The Ritz
White tablecloths, silver teapots and duck egg chinaware… is there anything finer than breakfast at the Ritz? Much more chic than joining the crowds at afternoon tea, the à la carte selection ranges from kedgeree and kippers to a dainty selection of freshly baked pastries from the trolley. While the dress code relaxes to ‘smart casual’, there’s a minimum spend of £46 per person to keep in mind, though it’s not hard to hit. One to save for a special occasion.
Jikoni
Head to TV chef Ravinder Bhogal’s pretty pink and peach Marylebone dining room for a wildly eclectic weekend brunch (11:00 am to 4:00pm). The restaurant’s ‘no borders kitchen’ tag is exemplified by dishes ranging from cornbread with creamed corn, fried egg and jalapeno relish to buckwheat dosa with pumpkin thoran and coconut and garlic chutney.
Fallow
Fallow’s glass-walled dining room is always as busy as nearby Piccadilly Circus, and with good reason. Ex-Dinner by Heston Blumenthal chefs Jack Croft and Will Murray have a knack for creating exciting, flavour-packed and sustainable food and their breakfasts are no exception. ‘Royale’ with sausage patty, cheese, bacon and fried egg served in a croissant roll embossed with the restaurant’s logo is a stylish and cheeky take on a McMuffin.
Dishoom Covent Garden
The notorious queues can be an off-putting prospect but if you’re organised enough to book ahead, or nimble enough to chance a walk-in, a bacon naan – embellished with cream cheese, fresh coriander and excellent chilli-tomato jam – is your just deserts. Order a side of silky masala beans and a cup of scalding hot chai which comes with free refills from the efficient team.
Honey & Co
Feast on a Middle Eastern-style ‘Big Breakfast’ at Sarit Packer and Itamar Srulovich convivial and much-loved Bloomsbury restaurant. Start with a generous selection of mezze including hummus and labneh and follow with green shakshuka made with Cornish farm eggs and spinach and served with garlic yoghurt and sesame bread.
The Barley Mow
Part of the acclaimed Cubitt House group that’s overseen by chef director Ben Tish, this Mayfair pub features a handsome ground-floor bar and elegant first-floor dining room. At breakfast, there’s an enticingly meaty menu that includes devilled kidneys on toast and a sugar pit-cured bacon butty.
Maison François
The look might be French 'grand brasserie' but you can still get a great full English at this stylish Mayfair hot spot. The entente cordial continues in dishes such as grilled kipper with sauce verte and mushrooms on toast with sauce pistou.
45 Jermyn Street
For a none-more-British breakfast, it’s difficult to beat this all-day restaurant that’s part of Fortnum & Mason. The menu of kedgeree, kippers and crumpets is as comfortingly classic as the timelessly elegant surroundings.
Mount Street Restaurant
Breakfast among art-festooned walls at this upmarket pub dining room, set above the wildly popular Audley Public House. Kickstart your day by adding a dram of whiskey to your porridge that is sweetened with honey from the pub’s farm in Somerset, or indulge in an Oscietra caviar omelette.
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Celebrated chef Ollie Dabbous might be known for his imaginative tasting menus, but his team at this minimal, stylish restaurant overlooking Green Park also know how to cook a mean breakfast. Viennoiserie including saffron buns with cardamom, pistachio and rose are made on-site and there’s black truffled scrambled eggs on toast as well as caviar and oysters for those in search of something more savoury.
Imad’s Syrian Kitchen
This bright and buzzy dining room in the culinary Soho hub of Kingly Court is home to the celebrated cooking of Syrian refugee chef Imad Alarnab. Breakfast specialities include the rich and satisfying fatteh; fried flat breads layered with chickpeas, tahini and ghee.
Ottolenghi Chelsea
As the doyen of Middle Eastern cooking, Yotam Ottolenghi of course delivers the signature flavours and ingredients of the cuisine on his breakfast menu at the cool and chic Chelsea branch of his cafe/deli group. So there’s shakshuka with labneh and rose harissa flavouring the scrambled tofu. But there’s a real breadth to the offering with the likes of Dutch pancake with orange, coconut and raspberry and porridge with roasted plums.
