- I surveyed the Business Insider office in London to find out the best meal they'd had in the city in 2019.
- London is so much more than stereotypical fish and chips, sponge cake, and tea. The city is a melting pot of culture and creativity, with something to delicious to eat around every corner.
- The recommendations that came back definitely reflected this, and ranged from expensive "special occasion" restaurants to a mid-week takeaway favorite.
- Visit Insider's homepage for more details.
As a city that likes to eat, London puts on arguably one of the best dining spreads in the world. Forget the stereotypical English food tropes of fish and chips and afternoon tea, London has something to delicious to eat around almost every corner.
With thousands of eateries (67 of which are Michelin starred) battling it out for your money and list after list scrutinizing the best place for Sunday brunch, it can feel a little overwhelming to try and find a decent dinner.
It's sometimes better to skip the prestigious reviews, stars, and rankings, and actually ask the people around you. I polled the Business Insider office in London to find out the best meals they had in London throughout 2019. The responses ranged from fancy 15-course feasts celebrating a special occasion, to a comforting mid-week takeout, and even a bacon and egg roll that's perfect for curing a hangover.
In no particular order, these are the 18 best meals we had in London in 2019.
The Clove Club, Shoreditch
Will Martin, Associate News Editor at Insider, said: "My best meal in London this year was also the most expensive one I ate at The Clove Club. I went on my birthday and it took four hours, but it was incredible, like 15 courses.
All delicious, interesting, and new, but also weirdly familiar. It's pretty much the definition of a splurge given you have to pay when you book, but 100% worth it."
Daddy Bao, Tooting
Isobel Asher Hamilton, Tech Reporter at Business Insider, recommended Daddy Bao.
She said: "Super easy to order, you cross off what bao bun you want plus a couple of starters. It has delicious lychee ale, and is not very expensive. The tofu buns are amazing, and I normally don't like tofu."
Aroy Thai Food, Aldgate
Theron Mohamed, Markets Reporter for Business Insider and Markets Insider, said: "It's a little basic but as a (mostly) vegan I'm loving Aroy Thai Food.
"My wife and I had it delivered three times in a week because I love the vegan massaman curry and she loves the prawn massaman — so warming and flavorful — and we had the vegan pad kee mao which was tasty too."
The Vurger Co, Shoreditch
Mohamed added: "Overall I'm enjoying the better availability of clearly vegan options on Just Eat/Deliveroo/Uber Eats this year, especially as I was shocked to discover a lot of things that look veggie, aren't. For example, fish sauce in a lot of Thai food and egg in naan. I also like The Vurger Co – the Crackin Christmas vurger (vegan burger) is delicious."
Oklava, Shoreditch
Ruqayyah Moynihan, Associate Translation Editor for Business Insider and Insider, chose Oklava as one of her best London meals in 2019.
She said: "It just does really nice food! The atmosphere and service is nice but it didn't massively stand out. I had the baharat spiced bread and medjool date butter (the salty-sweet combo is always a winner), and whipped feta crostini with candied pumpkin and chili. I think I also had a pide that's no longer on the menu – I think they change it seasonally. I also had the Cyprus potato chips with chili, salt, garlic, and herb mayo."
Ognisko, Kensington
Moynihan also recommended Ognisko in Kensington. She said: "This place made me realize how massively underrated Polish food is. I had a peach and goat cheese salad that's no longer on the menu (boo!) and I wouldn't bother with the wine; I just had a lot of orzechówka, Sliwowica, Krupnik, and Wisniewski – basically just a lot of Polish vodka and brandy flavored with honey, hazelnut, cherry, and plum (unfortunately, it tastes really good so is very easy to overdo it with these).
"I also had some Pierogi dumplings, which were really heartwarming. I really liked how straightforward the menu was, the service is warm, and I was taken aback by how just how good the food was, as the menu doesn't give much away. There's a terrace with cute fairy lights that gives onto a quiet-ish square or park (it was dark when I went). It's quite an odd, grandiose place but it has a nice atmosphere and a lot of history - it was a meeting hub for Polish immigrants in the years after WWII but its history probably spans back further than that."
Smoking Goat, Shoreditch
Ju Shardlow, Film Producer at Insider picked Smoking Goat as one of her best meals in London in 2019.
She said: "We ate lardo fried rice, stir-fried Cornish greens and soy, smoked aubergine salad with chilli and egg, and smoked lamb ribs with pickles. This place has a great atmosphere, with head chef Ali Borer and his team working over a wood-ember barbecue. Even if you're sitting away from the kitchen, you still get the buzz of its heat and noise. Each of the small plates come with a full "thwack" of Thai flavors, such as lemongrass and chilli. The lardo fried rice is one of London's most gluttonous savory dishes and worth upscaling to for £5.50 ($7.12)."
Temper, Soho
Another recommendation from Shardlow is Temper in Soho.
She said: "We ate the cheeseburger taco, goat's cheese taco, wood-fired market fish, goat carnitas with kimchi, and drank Momma's Margarita."
Shardlow added: "If there was one London restaurant I'd advise sitting at the counter, this is it (well, maybe Barrafina, too). The Soho branch of Neil Rankin's restaurant is the best in my opinion, and a great date spot as it has low lighting and lots of open fire grill theater. The cocktails here are fantastic (we had the Momma's Margarita, which is Temper's smoky twist on the classic). The standout menu item has to be the cheeseburger taco. It's totally unique, not too greasy but indulgent."
Gloria, Shoreditch
Gloria also stood out for Shardlow in 2019. She said: "We ate La Gran Carbonara, Pappa Pomodoro Burrata, La Burrata Classica, and The Incomparable Lemon Pie.
"Like its sister restaurant Circolo Popolare, this place is all over Instagram, which made me hesitant about how good quality the food would actually be. The decor is wonderfully chintzy, with proper Italian-family-dining-table crockery and glassware. And the food absolutely lived up to the hype. Eat any burrata. They're all good. Honestly, I ate about three.
The standout main was sharing La Gran Carbonara, which is a homemade spaghetti chitarra served in the whole round of pecorino at your table. The lemon pie dessert can only be described as "a tower of meringue."
Oren, Dalston
A local spot for Shardlow is Oren, on her street. She said: "We ate roasted beetroot and labneh, crispy gurnard, grated tomato and coriander stems, wild mushrooms, hispi cabbage, and grilled potatoes. For dessert, we had the chocolate mousse and a cold-filtered coffee Campari."
"This tiny restaurant serves Tel-Aviv inspired sharing plates in a converted shop. Chef Oded Oren balances each dish beautifully, from the fine crispy batter on the gurnard to the creaminess of labneh in our starter. The chocolate mousse dessert was possibly the best one I've ever had. Pair it with their tumbler-glass take on an espresso martini, the cold-filtered coffee Campari," Shardlow said.
Max's Sandwich Shop, Crouch Hill
Shardlow's final pick is Max's Sandwich Shop.
"We ate the 'Ham, Egg 'N' Chips,' and 'Et tu, Brute? Murdering the Caesar.' You could honestly have a nice dinner here just enjoying head chef Max's boisterous humor, which has clearly bled into the quirky decor," Shardlow said.
She added: "Think sausage dog playing cards on the walls, and posters saying rude things about sourdough. But the dinner sandwiches here – yes, sandwiches for dinner – leave you feeling happy and full. Each mouthful is a whirlwind of textures and flavors as they follow Max's philosophy of: Hot, cold, sweet, sour, crunchy, soft."
Eggslut, Notting Hill
Hayley Peppin, Entertainment Fellow, said: "If we're talking one of the best food items, it would have to the "Fairfax" roll at the newly opened Eggslut in Notting Hill. Legit the best bacon and egg roll I've had. Good hangover cure and so yummy, but came with a price tag alright."
The prices aren't listed on Eggslut's website but you can check out their full menu here.
Pique-Nique, Bermondsey
Claudia Romeo, Video Producer for Insider said: "The best meal I've had this year is hands down at Pique-Nique, a tiny French bistro tucked away in a small park in Bermondsey, south of the river Thames."
She continued: "To me, this place is the emblem of your perfect neighborhood restaurant. Cozy ambiance, home-cooked food, and those little magic sauces that complement every single dish! I have been there many times, but the best meal so far has been a set lunch the restaurant offered as a one-off.
"The menu consisted of; Quenelle de brochet sauce nantua (pike cakes with crayfish sauce), ballotine de volaille sauce celestine (stuffed poultry with sautéed mushrooms and wine sauce), boeuf en croûte, haricots verts (beef Wellington, green beans), a cheese platter, poire au vin, glace, pain d'épices (wine-soaked pear, ice cream, and spice cake).
"Hard to find a highlight in here, from the delicious fish cakes to the beef Wellington that we watched being put together fresh from behind the counter. Bonus point, I am not a big fan of pears, but the dessert really blew me away!"
Sambal Shiok, Holloway Road
Emma Taylor, Food and Travel Fellow, said: "A friend actually suggested Sambal Shiok as a place to try for dinner. We were expecting it to be good, but wow, it was next-level good if you love laksa.
"To start, our table of three split the shrimp vegetable fritters and fenugreek crackers, which were light and simple, but carried big tasty flavors. We all had the prawn laksa and after a good 10 minutes of slurping our way through the huge bowls, no one felt they even made a dent in their meal, it was that big. You definitely get a lot of bang for your buck and need to arrive hungry! The atmosphere was relaxed but with a cozy buzz as it was pretty much a full house during the hours we spent there."
Burger and Beyond, Shoreditch
Harry Kersh, Distribution Producer at Business Insider, said: "I was lucky enough to visit Burger & Beyond when we filmed a 'Best Burger In London' video, and their Bacon Butter Burger was our clear overall winner.
"They use aged beef, bacon, cheese, some pickled onions, and some burnt butter mayo to create the burger. It's just a picture-perfect cheeseburger that tastes as good as it looks, and everyone I've recommended it to has agreed that it's one of their favorite meals in London."
Lina Stores, Soho
Kiara Keane, Lifestyle Editor at Insider, picked Lina Stores. She said: "I went here for dinner with a friend recently, and thankfully it lived up to the hype – there's usually a long wait for tables so book ahead if you can.
"The iconic pastel-green and white interior is an ideal backdrop for Instagramming your food if that's your thing, there's a buzzy atmosphere, and the pasta is some of the best I've had in London. Plates are small, so you're advised to order a few – which is frankly the only way I want to order pasta from now on. We ate the 'nduja con ricotta to start, and then had three pasta dishes between two of us – the standout choice was definitely the agnolotti verdi with black truffle and ricotta."
108 Garage, Notting Hill
Alison Millington, Deputy Lifestyle Editor of Insider said: "This was an absolute standout meal from the year for me, and I eat out a lot. 108 Garage, which is literally situated in an old garage in Notting Hill, may appear to be a fine dining restaurant if you go by its menus alone, but the rustic style and warm, cozy vibe make it super welcoming. With a seat at the counter, not only could we see everything being prepared, but the chefs we friendly and chatted to us throughout the meal, making it feel more experiential than most fine dining situations."
She added: "Part of what made it so special was also the fact that it was surprising — few items on the set menu were things I would typically order (think sweetbreads, chicken liver), but every plate that was put in front of me was absolutely to die for. The tasting menu was also a pretty reasonable £65 ($85) for 6 courses, with plenty of surprises — which I won't ruin for you — along the way."
Lantana Cafe, Shoreditch and Fitzrovia
Rachel Hosie, Senior Lifestyle Reporter said: "Corn Fritters with halloumi, smashed avocado, fresh spinach, roast tomatoes, lemon crème fraîche, and a poached egg at Lantana Cafe (Shoreditch and Fitzrovia), is £13 ($16.95) and add £1.50 ($1.96) for the egg. This may be my favorite brunch dish in the whole of London — I firmly believe that the combination of avocado, halloumi, and eggs is a recipe for a brunch winner, and the fritters are both crispy and soft. This dish has all the textures, all the flavors, and is highly Instagrammable to boot."
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