Politecnico di Torino hosts over 37,000 students, 19% of them international from more than 100 countries — roughly 7,000 international students, according to the Politecnico di Torino International Students page. That is a lot of hungry fuorisede (out-of-town students) who have already mapped the cheapest lunch in the city. Here are seven of their spots.
Where do Politecnico students eat cheapest?
The honest answer is the mensa — the university canteen. EDISU Piemonte (the regional body for student welfare, Ente per il Diritto allo Studio Universitario) runs canteens where a full tray costs €2.50 in the lowest income bracket, rising to €3.60, €4.60, €5.40 and a €7.35 full rate, according to EDISU tables cited by Alter.POLIS. Price depends on your ISEE, the means-tested income index Italy uses for student benefits.
The main Politecnico canteen sits at Corso Castelfidardo 30/A, has 400 seats, and serves lunch 11:30–14:30 and dinner 19:00–20:30 Monday to Saturday, according to the EDISU Castelfidardo Politecnico Canteen page. You pay through the Campus Piemonte ID Meal app. A full meal for €2.50, a two-minute walk from class — nothing off campus beats it.
Nearest campus: Politecnico main campus (on-site). Price: €2.50–€7.35. Vibe: loud, fast, functional.
Junior Grill: a full lunch tray in San Salvario
📷 Marco Cassé / Pexels
When you want the canteen experience without a student card, Self Service Junior Grill on Via Carlo Marochetti 7 in San Salvario is the local move. A complete lunch — primo (first course), secondo (second course), side, dessert or fruit, water, bread, wine and coffee — comes to around €12, according to TripAdvisor reviews from January 2025 and a Vivotorino listing updated September 2024.
Order à la carte and it drops fast: first courses are reported at around €3 and second courses at around €5. A primo plus water and bread lands comfortably under €7. It is lunch only — Monday to Friday 11:45–14:00, Saturday 12:00–14:00 — so it fits a class-day schedule, not a late night.
Nearest campus: Politecnico (San Salvario is roughly a 15-minute walk). Price: ~€3 primo, ~€12 full tray. Vibe: working-lunch, no frills.
Is pizza al taglio the cheapest real meal in Turin?
📷 Max Fischer / Pexels
For most students, yes. Pizza al taglio (pizza sold by the slice, priced by weight) is the default when the canteen is closed. In student areas a slice runs around €2.50, and two slices is considered a standard meal, according to Weekend in Turin's budget guide — so a full lunch for roughly €5.
If you want something more of a destination, Taglio on Largo IV Marzo 17/c in the centre serves organic pizza by the slice, with an average spend around €4 per small slice, according to TripAdvisor's Taglio listing (rated 4.4/5 across 293 reviews). It is open daily for lunch and evening, and Friday–Saturday until 02:00 — the late-night slice after San Salvario.
Nearest campus: UniTo Palazzo Nuovo / city centre. Price: €2.50–€4 per slice. Vibe: grab-and-go by day, post-bar by night.
What is gofri, and where do I try it cheap?
Gofri are crispy honeycomb waffles — a proper Piedmontese street food, served savoury or sweet. They are the local answer to "I want something regional that isn't a €15 pasta." Gofreria Piemonteisa on Via San Tommaso 7, near the corner of Via Barbaroux in the centro, is the spot students name.
A filled savoury gofre — think turkey, crescenza cheese and rocket — costs around €6.50, according to TripAdvisor reviews and the venue's own site. That is one warm, filling item for under €7, made to order. Hours are Tuesday–Friday 11:30–15:30 and Saturday–Sunday 11:30–17:30, closed Monday. It is a snack-forward stop rather than a sit-down meal, so treat it as lunch-on-the-move between lectures.
Nearest campus: UniTo / city centre. Price: ~€6.50 filled savoury. Vibe: quick, regional, walkable.
Can you eat at Mercato Centrale on a student budget?
Mostly the food hall is a splurge, but a few stalls fit €7. Mercato Centrale Torino, next to Porta Palazzo, is a 4,500 sqm indoor hall with 23 artisan stalls. It is not a budget destination overall — but the cheapest items work, according to a Tiportoalristorante review dated July 2026: a hot dog runs €3, a panino with salamelle and peppers €4–5, a trapizzino €4, and a beer €2.50.
So the play is disciplined: one hot street-food item plus water, and you are under €7 in a space that feels like a proper night out. Ignore the sit-down seafood counters — those are the ones that blow the budget. Think of it as the treat version of a canteen lunch, not the everyday one.
Nearest campus: near Porta Palazzo (a tram ride from both campuses). Price: €3–€5 for the cheap items. Vibe: buzzy food hall, easy to overspend.
The two hacks: aperitivo dinner and the market
Two tricks stretch a Turin food budget further than any single restaurant. The first is apericena — aperitivo plus a buffet dinner. You buy one drink and get access to an unlimited buffet, typically €8–10 in student districts, with buffets running roughly 19:30 to 21:00–22:00, according to the Turin Italy Guide aperitivo guide. San Salvario, the main student bar district about 15 minutes' walk from the Politecnico, is where you find these. One drink, dinner sorted — just over €7, and it is social.
The second is cooking. Porta Palazzo on Piazza della Repubblica is Europe's largest open-air market, with over 1,000 vendors, open Monday–Friday 07:00–14:00 and Saturday 07:00–19:00, closed Sunday, according to the Città di Torino market page. Late-morning produce prices there beat any supermarket. The Politecnico itself estimates a €200–300 monthly food budget including occasional dinners out, according to its cost-of-living page — and Porta Palazzo is how students stay at the low end of that.
How much should a month of eating in Turin cost?
Budget €200–300 a month for food, which is the range the Politecnico states officially. If you lean on the canteen and cook from Porta Palazzo, you sit near the bottom of it; if you eat out most nights, you push the top.
Here is a rough weekday: canteen lunch €2.50, a market-bought dinner cooked at home, and one apericena on the weekend around €8–10. Add a GTT under-26 transport pass at €25/month — unlimited bus, tram and metro, according to the GTT fares page — and your whole daily-life cost stays predictable. Food is rarely what stretches a student in Turin. Rent is. Which brings us to the part worth planning first.
Where your money actually goes: rent, not lunch
A €2.50 canteen meal is generous. A fair room is the thing that decides whether Turin is affordable. Before you obsess over lunch, get the room right — it is 20–30 times the monthly cost of everything on this list combined. Read Italy Rental Prices 2026: Are You Paying a Fair Price, or Are You Getting Ripped Off? before you sign anything, and learn to spot a bad listing with Rental Scams: How to Spot Them in 2026 and Protect Yourself.
When you do search for a room, use a platform where owners and seekers talk directly. Full disclosure: Coinquilino is our app, a free platform in Italy for finding rooms and roommates. Sort out the room, get your paperwork moving, and the €7 dinners take care of themselves. If you are new to the system, Get Your Codice Fiscale in Italy: Erasmus Guide 2026 is the first step most students miss.
How much does a full meal at the university canteen cost?
A complete meal — first course, second, side and fruit — starts at €2.50 for students in the lowest ISEE income bracket, rising through €3.60, €4.60 and €5.40 to a €7.35 full rate, according to EDISU tables cited by Alter.POLIS. Your price depends on your ISEE, so submit it when you enrol.
Can international students use the EDISU canteens?
Yes. EDISU canteens serve all enrolled students, with the price set by your ISEE bracket. You pay through the Campus Piemonte ID Meal app, and the main Politecnico canteen at Corso Castelfidardo 30/A seats 400, per the EDISU location page.
What is the cheapest way to eat if I skip the canteen?
Pizza al taglio. A slice in student areas runs around €2.50, and two slices is a standard meal, according to Weekend in Turin — so roughly €5 for lunch. Gofri at around €6.50 and Mercato Centrale's €3–5 street-food items are the next cheapest sit-down-ish options.
Is San Salvario good for cheap student food?
Yes — it is the main student bar and aperitivo district, about a 15-minute walk from the Politecnico. Apericena there runs €8–10 for a drink plus unlimited buffet, according to the Turin Italy Guide, which makes one drink double as dinner.
How much should I budget for food per month in Turin?
The Politecnico's official cost-of-living page states €200–300 a month for food, including occasional dinners out. Leaning on the €2.50 canteen and cooking from Porta Palazzo keeps you near the bottom of that range.
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This article was produced with the help of AI tools and reviewed by the Coinquilino editorial team.
