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Borough area guide
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Borough area guide

Find the best restaurants, pubs and things to do in London’s Borough, including foodie heaven Borough Market

Written by
Things To Do Editors
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Borough has been a lively area since prehistoric times, but it became a bustling trade centre when the Romans founded Londinium around 43 AD. Its position on the Thames and proximity to London Bridge has ensured it’s remained a trading hub ever since. Though these days Borough is dominated by Borough Market, which gives the area its reputation as a foodie paradise. Generally, the best restaurants are in or very near the market but, if you know where you’re looking, you can find some gems hidden away. The bars and pubs are more spread out but are worth a little walk. Which is just as well, given how much you’re guaranteed to eat in Borough.

RECOMMENDED: London by area

The best bits of Borough

Restaurants in Borough

Akara

Akara

  • price 2 of 4

Like the Michelin star-winning Akoko? Then you'll love Akara, which replicates its parent restaurant’s ingenious and critically acclaimed take...

Padella

Padella

  • price 2 of 4

The queues stretching down the street from this modern Italian say it all: this sibling to Highbury’s Trullo absolutely nails it. The pasta, homemade and...

Kolae

Kolae

  • price 2 of 4

It's another offshoot! Kolae is the long-awaited sister restaurant to Som Saa. Here you'll get Thai food in a former coach house, and though the owners...

Elliot's

Elliot's

Everything we’ve ever eaten at Elliot’s has been outstanding, from menu signatures like the juicy, pink-middled cheeseburger, to seasonal stars...

Things to do in Borough

Bars in Borough

Gong

Gong

  • 3 out of 5 stars

Classy cocktails and spectacular views.

Hotels in Borough

Pubs in Borough

Rake

Rake

  • 4 out of 5 stars

Perhaps the smallest pub in London. 

Royal Oak

Royal Oak

  • 5 out of 5 stars
  • price 1 of 4

A traditional Victorian corner tavern.

The perfect weekend in Borough

Eat: Tapas Brindisa London Bridge

Eat: Tapas Brindisa London Bridge

  • 5 out of 5 stars
  • price 2 of 4

The upsurge in Spanish food quality in London since the 1990s can in part be dated from the arrival in Borough Market of food importers Brindisa, bringing...

Drink: Gladstone Arms

Drink: Gladstone Arms

  • 3 out of 5 stars
  • price 2 of 4

Beloved pubs getting turned into blocks of flats is a depressingly common narrative in London. So it’s heartening that Borough’s The Gladstone,...