Bethnal Green, British, Modern Restaurant Guide

“Just blow-your-mind amazing!” – Rafael Cagali’s “thought-provoking tasting menu extravaganzas” continue to affirm the status of this “wonderful dining room in Bethnal Green’s old town hall” (previously The Typing Room and Viajante) as one of London’s foremost culinary destinations. “Brazilian influences that you’re unlikely to experience anywhere else” are “what really lift Da Terra from a splendid fine dining tasting experience to a really memorable and unique one”. “Tastes and textures are sublime” and “presentation is consistently gorgeous (like works of art), with a charming and compelling degree of theatre”. “With its open kitchen, many dishes are served by the chefs” and service is “highly professional and interactive”.

2022 Review: “No fuss, not a lot of choice but solid food and good-value wine list” – that’s the deal at this 30-cover, bistro-esque venue, in a light-filled room on the first floor of Bethnal Green’s Town Hall Hotel.

2022 Review: The wild and wacky French chain opened this eclectically designed 194-room hotel in late 2019, complete with clashing fabrics, retro gaming machines, füsball and karaoke rooms. The loungy restaurant offers an easy-grazing selection of dishes to suit the tastes of globe-trotting hipsters: initial feedback suggests it's better than you might expect (given all the competing attractions).

2021 Review: “This crisp, clean, chic warehouse” with “big industrial windows” in Cambridge Heath is, say fans, the “perfect, perfect, perfect spot for a lovely weekend brunch” or a “lush lunch with oysters and Champagne”. A hipster haven for 15 years, it still rates well for its “delicious food” and an atmosphere boosted by live music.

“A really exceptional experience… a real find… a fantastic night out” – Gabriel Waterhouse inspires acclaim for his relocated Bethnal Green supper club, whose gracious permanent home occupies a high-ceilinged space in Cambridge Heath. Every night, there’s “a one-sitting, 9-course tasting menu with low-intervention wine” (or non-alcoholic pairings) delivering “some really innovative dishes”. Ratings would be even higher, were it not for one or two reports along the lines of “love the new menu, but too many foams…”

By the canal in Hackney, this August 2021 newcomer arrived with high expectations thanks to the CV of chef Max Rocha and was quickly blessed by The Guardian’s Grace Dent, who felt that despite it’s “homespun edge”, it was “only just getting started on its path to being one of London most serious restaurants”. Our feedback was more cautious: split between finding it “a really nice, friendly new favourite” and “not living up to the hype”.