London does brunch better than almost anywhere, and Mayfair, in particular, has quietly become the epicentre of it. These are the five tables worth booking this season, from lobster rolls to dim sum dynasties.
Best for: A brunch that actually delivers on the price tag
Dish to order: Butter Poached Lobster Roll
New chef, new energy. Charlie Dilworth has tightened up the menu at SILVA and you can taste it, Mediterranean flavours, good produce, nothing trying too hard. You’ll find truffled scrambled eggs and sourdough if that’s your mood, but the one to order is the lobster roll. Butter poached, herb aioli, sea herbs, a generous spoon of caviar on top. It’s not showing off, it’s just properly good. Get the potato rösti on the side and don’t share it.
Best for: Brunch that feels like a night out
Dish to order: Piedmont Black Truffle Scramble Eggs
Sparrow Italia does daytime the same way it does everything else, dark wood, low light, more confidence than the room strictly needs. This isn’t a quiet Sunday reset. This is brunch with your sunglasses still on, the kind of table where the afternoon runs away from you in the best way.
Best for: A hidden escape in Notting Hill
Dish to order: Fruits de Mer Platter
The Shed’s platter doesn’t need dressing up, oysters, a zingy scallop ceviche, plump mussels, grilled octopus, a couple of pink langoustines and a pot of hand-picked crab, all pulled straight from the British coast. Take it out to the sun-trap terrace, order a bottle of Nutbourne Pinot Gris and let the afternoon do what it wants. This is proper seafood, eaten properly, hands in, no plating for the camera.
Best for: A themed but quintessential lunch
Dish to order: Dim Sum Dynasty Brunch
If you’re bored of the same three brunch formats, this is your out. Dumplings, baos, small plates arriving in waves, built for grazing, built for lingering. Proof Mayfair’s finally waking up to the fact that brunch doesn’t have to mean avocado toast.
Aviary Rooftop Bar & Restaurant, EC2A
Best for: The view, obviously
Dish to order: Birdsong Brunch
Ten floors up with the City skyline stretched out in front of you, this is one of London’s best al fresco tables. At weekends the Birdsong Brunch takes over, DJs playing, seafood and dessert towers landing one after another, drinks that don’t stop coming. Good food, better setting, the kind of brunch that eats up your whole afternoon and you let it.
London’s brunch scene has finally grown up, less about the avocado toast, more about the atmosphere, the produce and the whole afternoon. Whichever table you pick, book ahead.
The Luxe Resident 