Londoners eat where the cooking has a point of view and the room has a regular crowd. In practice that means a pie and mash shop that has fed Hoxton since 1900, a chippy near the Inns of Court that fries in beef dripping, and pub kitchens that butcher their own meat. Add Sri Lankan hoppers at Rambutan by Borough Market. We send friends to these eleven first.
The short list
11 places, in the order they appear below.
- 1F. CookePie, mash and eelsHoxton Street
- 2The Fryer's DelightCash-only fish and chips at lunchTheobalds Road
- 3Quality Chop HousePlain British cooking in a Victorian roomFarringdon Road
- 4Pig and ButcherSunday roast, in-house butcheryLiverpool Road
- 5The Camberwell ArmsPub dinner, chalkboard specialsCamberwell
- 6AgoraWalk-in souvla and flatbreadBedale Street
- 7RambutanHoppersBorough Market
- 8KilnWalk-in Thai counterBrewer Street
- 9PalomarCounter dinner near the theatresRupert Street
- 10BrawnNatural wine and Parmesan frittersColumbia Road
- 11Violet CakesCake and coffee in the morningHackney
Where can you still eat pie and mash or fish and chips in London?
Pie and mash means Hoxton Street, where F. Cooke has served pie, mash, eels and green parsley liquor since 1900; the founding family still runs it. Theobalds Road has one of the last old-school chippies in central London. The Fryer’s Delight has fried in beef dripping there since 1962. And if you want a sit-down Victorian room, the Quality Chop House on Farringdon Road has been open since 1869.
F. Cooke’s marble counters, tiled walls and wooden benches have barely changed. New to eels? Start with them stewed, which is gentler in texture than jellied. The liquor comes free, so ask for extra.
F. Cooke
Hours: Mon closed · Tue–Fri 11:00–17:00 · Sat 10:00–18:00 · Sun closed
Address: 150 Hoxton St, London N1 6SH
The Fryer’s Delight is cash only, with formica tables. The lunch queue mixes barristers, couriers and office workers who have been coming for years. Look for skate wing on the day’s list. Order less than you think: portions are bigger than they look from the counter.
The Fryer's Delight
Hours: Mon–Sat 11:00–21:00 · Sun closed
Address: 19 Theobalds Rd, London WC1X 8SL
Church pew seats and dark wood panelling set the scene at the Quality Chop House, and the British cooking is plain and careful. Everyone wants the confit potatoes, so get two portions. Next door, the wine shop stocks the restaurant’s list and will help you pick a bottle to take away.
Quality Chop House
Hours: Mon 18:00–21:45 · Tue–Fri 12:00–14:15, 18:00–21:45 · Sat 12:00–14:30, 18:00–21:45 · Sun 12:00–15:30
Address: 92-94 Farringdon Rd, London EC1R 3EA
Which London pubs have kitchens worth the trip?
For food, we’d pick two. The Pig and Butcher on Liverpool Road, in North London, breaks down whole carcasses in its own butchery. The Camberwell Arms is a Georgian pub on Camberwell Church Street with a seasonal British menu cooked in a kitchen at the back.
All the Pig and Butcher’s butchery happens on site, and the best plates are often the off-menu specials made from secondary cuts. Phone ahead to ask what was broken down that week. Sunday roast tables go about two weeks out.
Pig and Butcher
Hours: Mon–Fri 12:00–23:00 · Sat 09:00–23:00 · Sun 11:30–22:00
Address: 80 Liverpool Rd, London N1 0QD
The Camberwell Arms still has its original pub features. Its Sunday roast is a Southwark institution and sells out by Saturday evening. Come another day and the chalkboard will usually list a cut prepared for that service. The double-cooked chips arrive properly salted.
The Camberwell Arms
Hours: Mon 17:00–23:00 · Tue–Thu 12:00–23:00 · Fri–Sat 12:00–23:30 · Sun 13:00–18:00
Address: 65 Camberwell Church St, London SE5 8TR
What should you eat around Borough Market?
Rambutan, on Stoney Street steps from the market entrance, cooks northern Sri Lankan food with its roots in Jaffna: hoppers, crisp kottu roti scattered with egg, and a deep, slow-cooked lamb curry. Agora, on Bedale Street, turns pork souvla on a rotisserie in the middle of the room and bakes puffy flatbreads to order.
Agora takes walk-ins only. Tables are communal and the music is Greek. It fills by 12.30 at lunch and by 7 in the evening, so arrive before noon or after 2.30. For a market lunch, the slow-roast pork souvla works best as a plate with charred flatbread and a pot of smoked aubergine dip on the side instead of folded into the wrap. There’s more meat per bite, and you pull it apart at the table.
Agora
Hours: Mon–Wed 12:00–22:30 · Thu–Sat 12:00–23:00 · Sun 12:00–22:00
Address: 4 Bedale St, London SE1 9AL
Rambutan’s opener should be a hopper with a runny egg in the bowl and coconut sambol on the side. The room is warmly lit, and the staff know the food well. Evenings book out weeks ahead. Weekend lunch is your best chance of walking in.
Rambutan
Hours: Mon–Sat 12:00–22:15 · Sun 12:00–21:00
Address: 10 Stoney St, London SE1 9AD
Where do locals eat in Soho and around Theatreland?
The Palomar on Rupert Street, at the edge of Theatreland, has a long zinc counter facing an open kitchen. Its food draws on modern Jerusalem, with North African spice and Levantine sourness on the same plate. Kiln on Brewer Street takes no bookings and seats you facing its clay pots and charcoal grill, cooking Northern Thai and Shan state food.
Build a Kiln meal around the glass noodle claypot with Tamworth pork belly and brown crab, then add the dry-aged lamb skewers. The queue forms before service. On a weekday, aim for about 6.45pm; on Friday or Saturday, closer to 6.
Kiln
Hours: Mon–Sat 12:00–23:00 · Sun 12:00–21:00
Address: 58 Brewer St, London W1F 9TL
When you book The Palomar, ask for a counter seat. The cooks will talk you through the menu. The YoYo Tahinov is always on. Lunch is noticeably calmer than dinner.
Palomar
Hours: Mon 17:00–22:00 · Tue–Wed 12:00–14:30, 17:00–22:00 · Thu–Sat 12:00–14:30, 17:00–22:30 · Sun 12:00–14:30, 17:00–21:00
Address: 34 Rupert St, London W1D 6DN
Where should you eat on Columbia Road and in Hackney?
Head for Brawn and Violet Cakes. Brawn, a converted warehouse at the end of Columbia Road, has served natural wine and small plates since 2010. Over on Wilton Way, Claire Ptak’s Violet Cakes bakes seasonal cakes every day with organic ingredients. Ptak opened it after years as a pastry chef at Chez Panisse.
Empty bottles line Brawn’s whitewashed walls, and old-school hip-hop plays from vintage speakers. The Parmesan fritters never leave the menu. The crab dishes change with the season. If you’d rather not eat meat, ask for the vegetable-only meal.
Brawn
Hours: Mon 18:00–22:15 · Tue–Sat 12:00–14:15, 18:00–22:15 · Sun closed
Address: 49 Columbia Rd, London E2 7RG
Violet Cakes is small and always full, and the coffee is excellent. Regulars order the banana cake. Cardamom buns turn up when the spice is right. The counter sells down through the day, so on weekdays get there before 10am to see all of it.
Violet Cakes
Hours: Mon–Fri 08:00–17:00 · Sat–Sun 08:00–18:00
Address: 47 Wilton Way, London E8 3ED
Which of these London places suits your plan?
Pick by how much time you have. The chippy, the pie shop and the bakery are quick stops. Book ahead for the two pubs, Brawn and the Chop House, which work better as a proper sit-down meal. The table below sorts all eleven by area and occasion.
Several close on Sundays or Mondays, so check each card before you set off. Get to the walk-in counters before the queue forms, and bring cash for The Fryer’s Delight.
