London Clerkenwell Restaurant Guide

“Never tire of it”, declare the legion of fans of Sam & Sam Clark’s Exmouth Market stalwart, crowning it “still one of the best”; and hailing “top flavours” from a “super-reliable” Spanish/North African menu (“no tweezers here, just very tasty food in generous portions”); all alongside the “buzzy” and “cool” setting and “classy Iberian wines to boot”. “Chaotic” service seems to have been a recurring problem this year, though, and that it’s nowadays too “crowded, rowdy, and highly priced” features in ever-more reports. Top Menu Tips – “top starters include the smoky duck breast with orange, and delicate lamb’s kidneys on toast; charcoal-grilled lamb with beetroot is perfection; the yogurt cake could be described as Moroccan Mess!”

2023 Review: This “very authentic Italian local” has been filling happy bellies in Exmouth Market for more than 20 years, with Neapolitan pizzas, pastas and other dishes – “nothing too refined, but plenty of choice and not expensive”. The only complaint: “some options are just too big and hearty”.

“This ever-friendly cafe sibling of next door Moro is a wonderful place to eat great tapas” – “especially sitting outside in Exmouth market”. Husband-and-wife team Sam & Sam Clark’s 15-year-old spin-off provides “superb tasty food at very reasonable prices” in a “casual but professional” environment, encompassing “interesting plates” of Spanish and North African-inspired food that is “not pretentious but delivers great enjoyment”. There’s a second branch in Hackney Road.

It’s “difficult to have a bad time” at Josh Katz’s funky duo, which started as a “cool little place in a railway arch near the canal in Haggerston” and later added a shawarma bar spin-off in Exmouth Market. On the menu: “delicious small plates of Middle Eastern-inspired food” – “gutsy food and great staff too”. (It’s no criticism to say that ratings are not as white hot as when it first opened: it’s just that the competition has caught up with them a bit). Sample dishes – Miso-harissa BBQ butterflied poussin, salata mashwiya; Whole sea bream, moroccan chili honey, saffron aioli, lemon; or Smoked lamb mechoui, harissa, cumin salt, grilled flatbread.

“Beyond sublime and truly original” – sushi at its authentic, high-end best is not as rare in London as it was when this tiny 7-seater in a Clerkenwell alley first opened its door almost 15 years ago, but that has not dampened enthusiasm for the multi-course omakase experience delivered in an intimate setting by sushi master Toru Takahashi, assisted by his equally welcoming wife Harumi. Securing your seat at the counter can be a frustratingly complicated business – the venue has no website or online presence, with an uninformative booking link to be found on Seven Rooms – but that is about the only complaint we ever hear. The meal lasts about three or four hours and costs upwards of £200 a head once drinks are factored in – and leave your phone in your pocket or handbag while you’re there. Top Tip – email info@sushitetsu.co.uk for all the details.

“Sneakily good pizza” – double-fermented Neapolitan-style – ensure that many branches are “always packed” at the Elliot brothers’ still-expanding chain, whose new summer 2025 opening at the Truman Brewery on Brick Lane marked a return to the site of one of their earliest pop-ups in 2013. Nowadays, it’s one of the more commented-on multiples in our annual diners’ poll. Top Menu Tip – “pepperoni and honey!”

You walk past “chiller meat displays” as you enter Roberto Costa’s Italian group. Macellaio means ‘butcher’, and the focus is on quality steaks, particularly the Piemontese Fassona breed, but also including cuts from the UK (from Herefordshire) and with tomahawk and Halal options; all matched with an “extensive wine list”. “For a great and reasonable dinner (including pre-theatre) and excellent steaks” it does still have fans. But its support has waned in both quality and quantity in recent years, and the group has halved in size since the last edition, shedding branches in Bloomsbury, Borough and Clapham (all RIP) to focus on Theatreland/Soho, Exmouth Market and the South Kensington original. All of the (relatively few) reports say the food is still mostly good but increasingly there are caveats: “Hmmm, the steaks are getting pretty… not bad, but no longer as good value”. Top Menu Tip – the “dessert theatre of tiramisu created at the table”.

“A popular chain with an interesting and varied international menu” – “V.G. value too” – these Kiwi-run cafés are “still seeing off all of the competition” for their many fans. In particular, they do a “great brunch, and they’re right to boast about their filter coffee” – and given the volume of feedback they generate, there is remarkably little negative criticism. Depending on the venue and the time of day, they work equally well for a “working lunch meeting” or “families out for the day visiting the sights”. Top Menu Tip – “the cornbread is to die for”.

“A classic” that “never fails to delight”, this Clerkenwell institution was founded in 1869 as a ‘Progressive Working Class Caterer’, lending it “undeniable history and charm” (although “you either love or hate the austere bench seating”). These days part of Will Lander & Daniel Morgenthau’s smart group, it has an “ever-tempting menu” where “meat is the way to go” (non-carnivores may find it a little “over-chop-or-steaked”), leading to a meal that’s “always an absolute pleasure”. Top Menu Tips – “anything made from Middlewhite pork”; “spectacular confit potato”; “Bloody Mary (I don’t quite know what they do with them but they’re scintillating!)”

Still “consistently knocking its many imitators out of the park” – London’s original gastropub celebrates its 35th anniversary this year, while head chef Ed Mottershaw has run the kitchen for 21 of those years, guaranteeing an “always interesting” Mediterranean-inspired menu and “reliably brilliant cooking: no fuss, no faff, no fancy flourishes. Just dedication to the palate and wholehearted devotion to flavour”.

“Exceptional cooking, especially from such a small (open) kitchen” – solo chef Nick Bramham turns out some “insanely good” meals at this “delicious, fun and cool” spot next door to ‘big brother’ the Quality Chop House. “It’s the loveliest of venues” – “both warm and quite sexy, though at lunch it has more of an airy feel”. It also has a “brilliant wine list by the bottle and glass”.

“Deserving its hype for being terrifically romantic” – this “magical” Clerkenwell venue occupies part of a big, Grade II listed courthouse (which features in Dickens’s Oliver Twist) and a ride in the lift leads onto a superb space with “a stripped-back interior, giant windows, enormous fireplaces and dimly lit corners for canoodling” (and there’s also a gorgeous outside terrace). Abigail Hill (in post since February 2024) has made a good fist of replacing launch chef Florence Knight and her “clever” cooking adds to its appeal “for a foodie date”. “Fair prices” – “not outlandishly expensive for its quality” – mean it’s “popular for good reasons”.

2024 Review: “Very decent” French-influenced food helps elevate this fine old Clerkenwell pub restaurant into being a “good all-rounder”, as does its attractive, glazed dining area. That said, it doesn’t attract the attention it did a few years ago when Henry Harris was at the stoves.

2022 Review: “The real deal!”, say fans of this ten-year-old tacos brand, which has various pitches around town, as well as this permanent taqueria in Clerkenwell, serving small plates alongside margaritas and mezcals.

“Stylish and discrete” captures the appeal of Daniel Willis & Johnny Smith’s successful “favourite” north of Smithfield Market (which severed its ties this year from Clove Club owner, Isaac McHale). A handsome front bar, pretty glazed rear terrace (“if you can get a seat here, you are in a little idyll”), and elegant spaces in-between provide a comfortable backdrop to “dish after dish of gorgeous and inventive modern Italian cooking” – “the food quality is nailed-on if pricey” – and “there’s a balanced Italian wine list to complement things”, introduced by “a great sommelier team”. Top Menu Tip – “best Lemon Tart in town”.

2024 Review: “What a find! Chef Yuma (Hashemi) produces the most amazing plates of delicious food which reflect his heritage and upbringing” at this quirky Clerkenwell operation, whose decor is akin to a retro Tehran living room. The menu plays out in ‘four acts’, with shifts of gear in the background music to enhance the experience. All this plus “great staff and a fabulous vibe”.

With a bright, modern interior lit by big floor-to-ceiling windows, this flexible neighbourhood amenity near Old Street is a canteen and bar that opens all day from breakfast. It’s from the team behind well-known Hackney wine bar Sager + Wilde, hence an above-par drinks offering. But food is far from incidental: there’s a “constantly changing, seasonal menu” of southern European small plates, some larger risotti, pasta and burgers and it majors in a big range of pizza. Top Tip – it “can handle large parties with ease”.

“Knockout fish ’n’ chips” are “served by friendly, avuncular staff”, “who make every visit an absolute joy” at this family-run Greek-Cypriot institution approaching its 60th anniversary in Clerkenwell. They offer a “wide variety of market-fresh fish” in “generous portions”, and “in a clean but not pretentious dining environment” (plus “very decent steak for carnivorous guests”). (It may be “too popular on a Friday evening – loud and bustling – but it’s good to see them doing well!”)

“Authentic burritos on Leather Lane” from Mexican food veteran Joel Henderson, who celebrates the 20th anniversary of his first London street-food stand this year.