London Crouch End Restaurant Guide

2023 Review: With an all-day menu that bounces happily from the Caribbean and Mexico to the Isle of Man and Thailand, Juliette Banner has provided up-beat service in Crouch End for more than 30 years. “A Banners breakfast is the perfect cure for a hangover” – and you can also earn one with the “great cocktails”. The “authentic American-style burgers” must have attracted Bob Dylan, the bard of Americana, whose 1993 visit is commemorated with a plaque – you can even book the table he sat at!

This Crouch End spot has built a strong local name over more than a decade, and is known for its superior tapas and a “really good selection of Spanish wine, by the glass or bottle”. Founder Stephen (‘Esteban’) Lironi is a Glasgow-born music producer and sherry aficionado, while Barcelona-born chef Pablo Rodriguez arrived via Barrafina.

This “brilliant, buzzy local seafood restaurant” is much-loved in Crouch End and beyond for its “exciting, high-quality dishes from a short menu” and “exceptionally friendly, knowledgeable and enthusiastic staff”. It works equally well for a meal with a large group or a “snack at the bar”.

“Top Neapolitan pizza”, say fans of this Kensal Rise 11-year-old and its Crouch End offshoot, which offers a “limited and delicious menu (they stick to what they know) in cool surroundings”.

2021 Review: A “long-time, local favourite” – this “relaxed”, retro bistro brings the classic flavours of France to Crouch End. Chef-proprietor Lynne Sanders and her team send “reliably good food” out from the kitchen.

“One of the reasons we’ve yet to move house from Crouch End!” – local fans are sold on the virtues of this “stubbornly traditional Turkish restaurant (with murals on every wall depicting famous Turkish and other global tourist destinations… at least a step up from the glitzy establishments on Green Lane)”. “Despite recent price hikes, they are still very fair considering the high standard of cooking, as well as the warm welcome”.

2023 Review: This new Italian in Muswell Hill has an “interesting selection of tasty and well-presented small plates”, with a “focus on quality and taste”. The chic modern interior makes for a “nice buzzy atmosphere”, and locals are encouraged to use it as a wine bar – there are more than 100 bottles in stock, most of them Italian.

“Jean-Christophe’s Slowik’s affability and lovely front-of-house wisdom and Robert Reid’s fine cheffing remain delightful as ever” at this “happily old-school bistro in Crouch End, located firmly in the great late 80s dining scene”; and its February 2023 crowdfunded “move to (slightly) larger, nearby premises has made eating here a more comfortable experience”. “If every neighbourhood had a restaurant as good as this”, the world would be a better place. “Traditional, un-fancy French food is simply and lovingly prepared and served” – “… wish they had restaurants like this in France!”. Top Menu Tip – “tarte Tatin is not to be missed; and if they are doing the pig’s trotter Pierre Koffman, which chef Robert used to cook for MPW, then don’t hesitate”.

James Dawson’s wine shops/clubs/bars are “great places to catch up with friends over a bottle you might never ordinarily have tried”. “The staff are super-helpful, with lots of suggestions” of bottles from independent and sustainable producers. The food is “OK if a little uninspiring”, but “who cares when there’s one evening a week when you can drink wine at retail prices”.

It’s “definitely worth a trip to Crouch End” to sample the “lovely Greek mezze, stews and fish dishes from a short and well-chosen menu” at Télémaque Argyriou’s two-year-old venture, where the olives and oil are sourced directly from his family’s farm in Laconia, close to Sparta. Now with spin-offs in Paris and Lille, it’s pitched as a showcase for modern (“not tourist-oriented”) Greek cuisine, with some “interesting Hellenic wines”.