The most important meal of the day deserves to be more than a supermarket pastry or cereal bar. If you're looking to start the day right, whether that's catching up with friends or having a business meeting, here's our pick of where to breakfast well in London.
Hawksmoor Air Street
Mayfair - 5A Air St, London W1J 0AD
After a four-year absence, Hawksmoor brought its much-loved breakfast offering back this year. It's only available on Saturdays and only at Air Street but if you're in the market for a platter that includes sugar-pit bacon, Victorian sausage, Moira black pudding, hash browns, grilled bone marrow, trotter baked beans, fried eggs, grilled mushroom, roasted tomato and sourdough toast, then this is the place for you.
Fallow
St James - 52 Haymarket, St. James's, London SW1Y 4RP
The team at Fallow never do anything by halves and when they launched their weekday breakfast menu their royales (filled and grilled croissant rolls) went fully viral. There are three to choose from with probably the salmon belly royale crizzled with hollandaise and topped with a fried egg the one to go for. The black pudding benedict is equally a must-try or you could do for a full protein platter with a steak and eggs platter.
The Wolseley City
The City - 68 King William St, London EC4N 7HR
For a long time, The Wolseley on Piccadilly has reigned supreme when it comes to power breakfasting, but there's a new kid on the block in the form of The Wolseley's City-based sibling which now has the edge. City workers have taken this new arrival to their hearts and while some might flirt with the idea of the mashed avo on wholewheat toast, it's the hot options that have the most traction, from the perfect eggs benedict to the kedgeree.
The Barley Mow
Mayfair - 82 Duke St, London W1K 6JG
The bright upstairs dining room at The Barley Mow is a super place for breakfast whether you're girding your loins for a shopping trip down Oxford Street or are after somewhere calm for a business breakfast. Interesting options here include a breakfast roll stuffed with black pudding, bacon and scallops or a sourdough crumpet topped with poached eggs and a brown crab hollandaise.
Maison Francois
St James - 34 Duke Street, London SW1Y 6DF
A popular breakfast hangout for hedge funders and art gallery owners alike, the spacious layout of this St James restaurant makes it ideal for a morning gathering where there is gossip or confidential business to discuss. Pastries are always top-tier and the full English is deservedly popular, but we like their pancakes groaning under a weight of berries and pistachios and drizzled with honey.
Honey & Co
Bloomsbury - Store Street and Lamb's Conduit Street
Both of Honey & Co's Bloomsbury establishments go big on breakfast. At their flagship spot on Lamb's Conduit Street, their Big Breakfast starts with mezze for the table to share before you decide on whether you're having shakshuka or maybe scrambled eggs with merguese to follow. At Store Street, it's a more casual affair with breakfast buns and colourful frittatas.
Regency Cafe
Westminster - 17-19 Regency St, London SW1P 4BY
Expect a queue at this iconic London establishment. Open since 1946, this art deco greasy spoon is a must-visit whether you're interested in trying its great value fry-ups or just want it on your Insta feed. It's as popular as a film location as it is with hordes of Japanese tourists here for the aesthetic. You're going to want the full English complete with fried slice and a builder's tea.
Photo: Jessie Yin
Koya
Soho and Hackney
For noodle or rice dishes that riff on the full English, Koya is your best breakfast bet. Both branches offer their best-known dish of Kama Tama English - udon noodles served with egg, bacon and shiitake mushooms. There's also a rice iteration at both, which is subtly different. In Hackney, it's a rice dish served with bacon, onsen tamagao and butter soy mushrooms served with a cup-soup.
Hide
Piccadilly - 85 Piccadilly, London W1J 7NB
There may be perma-queues further along Piccadilly for the viral pastries at Le Deli Robuchon, but for a sit-down breakfast in this part of town, Hide is super popular. Not only does it enjoy fabulous views across Green Park but the menu is a happy mixture of breakfast classics with luxe touches. Here the scrambled eggs on toast are truffled and there's a choice of both Exmoor or Beluga caviar. Don't miss out on the pastry section, either.
The Ned
The City - 27 Poultry, London EC2R 8AJ
Is there a time of day when this City spot isn't busy? Breakfast time is always buzzing with most of the restaurants on the ground floor doing breakfast menus from Malibu Kitchen's acai bowls to Millie's Lounge's breakfast bap for a tenner. But probably the most interesting early morning options are to be found in the Electric Bar & Diner section where you can order a breakfast burrito, salmon plate with bagels or opt for The Full American which means eggs, pastrami ‘bacon’, franks, latkes, mushroom, tomato and cholent.
Duck & Waffle
The City - Heron Tower, 110 Bishopsgate, London EC2N 4A
Breakfast time at Duck & Waffle is more a state of mind when you consider that this restaurant is open 24/7. But if it's the specific breakfast menu you're after than that's on offer every weekday from 6am. If you're recovering from the night before then The Full Elvis (PBJ with caramelised banana and Chantelly cream) is the way to go. But we're still fans of the OG dish, along with its new vegan alternative.
Mount St Restaurant
Mayfair - 41-43 Mount St, London W1K 2RX
Breakfast is mostly a very traditional affair here at Mount St. Bacon chops come with bubble and squeak and there are kippers along with devilled kidneys on toast. But chef Jamie Shears can't help throwing in the old luxury touch like the generous topping of caviar on top of his almost-too-beautiful-to-eat omelette.
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