As incoming freshmen, navigating through campus, making friends, staying awake in your classes and eating are all major parts of your first year experience.

There are several restaurants right here in Hayward where you can enjoy a “sit-down” meal with your friends all for under ten bucks!

While this article isn’t going to name them all, it can serve as your guide to a few that you and your buddies can check out.

Bronco Billy’s

The two best things about this restaurant is that not only is it located right behind the campus, but it also gives a 15 percent discount to students. You can grab a pizza with whatever toppings you want, one slice is big enough to feed two people. They also have wings, sandwiches and salads too.

La Piñata

This is a Mexican restaurant located on Foothill Blvd. in Hayward. This restaurant offers a huge variety of dishes, including nachos, flautas, enchiladas, tacos, camarones a la plancha and fajitas. On Sunday mornings, there is even a buffet style brunch.

Jay’s Fish & Chips

In the mood for seafood? This spot is also on Foothill Blvd. and most dishes are under $10. They have catfish, salmon, scallops, oysters, calamari, BBQ, burgers and a variety of different combination plates.

Thai Garden

This place has been around for almost 20 years and has even been recognized as one of the best Thai restaurants in the Bay Area. Lunch dishes range from $6.95-$8.95. They serve a variety of curry dishes, beef and seafood meals and different pan fried noodles.

Casper’s Famous Hot Dogs

This is a family owned and operated quick-serve style restaurant. They have been on the scene since 1934 and are home to the award-winning “Casper Dog,” an old fashioned street vendor-like hot dog topped with all the fixings. They also have Cajun links, chicken, polish and junior dogs. There is something for everyone.

Tandoor Indian

A few popular dishes here are the butter chicken (boneless tandoori chicken in tomato, butter and secret spices), goat curry and chicken tikka masala. Tandoor’s specialties are fish pakoras and tandoori chicken. All dishes are relatively inexpensive.

Mr. Phở

This is a Vietnamese and vegetarian restaurant where almost everything on the menu is under $8, with plenty of beef, chicken, rice and egg noodle soups. Also, there’s a nice variety of stir fry combinations and rice vermicelli. Some of the “hot” picks here are the fried egg rolls and lemon pepper chicken wings.

Tin Fu

Right down the street from the campus on Harder Rd, you can get a lunch big enough for two people with just $5.95 at Tin Fu. It has been characterized as a great hole in the wall for Chinese food. This is a family-owned restaurant that gets a lot of praise for their Mongolian chicken, General Tsao’s chicken and their honey walnut prawns.

Hometown Buffet

If you and your buddies can’t decide on a place to eat, then maybe a buffet is the perfect solution. It’s open for lunch, dinner and of course dessert. Some of the everyday dishes include macaroni and cheese, chicken, fish, mashed potatoes, fries, veggies, stuffing, different homemade soups and a salad bar. On Saturdays and Sundays there is an extensive breakfast selection and the best part is no matter how much you eat, it is all one price. You can try a little bit of everything!