It’s the most important meal of the day, they say. And with that, there’s no need to stick with your usual toast or cereal when you can eat your way around the world in London for breakfast. Let us show you how.
India - The Tamil Prince
Islington - 115 Hemingford Rd, London N1 1BZ
They’re already doing a storming business since opening and now the Tamil Prince is hoping to be where you start your weekend too. The veggie breakfast menu takes inspiration from Executive Chef Prince Durairaj's Tamil upbringing. Must haves include the Medhu Vadai - savoury “donuts” made from a lentil and onion batter served with coconut chutney and sambar and the Gunpowder Idli served with coconut chutney, tomato chutney and sambar. Accompany that with South Indian filter coffee and masala tea.
When: Saturday and Sunday (9am – 10.30am)
See also: Masala Zone Piccadilly, Gunpowder
Mexican - Bad Manners
Clapton - St John at Hackney Churchyard, Lower Clapton Rd, London E5 0PD
The breakfast burrito is a gold-standard way to start anyone’s day and if you’re after the best in London you need to head east to Bad Manners. You’ll find their kiosk in the garden at St John at Hackney where the perma-queues attest to the quality of the food. They serve up breakfast tacos too - the egg and bacon is made with candied bacon. But the real stars of the show are the mahoosive burritos, all of which come with scrambled eggs, hash browns and American cheese. Choose from sausage, bacon or the veggie version of black bean.
When: Every day 9am to 12pm.
Photo by @scaitboard
Syrian - Imad’s Syrian Kitchen
Carnaby - 2.5, Top Floor, Kingly Ct, Carnaby St, Carnaby, London W1B 5PW
Since moving into a larger space at Kingly Court Imad's Syrian Kitchen now has the capability to offer its first breakfast menu. Obviously, there's shakshuka and if you've had a big night before then the Fatteh (a carb-loading dish featuring layers of fried flatbread, chickpeas, tahini and ghee) is the one to go for. But those with a sweet tooth should probably check out Imad's pastries like the Riaayiq Asai made with halloumi, feta, cheddar, mixed herbs and honey. To drink there's Qahwah Syrian Coffee and Syrian Chai.
When: Monday to Saturday until 11.30am
Hong Kong - Hoko
Shoreditch - 224 Brick Ln, London E1 6SA
The slow death of the English greasy spoon and the arrival of many Hong Kong folk in London looking for a taste of their cafes from home has ended up gifting London this jewel of a place. Best known for their amazing French toast and Hong Kong milk teas, Hoko now also has three special breakfast sets on offer to allow you to fully explore the joys of the city’s morning food culture. You might opt for ham soup with macaroni and fried egg, tomato soup with scrambled egg and buttered sweetcorn or maybe satay beef soup noodles with a toasted bun.
When: The French toast is on the all day menu but the breakfast sets are only available weekends, 9am to 11.45.
Colombian - Donde Carlos
Hammersmith - 143 Goldhawk Rd, London W12 8EN
Colombian breakfasts aren’t to be messed with - if you’re in need of a pick me up you couldn’t do better (and that’s before we even get on to the coffee). Here in Hammersmith, Donde Carlos has been the breakfast choice of Colombian expats for the past 15 years. Your go-to here is their Calentado sencillo - a platter of refried kidney beans mixed with rice served with Colombian scrambled eggs (with tomato and onions) and cornbread. Meat-eaters will want to add the pork belly too. To drink, their fresh maracuya (passionfruit) aqua fresca is a good foil to all that food.
Spanish - Bar Kroketa
Marylebone - 23 Barrett St, London W1U 1BF
If we can tear you away from the churros and hot chocolate that you might normally go for, the breakfast menu at Bar Kroketa’s new Marylebone restaurant has a lot to offer. Divided into Toasties, Eggs, Classics and Sides key dishes include Baked Eggs Flamenca made with butter beans, smoked Noara chilli, Navarran red peppers and avocado and these cured egg yolks on toast. Of course, there’s also a breakfast bacon kroketa served with homemade smoked beans and a fried quails egg.
When: Daily from 9-11.30am
Malaysian - Med Salleh Kopitiam
Queensway - 35-39 Inverness Terrace, London W2 3JS
Breakfast at this Malaysian kopitiam or coffee house by Queensway is in buffet form and is an absolute treat. It features the usual fried breakfast elements like bacon and sausages but you can (and should) load up your plate with nasi lamek, chicken congee and fried noodles because everything you try here is going to be amazing. To drink, there’s breakfast laksa and Teh Tarik (Malaysian milk tea sweetened with condensed milk).
When: 8-10am
Irish - Inis
Hackney Wick - 13 Rookwood Way, Fish Island, London E3 2XT
A fairly new addition to the food scene in Hackney Wick, Irish restaurant Inis has already built up a reputation for its proper Irish breakfasts. Here, the full Irish includes hand-cut belly bacon, pudding, sausage, Cotswolds eggs, slow-cooked seasonal tomatoes, roast potato farl (crushed and finished on the plancha) and loads of buttery white toast. In addition, they do a strong pescatarian start to the day in the form of Teelings whiskey-cured trout, pickles, cream cheese and Irish brown bread. As this is East London there’s every kind of hot drink option from cortado to dirty chai latte or there’s always the green tomato Bloody Mary.
When: Every day from 7am
Turkish - Gokyuzu
Green Lanes - 26-28 Grand Parade, Green Lanes, London N4 1LG
The Turks go all out for breakfast and if you want to try their take - the full Turkish if you will - you need to order the Serpme Kahvaltı. Our current favourite for this is Gokyuzu, although pretty much most of the places you go into on the Green Lanes stretch from Manor House to Turnpike Lane will do good by you. Their version is for a minimum of three people - so go with hungry friends - and includes (deep breath) fried eggs, feta, tulum cheese, spicy beef sausage, filo pastry with parsley and feta, grilled halloumi, mushrooms, grilled pickles, olives, butter and honey, Nutella, tahin pekmez, simit circular bread and seasonal fruits. Do the Finsbury Park circuit after, to walk at least some of it off.
See also: Zahter in Carnaby does a very enticing Serpme Kahvalti if you don't fancy the journey to Zone 3.
American - Passyunk Avenue
Battersea - 7 New Union Square, Embassy, London SW11 7DN
If you’ve grown up on TV and movies that fetishise the American breakfast then to get a proper version of it over here you need to hit up Philly diner Passyunk Avenue. Every weekend their Battersea branch serves up a brunch menu where the star of the show is The American. It’s a proper US platter featuring eggs, bacon, a sausage patty and tater tots. Alternatively, you could go down the sweet route and opt for their buttermilk pancakes with whipped cream or cinnamon butter & syrup.
When: Weekends only 10am - 3pm
See also: Sunday in Brooklyn for their famous hazelnut maple praline pancake stack with brown butter.
Photo: @thinkingfood247
Japanese - Koya
Soho - 50 Frith St, London W1D 4SQ
There’s been a breakfast offering at Koya since it first opened and probably their best-known dish (and certainly the most-photographed) is the English breakfast udon that straddles both English and Japanese food cultures. But the noodle shop also does more traditional Japanese breakfast options like onsen egg or a soothing dish of Okayu which includes rice porridge, a soy-cured egg, shiitake mushrooms and house pickles with ankake soup.
When: Every morning - 10am to 12pm.
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