwriting because he became responsible for the story’s birth before it came to life on-screen. After school, Matt took on numerous positions at a local television station in Tucson. From dealing out stories about heartbreak to producing “fluffier” content for a lifestyle broadcast, he learned what it takes to adapt to the many emotions the world of media can stir. Since 2017, Matt has dabbled in the culinary world of Tucson as well as San Diego, California from time to time.

If you’re in the mood for strange stories, head over to his pride and joy, wonkytimes.com. And in case you’re curious — yes, after all of this time, he still manages to roll a killer burrito.

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