The best restaurants in East London
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East London is well known for its food scene, with long-established hits jostling for space among innovative supper clubs (including one of the world's 50 Best restaurants in 2022) and clever new openings. Below, we point you in the direction of our favourite restaurants in East London, from Shoreditch and Hackney to Clerkenwell.
PansPAnglesManteca, Shoreditch
On a wet and windy Tuesday evening in London, people are queuing round the block to get into Manteca. I can understand why. From the fried olive and sausage meat croquette appetiser to the post-dessert beef-fat fudge, the food at this inventive Italian restaurant is excellent. Every table is full, with diners also lining the bar facing the busy open kitchen, but the airy ground-floor space doesn’t feel crowded, and, despite the line outside, our meal isn’t rushed by the friendly and knowledgeable staff. A trip downstairs reveals more seats, including long tables for large groups, and a spectacular glass-walled “salumeria” hanging with a vast array of cured meats. Some of these end up in front of us: wafer-thin slices of delicately flavoured coppa di testa and robust prosciutto crudo. They arrive at the same time as the other small plates we ordered: puntarelle (a cousin of chicory) with a moreish anchovy dressing; zingy sea bass crudo; and the plumpest mussels I’ve ever seen, drenched in an nduja and parsley cream. Even a simple bowl of grilled cabbage – white, red and savoy – is a treat for the taste buds. These dishes set the bar high, but it’s hard not to judge an Italian restaurant on its pasta: Manteca’s is done to perfection. But the best is yet to come: an outstanding chocolate pavlova generously sprinkled with “Manteca 100s and 1000s” (caramelised hazelnuts, cocoa nibs and feuilletine). The menu is seasonal, so these delicacies come and go, but I’m confident that anything Manteca serves will be intriguing and delicious. Sarah Cohen
Address: Manteca, 49-51 Curtain Road, London EC2A 3PT
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Brian DandridgeApothecary East, Shoreditch
After dark, only night owls searching for a shortcut between Great Eastern Street and Old Street stumble down Charlotte Road – and in-the-know foodies headed for Apothecary East. The bar-restaurant has remained somewhat under the radar yet consistently jam-packed night after night, perhaps overshadowed by nearby spots that feature heavily on social media feeds for their aesthetic USPs. Small plates rule the roost here but in the least pretentious way possible. In the bar, sip on spicy margs or chug a table-clattering sake bomb – a ceramic shot of Japanese wine balanced on chopsticks above half a pint of beer or cider. Suck on plump edamame beans and nibble throughout the night around the bar, or secure a booth in the restaurant for a more food-focused affair. Sharing is the name of the game – larger plates are also available for starving bellies and fussy friends. Coat crispy calamari in black pepper mayo, crunch into karaage fried chicken smothered in sriracha mayo, or opt for a spread of eight-piece sushi boards – the familiar flavours of the salmon avocado pieces seasoned with furikake are a melt-in-the-mouth treat. Connor Sturges
Address: Apothecary East, 36 Charlotte Road, London EC2A 3PG
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Andrew LivingstonePidgin, Hackney
Much like the humble wood pigeon, this Hackney outpost is tiny but packed with flavour. The unassuming ‘Pidgin’ originally came to fruition as a North London supper club helmed by two friends, James Ramsden and Sam Herlihy, before opening their Hackney-based restaurant just a stone's throw from London Fields. The menu is ever-changing, and there's been an impressive alumni of chefs who, over the past eight years, have taken in turns to add their own stamp to the dishes that have flown off the pass. Now, head chef Naz Hassan is in charge. Having cut his teeth in some of London’s most acclaimed restaurants, he adds a distinct and welcome South Asian flair to the otherwise contemporary European dishes. To give a taste of the flavours we enjoyed – a delicious lightly fried cauliflower bite with chilli mayo, a spicy sai oua (Thai sausage to you and me) with holy basil and apple chutney, and the piece de resistance? The most succulent guinea fowl breast with a chervil and date accompaniment. All-in-all, we not so much flew but glided through the nine courses on offer. There is a delightful lack of pretentiousness and pomp, just an ambient setting with good service, great wine and even better food. Lucy Bruton
Nest, Hackney
From the team behind the Michelin-starred Restaurant St Barts, you may remember Nest from its minuscule space on Morning Lane in Hackney. But now, the acclaimed restaurant is spreading its wings to land in Shoreditch. The interiors are earthy and warm, with olive greens, wood and perfectly glowy soft candlelight, a rich, wholesome feel that befits the menu to follow. The concept of this larger iteration is much the same, with tasting menus centred around a hero ingredient. For us, this meant game. We kicked things off with a liver parfait and the sweetest terrine with pickled walnuts, followed by what I can only describe as the best broth I can remember tasting – hats off to the salty and sumptuous ‘grouse tea and moss’. Other standouts included the only fish course, chalk stream trout, and the grand finale on the savoury front, Yorkshire grouse served with a rich, almost chocolatey wine sauce. Each course was paired with a wine from Burgenland, a region renowned for its viniculture in Austria. Expect rich and decadent flavours throughout that are a true testament to the fruits of the great British larder. Game, set, match to Nest. Lucy Bruton
Address: Nest, 374-378 Old Street, London EC1V 9LT
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Steven JoyceRestaurant St. Barts, Barbican
The interiors of Restaurant St Barts are a paean to the natural environment. There’s a stone-top bar, blonde wood flooring and wool-upholstered seats in reception; tables carved by hand from fallen trees, and candles casting an amorous light on limewashed taupe walls while music pulses gently in the background. Dining here is a meditative exercise with minimal sensory distractions. This produce-driven restaurant tucked away beside a 12th-century church in Smithfield (and brought by the team behind NEST in Hackney), has gathered the best ingredients from top small-scale suppliers across the British Isles to create a tasting menu that strikes a balance between the refined and the earthy. Missteps are few among the fifteen courses, which are presented from an open, wood-fired kitchen. The starter Yorkshire beef bone broth packs a rich, nutritious and flavoursome punch. Other standouts include the cobnut hobnob and duck liver parfait with pickled bilberry, a fleshy, melt-in-the-mouth parcel sprinkled with dried and grated duck heart. St Bart’s low-intervention ethos also extends to its wines – our organic 2016 Riesling from Alsace’s Zusslin vineyards effervesces ever so faintly and prepares the palate for the biggest hit, the seafood cocktail whose oyster shells cradle brown shrimps soaked in oyster mayonnaise, its English wasabi tempering the smokiness of the English eel chunks. Seafood is a particular talent here, from the juicy cod fritter nuggets slathered with malt-vinegar-tinged funghi to the sweet and tangy langoustine in a red pepper jus. Vegetarians will particularly love the tart Isle of Wight tomatoes and garlic resting on a mild steamed egg yolk whipped to a smooth, custardy consistency. Chowing on this, with floor-to-ceiling window views of the church of St Bartholomew the Great, feels like eating manna from heaven. Noo Saro-Wiwa
Address:Restaurant St Barts, 63 Bartholomew Cl, London EC1A 7BG, United Kingdom
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Anton RodriguezThe Clove Club, Shoreditch
The 35th best restaurant in the world (according to 2022's World's 50 Best Restaurants list) has been making ripples in East London since it opened in 2013. It was a supper club first, then an open-kitchen dining room in Shoreditch town hall that remains one of London's top tables to book. Treat yourself to the tasting menu (£145 per person) for a special occasion, and rebook the lunch menu (£65 per person) when you realise this place isn't overhyped one bit.
Address: The Clove Club, Shoreditch Town Hall, 380 Old Street, London EC2
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Elis, Bethnal Green
Elis plays hard to get, burying itself deep inside the former Bethnal Green town hall (now the Town Hall Hotel). But fans of chef Rafael Cagali will gladly schlep along the long, Art Deco corridor to enjoy the latest eatery by the Brazilian, who also owns the two-Michelin-starred Da Terra, in the same building. The a la carte menu features rustic Brazilian sharing plates with pasta dishes that pay homage to Cagali’s Italian roots. The starter, a delicious pão de queijo, is made with moist stracciatella and focaccia dipped in olive oil and punchy balsamic vinegar. Standout mains include the monkfish stroked with a zingy black tucupi glaze, and the smoked Iberico pork and chimichurri served on a bed of traditional feijoada (bean stew). The lacklustre Brazilian ceviche may not justify the wallet-gouging prices. But Cagali’s desserts – namely the guava crème caramel and the mini doughnuts (their delicate, papery exteriors oozing dulce de leche) – provide a supreme, redemptive finish. Noo Saro-Wiwa
Address: Elis, TElisown Hall Hotel, 8 Patriot Square, London E2 9NF
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Brian DandridgeHackney Coterie, Hackney
On a rainy night in East London, the honeyed glow of this unassuming space – plonked quietly beside a Tesco and Hackney Downs station – is an inviting prospect. Inside, the double-height red-brick walls are brightened by Picasso-esque abstracts and long Fanta-orange banquette seating. Even more appealing are the great-value set menus (five courses from £30; seven from £42.50), launched in early 2022 as a way of combatting waste and helping the restaurant deal with post-pandemic challenges such as staffing. It's a clever ploy – and, more importantly, a delicious one. Choose from veggie, pescaterian or meaty menus that might kick off with fried potato skins with an intense tomato powder to give a ketchup-y kick, or fish crackling with smoked tofu dip. The thousand-layer szechuan potatoes up next have lamination to make Paul Hollywood dole out a handshake, while burnt leeks are sweet and buttery with an umami-packed miso sauce. For main there's charred cauliflower steak with a katsuobushi hit of flavour or perfectly pink duck breast with salted kohlrabi. On our visit dessert was the standout: fermented celeriac cake with an earthy powder whose aroma hits you as soon as the plate lands the table, topped with rich cream to tip the balance from savoury to pud. This place is big on reminding you that it's not a 'natural' wine bar, a term sommelier Kelvin McCabe (ex Adam Handling) believes has lost its meaning and become clichéd. The wines are organic and biodynamic where possible, but really it's all about the producers. And the bottom line, McCabe says, is to ensure a sense of approachability and hospitality. Cheers to that. Grainne McBride
Address: Hackney Coterie, 230B Dalston Lane, London E8 1LA
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Brat, Shoreditch
The Basque-accented project from Tomas Parry, the chef behind Kitty Fisher's, was a trailblazer when it landed on the scene in Shoreditch a few years ago. A Michelin star followed, as did pandemic-inspired stints at Climpson's Arch in Hackney, where people could eat outside in line with ever-changing government guidelines. In 2021, Brat was the highest new entry on the World's 50 Best Restaurants List. The menu leans heavily on Basque Country cooking, with many dishes made directly on the flames – order the whole turbot (Brat is actually the old English name for Turbot) for the table, and tuck in.
Cornerstone, Hackney Wick
Tom Brown cut his teeth working with Nathan Outlaw before setting up Cornerstone, Hackney's best-loved fish restaurant. In a white-washed dining room, the ever-changing menu might include baked scallops with coral butter, crab rarebit crumpets with pickled walnut, cured gurnard or an oozy hake kiev. The menu isn’t long, so you might as well order everything on it. Yes, you have to like fish to make it worth booking a table – but if you do, don't miss it. Tabitha Joyce
Address: Cornerstone, 3 Prince Edward Rd, Hackney Wick, London E9 5LX
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Maureen M. EvansCafé Cecelia, Hackney
A low-key hangout with exquisite seasonal sharing plates and an Irish twist – this canalfront, relaxed hangout is from Max Rocha, whose culinary CV includes stints at the River Café and St John Bread and Wine. As with most London menus right now, the dishes and ingredients here follow the seasons, and Rocha draws on his early years growing up in Ireland. The dish not to miss is the butter-like onglet with citrusy peppercorn sauce and sizzling chips, which rivals that of some of the best bistros in Paris. Katharine Sohn
Address: Café Cecilia, 32 Andrews Road, London E8 4RL
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Smokestak, Shoreditch
One-time food truck turned bricks-and-mortar restaurant with queues around the block – so far, so Shoreditch. But this industrial spot has held its own as the neighbourhood evolves around it, and elevated brisket buns and charred pork belly are as covetable as ever. The vegetarian options are surprisingly on point for somewhere that leans so heavily on barbecue – coal roasted aubergine is served with red miso, feta and toasted cashew, for example. The bar is worth a pitstop before or after supper, too.
Address: Smokestak, 35 Sclater Street, Shoreditch, London E1 6LB
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Clare LewingtonSilo, Hackney Wick
Zero waste? Silo was leading the way when it came to eco-focussed eating long before the restaurant world caught on. Doug McMaster refined the idea in Brighton before moving it to London in 2019, moving to Hackney Wick just as the so-called green curve started its upward climb. Nothing is wasted – ingredients are bought directly from producers and farmers, and every inch is used in some way. In his canal-side site, even the tables and chairs are upcycled and sustainable. Bread is made from flour milled in-house and appears in many reincarnations throughout – in a miso sauce, perhaps. Cocktails use botanical spirits and beers are biodynamic. Basically, McMaster is on a mission to close the loop in the food production process and feed people delicious feasts in the process – and he succeeds. Sonya Barber
Address: Silo, The White Building, Unit 7 Queens Yard, Hackney Wick, London E9 5EN
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Smoking Goat, Shoreditch
Authentic South-East Asian flavours in Shoreditch – Smoking Goat does Thai food really, really well, bringing authentic flavours from northern Thailand to well-sourced ingredients. The mains are pretty super-sized – Cornish mackerel, goat shoulder, drunken noodles. Go with a group, and share. Order a magnum or two of craft beer and a couple of the large sharing plates, and settle in. Tabitha Joyce
Address: Smoking Goat, 64 Shoreditch High St, London E1 6JJ, United Kingdom
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Adrianna GiakoumisPophams, London Fields
Pophams is a favourite stop for pastry people in East London – and in 2019, this masterful patisserie started serving an impressive evening pasta menu. The brainchild of baker Phil King – who runs a pasta-based supper club in his home – the menu is a modern spin on traditional techniques, and the various tortellini, cappellacci and gnocchi are lovingly hand-crafted. There are only 10 or so items on the menu and our advice is to order everything. Sonya Barber
Address: Pophams Bakery, 197 Richmond Road, Hackney, London, E8 3NJ
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Lyle's, Shoreditch
Fine dining in the best sense of the phrase – Lyle's has been nailing relaxed but elevated suppers for years. This is about as relaxed as a tasting menu gets in a smart Scandi set-up. There is a set menu but it doesn't go on and on. It also changes daily and could include fish from Cornwall, game, mutton, or whatever is particularly good at that moment in time. An all-British list of beers includes East Sussex's Burning Sky Saison à la Provision and a cheery Herefordshire Perry cider. In fact, the only thing that isn't British at Lyle's is the coffee (roasting here is taken seriously) and the constantly changing wine list. Tabitha Joyce
Address: Lyle's, Tea Building, 56 Shoreditch High Street, London E1 6JJ
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