no-frills dining

4.1

Simple restaurant food that costs little and has few extras

noun
/noʊ frɪlz ˈdaɪnɪŋ/

: comida sin lujos

If you're looking for value, this place offers no-frills dining with generous portions.

Examples

Many students prefer no-frills dining options when they're on a tight budget.
The casual café specializes in no-frills dining that's both quick and affordable.
I prefer no-frills dining when traveling.
The restaurant offers no-frills dining at affordable prices.
The new cafe focuses on no-frills dining, serving only basic sandwiches and coffee.
For those on a budget, this restaurant offers no-frills dining without the distraction of fancy decor.
If you're looking for a quick meal, head to this place known for its no-frills dining experience.

Antonyms

fine dining

14 3.9

A special, fancy meal at a high quality restaurant

gourmet meal

5 4.9

A meal made with very good ingredients and careful cooking

How Fancy

fine dining

14 3.9

no-frills dining

4.1

fast food

111 1.0

Surface Forms

no-frills dining singular

no-frills dinings plural

Morphology

no-frills + dining

The meaning is directly compositional: 'no-frills' = without unnecessary extras and 'dining' = eating/restaurant service, so together they denote simple/basic eating without luxuries. This construction follows a common modifier+noun pattern and is cross-linguistically transparent, so a B1 learner who knows the constituents will readily infer the meaning.

Etymology

The noun no-frills dining comes from the idea of frills as small decorations or fancy extras, such as ribbons on clothes or garnishes on food, so no-frills means 'without extras'. That's why no-frills dining describes eating that is plain and basic, with simple food and few extras to keep the price low.