The best British food in London
We’re quite spoilt in London; we can try almost any cuisine, with the best ingredients, often sourced directly from specialist suppliers, when our hearts desire. These places are on our high streets, among the bright lights of Soho, hiding under railway arches or at the end of a tube line.
But what our city also does, arguably better than many, is put British ingredients on a pedestal – and these places deserve their own spot on the podium, too.
40 Maltby Street
There’s a rustic feeling to 40 Maltby Street, tucked away as it is under a Victorian railway arch, with a menu written on a blackboard.. The dishes are made to celebrate “the produce of this island” and the menu changes weekly.
They make British and seasonal feel experimental, with highlights such as pumpkin custard on the dessert menu and cauliflower cheese croquettes served with hot sauce for starters.
It’s a no-reservation type of spot, but you can browse the Wine Shop in situ and buy a tipple while you wait, and enjoy when you get home.
Bermondsey, SE1 | 40maltbystreet.com
St. JOHN
Not to worry if you missed the restaurant’s recent 30th celebrations – when it dropped its menu prices back to what they were in 1994, when the roast bone marrow and parsley salad was £4.20 instead of today’s £16 – the original Smithfield location is still a must-try.
The menu focuses on nose-to-tail cooking, as it always has done, and the wine list ages like fine wine. Splash out and sip on a magnum of St. JOHN Crémant with friends.
If you don’t have room for dessert, take a slow end to your meal and add on a 15-minute wait for half a dozen madeleines to snack on en route home.
Farringdon, EC1M | stjohnrestaurant.com
The Pelican
The Pelican is what all great pubs should be; solidifying their spot in the community as a place for fun, for gathering, and for a menu that really knows itself. You can literally track the footprints of much of the menu. The Pelican carefully selects its suppliers, ensuring biodiversity and regenerative farming are at the forefront.
Bar snacks ooze British dining in a list that includes sausage rolls, Welsh rarebit, pork scratchings and Marrowfat peas with crisps and radish.
On the main menu, Carlingford oysters are available to slurp while the lobster and monkfish pie (got to be shared) is made to be indulged. This is classic fish pie – and indeed, classic British favourites – taken to a whole other level.
Notting Hill, W11 | thepelicanw11.com
The Quality Chop House
A pub with history, The Quality Chop House is over 150 years old – that’s a long time to spend mastering great dishes. Don’t let its age fool you, the menu ensures a contemporary spin on age-old dishes.
The menu is written up each day in the kitchen, based on the produce sourced from the local farms and suppliers the restaurant has worked with for years. As a teasing taste, you can expect ingredients like Yorkshire partridge, Devon crab and Brixham turbot. I’d be remiss not to mention the steaks and chops, which take around 40 minutes from ordering, but you can’t rush deliciousness now, can you?
Clerkenwell, EC1 | thequalitychophouse.com
Quo Vadis
Soho’s Quo Vadis, occupying a building whose previous incarnations include a brothel and former home of Karl Marx, has transformed the once home of ill-repute and revolutionaries into a fancy dining establishment.
Quo Vadis takes the role of stewarding excellent food and drink seriously. The dishes are seasonal and regional, with crisp white tablecloths reflecting the light from its stained glass windows.
Enjoy decadent British dishes here, from a smoked eel sandwich, an oyster or two, to a retro-lux pie or fish of the day in verdant green sauce. Whatever your selection, this is a menu that will leave you sated.
Soho, W1D | quovadissoho.co.uk
Brockley’s Rock
Nothing says great British food like fish and chips. As Brockley’s Rock demonstrates, you don’t have to be by the seaside to get a great battered sausage., Chips are hand-cut each morning at this long-standing fish and chip shop, and the fish is sustainably sourced and cooked to order.
All the sauces are homemade, so whether you like it with tartare or curry sauce, Brockley’s Rock has it covered. I’ll take mine with mushy peas and soaked in vinegar with a sprinkle of salt.
Brockley, SE4 | brockleysrock.co.uk
Sael
Sael may be named after the old English word for season, time and occasion, but this new St. James’s restaurant shows you don’t need a long history to offer exquisite food inspired by the Isles.
Snack on a love-it-or-hate-it marmite English custard tart. Try Orkney scallop with razor clams and smoked leeks to start, and tackle a 100-layer Hereford snail and ox cheek lasagne for the main.
But the star of the show has to be the chicken pie for two. You have to allow a bit of cooking time, but the Devon white chicken with New Forest mushroom duxelles, served with mash and chicken gravy, is everything you want from a pie – and more.
St. James’s, SE1Y | saellondon.com
Princess Victoria
The Prinny Vic was built as a gin palace in 1829, and it has kept that history alive stocking over 100 artisan and big-name gins. This Shepherd’s Bush spot homes in on small suppliers and free-range sourcing – making its roast dinners each Sunday particularly special.
And is there anything more British than a scotch egg served with coronation mayo for dipping?
Shepherd’s Bush, W12 | princessvictoria.co.uk
Café Britaly
A last one for luck; a place that brings you British classics but with an Italian twist – because I can’t help myself. Café Britaly merges the two cuisines to bring you a deep-fried pizzetta as a nod to Scotland’s deep-fried pizza crunch, or a full English breakfast but with fennel sausage and polenta bubble and squeak. A Britalian menu adds a touch of fun to classic dishes. Buono!
Peckham, SE15 | cafebritaly.com
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