(pic. Nikki Hobin)

by Sally Hammond

Eating well on the go doesn't have to break the bank. Self-driving to save costs makes sense, but eating out as well? How much of a hole in the pocket can that make?

Recently, our friends, Martin and Nikki with their five-year-old daughter, made a several-month lap around the western half of Australia in their campervan, returning to Sydney through the centre of the country via Uluru. They always knew petrol was going to be a major expense, but buying meals every day was not an option either.

While cooking on-site became their main way of eating on the road, they also wanted to enjoy the occasional experience of being away from household chores. And that's where they had to become even more adventurous, especially in the outback.

In her blog, written to keep friends up-to-date on their wanderings, Nikki talks about some great meal-deals they enjoyed (often on tip-offs from other campers) as they travelled south from Darwin to Adelaide.

At Mataranka Homestead, 112km south of Katherine, and famous for it's connection to the movie We of the Never, Never she writes: "The lure of roast pork at the bistro is too much for Marty so our late arrival becomes a perfect excuse to eat here". With a full roast or home made meat pie for $14.50, you can see why.

At Ininti Café in the Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park Cultural Centre they met Te, the chef, who makes pizzas from scratch for $4 a slice, and serves up whopping serves of pasta for $7.50. 

Other travellers (including road-train drivers) who pilot their massive rigs up and down the centre of the country, often in blistering heat conditions, regularly schedule a stop at Renner Springs Desert Inn on the Stuart Highway north of Tennant Creek. Here the $12 steak sandwiches are legendary, sometimes called 'a 600-mile sandwich' because they say they'll 'keep you going until Darwin', 820km away. There are made-on-site barramundi pies too.

Barramundi is indigenous to the Northern Territory, and is caught in many rivers. At Daly Waters Hotel, the Territory's oldest pub, its bar cluttered with memorabilia and whacky items left by passing travellers, the Barra Burger is $11.50 and the nightly steak and barri (barramundi) BBQ is worth stopping overnight for.

In the Top End, tourists know to head for The Roma Bar, 9-11 Cavenagh St, Darwin, for lunch specials, $15, and true-blue Aussie burgers, $9.50, or else the colourful Mindil Beach Markets for low-cost Asian-influenced takeaway under the stars.

Almost 400kms over the border in South Australia, the Walters encountered the rough and ready opal centre of Coober Pedy. This town of dugout accommodation, excavated to beat the scalding heat, has another gem - award-winning John's Pizza Bar & Restaurant. Here they bought lamb yiros and hamburgers $8.50, salads for $10, and pizzas from $12.

South Australia is known as a food-loving state, and nowhere is this more apparent than at Adelaide's Central Market selling all the picnic makings you could dream of: cheeses, rustic breads, sausages, salads and oysters. Open from Tuesday to Saturday, the best place to head for low-cost meals is the Asian food court. Asian Gourmet, stall WR6 serves up fantastic Asian specialties, and Taldy-Kurgan, Stall 3, makes tasty and filling Russian piroshki from Central Asia, for $3.50 each.

Nearby Hong Fat BBQ at 75 Grote Street, and Dumpling King at 85 Grote Street are local low-cost recommendations. They are popular so be prepared for a short wait as you get hungrier inhaling all those scrumptious aromas.

Or take a walk in the city to discover the last remaining Pie Carts, which have been named a State Icon. Set up in street locations, they have been around since the 1860s serving 'pie floaters' (around $6). The deal is they upturn a meat pie onto a plate of green pea mush, and top it with tomato sauce. Not to everyone's taste, but it's a cultural must-do.

In the lovely winelands of the Barossa Valley, at Maggie Beer's Farm Shop the $15 'picnic boxes' are big enough to share. Each contains products from the kitchens of this popular icon of the Barossa, such as pate and cheese, bread rolls, salad, condiments and more. Eaten outside on the cafés waterside deck, in the sun, life could hardly get better.

It's hard to believe but many Australians have not visited Tasmania. This jewel of a state is food-rich and food-loving. Not surprisingly, given the cold waters that surround this island, the seafood is excellent.

If visitors do just one thing in Hobart, they should buy some fish and chips from the fish punts moored at Constitution Dock. The punts are like floating food-stalls, some with seating on the decks, and the fresh offerings are chalked up on menu boards on the dock as the catch comes in.

Weekends, visit Salamanca Markets (www.salamanca.com.au), a Saturday institution in Hobart, for food stalls and fresh produce.

Rita, creator of Rita's Bite blog, has been keeping her practised eye on food all around Tasmania for a decade. She recommends Mures Lower Deck also at the dock, for seafood freshly caught by Mures' own boats. Fish of the day is priced from $12.90, and oysters from $10.90 half dozen.

Another favourite of hers is The Red Velvet Lounge in Cygnet. "It is head and shoulders above anywhere else for food quality," she says. "Owner/chef Steve Cumper sources as much of his products as he can from local growers/producers. Also his servings are very generous!"

In Launceston, her advice for "either the basis of typical northern Tasmanian produce to compile your own meal, or some freshly made onsite takeaway ready-to-go restaurant quality takeaway meals" is to visit Alps and Amici.

Across 'the ditch', New Zealand excites visitors for many reasons - especially the food. In the North island, Auckland and Wellington have a wide range of dining establishments, including many that would fit most budgets.

But here is a tip from NZ friend. "New Zealand Greenshell Mussels are available live in North Island supermarkets," she says. "Plus frozen in half-shell and meat formats throughout Australia. Ideal for low-cost self-catering meals."

If your accommodation does not come with a kitchen, Degree Gastrobar, 204 Quay Street, Auckland has $13 Express Menu evening specials, including 1kg mussels between 5-10pm Mondays.

When visiting New Zealand's north island these two sites for Auckland and Wellington are also useful.

Budget does not have to mean boring. Think creatively and low-cost dining may well become the highlight of your trip.

DID YOU KNOW?

Five New Zealand Greenshell Mussels provide almost 100 percent of daily iodide and selenium needs, a third of daily protein needs, and over eight times daily Vitamin B12 needs.

Finding out where to go in country areas: Local Visitor Information Centres provide insider knowledge of budget places to eat and pick up local dining guides.

So what is your favourite budget meal around Australia or New Zealand?