Quirky restaurants in London for a unique meal out

What is it? A weekend restaurant in a working denim factory, home to Blackhorse Lane Ateliers.

Why we love it: At Slowburn, the best seat in the house is next to a gigantic industrial washing machine, and scrappy paper patterns for jeans line the walls. During the week, the warehouse is  full of buzzing sewing machines and selvedge aficionados. Come Friday evening, the denim-heads are booted out, tables and chairs are bought in from storage and the kitchen fires up for the weekend. Chef and founder Chavdar Todorov started Slowburn in late 2020, delivering local meals during lockdown on his motorbike. Over the past five years he’s honed his hearty home -cooking-but-better, menu. It’s not a vegetarian restaurant by any stretch of the imagination, but vegetables here are king and everything comes full of love and flavour. 

Time Out tip: Check out the great value lunchtime spread for £26 a head; two starters and three mains for vegetarians, and two starters, two mains and a quarter smoked chicken for meat-eaters.

Address: 114b Blackhorse Lane, Walthamstow, E17 6AA.

Opening hours: Fri 5.30-10pm, Sat 12-3pm & 5-10pm, Sun 12-3.30pm & 5.30-9.30pm. 

Expect to pay: Small plates £8-15, big plates £22-26.

What is it? Less a ‘listening bar’ and more of a ‘dancing restaurant’, this disco diva dining hall in London Fields’ sees the tables pushed back after dinner service to create a dancefloor.

Why we love it: With a mirror ball, mezzanine, bold artworks from in-demand illustrator Alec Doherty and absolutely roaring smoking area, Bambi feels more like a club than a restaurant. You’d be forgiven for thinking that the food must have suffered in the face of such dedication to the sesh. How wrong you would be. Head chef Jamie Thorneycroft has a flair for fire and ferments and his menu is potent stuff, with flavours more than capable of making themselves heard over nightly vinyl-only DJs. 

Time Out tip: Order the fluffy sourdough, which comes from nearby bakery Forno (an off-shoot of beloved local restaurant, Ombra). It is truly divine when dipped into gossamer-light whipped ricotta, swirled with lashings of hot honey. After something a little more butch? Try the velvety butterbean hummus studded with crispy fava beans. 

Address: 1 Westgate Street, London Fields, E8 3RL.

Opening hours: Mon closed, Tue-Thu 6pm-midnight, Fri 6pm-1am, Sat 12pm-1am, Sun 1-10.30pm.

Expect to pay: Small plates £10-15, larger plates £18-38. 

What is it? Johnny Boys is a good-natured attempt to bring the West Coast diner to the mean streets of Stoke Newington.

Why we love it: Visually, it’s on point, with luminous orange tiles bringing to mind LA’s legendary Canter’s Deli and Norm’s, while Formica tables are tucked into cosy booths and a Coca-Cola branded sign hangs outside. Johnny Boys draws not just on blue jeans and Bruce Springsteen, but the Mexican and Jewish immigrant communities of southern California. Which is why the short-but-sweet menu sees taquitos, tostadas and pastrami sandwiches alongside chicken plates, patty melts and cheeseburgers. 

Time Out tip: They also open at the weekends for brunch. Come and be treated to endless refills of filter coffee until you get the shakes. Like with dinner, the Mexican-leaning dishes are the best; our burrito is gleefully stuffed with tater tots, salsa and egg, then grilled after assembly for a crunchy exterior.

Address: 3 Northwold Road, Stoke Newington, N16 7HL.

Opening hours: Wed-Fri 5.30-10.30pm, Sat 11.30am-2.30pm & 5.30-10.30pm, Sun 11.30am-2.30pm.

Expect to pay: Starters around £10-15, mains £18-22.

What is it? All-you-can-eat lasagna in a New York-styled Italian-American joint, complete with chequered tablecloths.

Why we love it: London is not wanting for Italian restaurants, but Senza Fondo has a unique twist. This restaurant right out of a Billy Joel song has a name that translates to ‘bottomless’ and that’s what they’re here to do: serve unlimited lasagne (beef shin or veggie) for £20 until you pass out/admit defeat/call an ambulance. For those of us with more in common with pasta-addicted puss Garfield than we’d like to believe, it’s a dream come true. Otherwise, there’s a short but lovingly crafted risotto and pasta menu. 

Time Out tip: If you want to make the most of the bottomless lasagne offer, skip the starters and dive straight in.

Address: 1 Rufus Street, Shoreditch, N1 6PE.

Opening hours: Tue-Thu 5.30pm-midnight, Fri-Sat 12.30-2.30pm & 5.30pm-midnight, Sun 12-9pm.

Expect to pay: Starters £8-16, £20 all you-can-eat lasagne, pizzas around £12, pasta/risotto £16-19, desserts around £8.

What is it? A campy Austrian theme park of a restaurant with a lederhosen-clad one-man band at the helm.

Why we love it: There’s life before and after Tiroler Hut, which will redefine your expectations of a restaurant. Open since 1967, it’s to be found down a rickety staircase on Westbourne Grove. Can’t see the sign? Then simply follow the sound of dinging cowbells and the smell of hot, liquid cheese. Octogenarian host Josef holds court. In a felt hat and full lederhosen, he works the small, low-ceilinged room like we’re in Las Vegas, playing keyboards, sax, accordion and clarinet, before his infamous and largely indescribable cowbell show. Oh yeah, and there’s also food; fondue, all manner of wurst and plenty of booze.

Time Out tip: If you so wish, you can drink booze from a humongous nine-pint glass boot at Tiroler Hut. 

Address: 27 Westbourne Grove, Bayswater, W2 4UA.

Opening hours: Tue-Sat 6.30pm-1.30am. 

Expect to pay: Starters £3-12.50, mains £22.50-29.50.

What is it? An Italian restaurant played out like the Mad Hatter was left in charge of a Pizza Express for the weekend. 

Why we love it: The wildly imaginative minds behind Gloria and Circolo Popolare have made another highly-‘Grammable Italian restaurant. It’s a hectic blend of Catholic kitsch, bright red tiles and zebra stripes. But the food is pretty straightforward: satisfy carb cravings with carbonara ravioli, pillowy pizzas, or a slice of the mammoth, 60cm tall stracciatella ice cream cake. The portions are very generous, banishing any fears that Ave Mario might offer style over substance.

Time Out tip: You don’t come here for authentic Italian pizzas. You come here for pizza crusts injected with deeply rich melted cheese. 

Address: 15 Henrietta Street, Covent Garden, WC2E 8QG. 

Opening hours: Sun-Wed 12-10pm, Thu-Sat 12-11pm.

Expect to pay: Pizzas £14-21, pasta £15.50-21, desserts £7-9.

What is it? A place where cheese is delivered to guests via an 18-metre-long conveyor belt which stretches around the restaurant.

Why we love it: Because of the sheer satisfaction that comes from choosing a variety of cheese combos from a moving belt, including Cropwell Bishop Stilton with kimchi, Cornish Yarg with pea and mint pesto and St Ella goat’s cheese with rose Turkish delight. Plates are colour-coded by price and there’s also an off-belt menu of grilled cheese sandwiches. For pudding there’s a cheese-based gelato menu, with goats cheese gelato served with honey and rosemary.

Time Out tip: This isn’t the only conveyor belt cheese restaurant in London. Visit the original Pick & Cheese at Seven Dials Market in Covent Garden. 

Address: Unit 93-94, Chalk Farm Road, Camden, NW1 8AH.  

Opening hours: Mon-Tue & Thu 12-8pm, Wed & Fri 12-9pm, Sat 11am-9pm, Sun 12-7pm.

Expect to pay: Plates are various prices. Every Wednesday you can get unlimited cheese and charcuterie plates from the belt for an hour and 15 minutes for £29.50.

What is it? High-quality British and European fare served with flair behind the walls of HMP Brixton.

Why we love it: The Clink is all about fine food and second chances. The prison’s training restaurant is a professional-level kitchen and smart, buzzy dining room staffed by prisoners working towards qualifications in catering and hospitality. You need to register to visit (makes sense, really) and alcohol doesn’t feature anywhere on the menu, so go for the mocktail of the day. Alternatively, the alcohol-free beers (they serve lager and pale ale here) are crisp and refreshing.

Time Out tip: The Clink offers a very decent afternoon tea, served and cooked by inmates studying for their NVQ Level 2 in Patisserie and Confectionery. 

Address: HMP Brixton, Jebb Ave, Brixton Hill, SW2 5XF. 

Expect to pay: Lunch mains £20-24, gourmet dinner menu £48.

What is it? An experimental culinary experience with charm and humour. 

Why we love it: Modern life moves fast, but at Frog you’re encouraged to recline on your proverbial lily pad (read: pink pastel chair) and spend four whimsical hours over a delightfully inventive meal. Audacious but also completely delightful, this restaurant from Masterchef: The Professionals finalist Adam Handling was awarded a Michelin star in 2022. Think of it as a grown-up version of Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory, complete with a little bit of magic. There's a hefty price tag, but for your dosh you'll get an indulgent tasting menu and some culinary wizardry. On our visit, we snapped up the signature waffle topped with sturgeon emulsion (caviar and birch syrup) and tender pigeon kicking back in a rich jus. 

Time Out tip: Can’t quite justify the cost? Then visit Eve Bar, Frog’s adjoining cocktail joint, for a drink and small plate of slightly cheaper nibbles. 

Address: 34-35 Southampton Street, Covent Garden, WC2E 7HG. 

Opening hours: Mon 5-9.30pm, Tue-Sat 12-9.30pm. 

Expect to pay: Four-hour tasting menu £195. Wine pairing, £155. Alcohol-free pairing, £85.

What is it? A banging Bavarian beer hall and restaurant in the middle of London.  

Why we love it: You have to admire their chutzpah. Already a hit in Liverpool, Manchester and Birmingham, Albert’s Schloss’s first London site is in the bones of the dearly departed Rainforest Café on Shaftesbury Avenue. Come for a two-storey, 600-cover beer hall and ‘cook haus’ featuring five bars, daily live music daily and shuffleboard. Gimmicky it might seem, but the Alpine-themed fun palace has some genuine foodie credentials. The all-day menu features a genuinely impressive roster of classic Alpine fodder, from meat-heavy breakfasts and chicken schnitzels to fondue and bratwurst, plus pretzels, kaiser rolls and other baked goods made fresh in-house each morning. Take a big group and get absolutely schlossed.

Time Out tip: The haus band rolls out easy listening oompa tunes (if there is such a thing) 4-7pm every single day. 

Address: 20-24 Shaftesbury Avenue, Piccadilly Circus, W1D 7EU.

Opening hours: Mon-Thu 12pm-2am, Fri-Sat 10am-3am, Sun 10am-10.30pm.

Expect to pay: Breakfast mains £7-14, lunch mains £17.50-20, dinner mains £15-24.50.

What is it? Nose-to-tail fine dining on an unassuming barge resting on the River Lee.

Why we love it: The fact that Barge East is a floating restaurant on a canal is perhaps the least interesting thing about it. Instead, what's great about this Hackney Wick spot is the fact that most of the veg is grown at the adjacent Barge East Gardens – where you can also kick back with their more relaxed street food menu – meaning it's got some serious sustainability chops. Sit in the breezy canopy up top, or get all cosy in the hull. Want a private dining room with a difference? The eight-seater captain’s cabin comes with a phone line straight to the bar.

Time Out tip: The Sunday roasts here use the highest quality meats, complemented by the likes of honey roasted carrots. They’re far from stingy with the gravy here; the only thing in danger of capsizing is your Yorkshire pud.

Address: River Lee, Sweetwater Mooring, White Post Lane, Hackney Wick, E9 5EN.

Opening hours: Thu 4pm-late, Fri-Sun 12pm-late.

Expect to pay: Street food menu around £14, a la carte mains £24-£35, roasts around £30.

What is it? An obsessively garlic-centric heavy metal bar and restaurant in Soho.  

Why we love it: This bizarre Soho restaurant, which hides a heavy metal bar complete with crypt downstairs, has a simple motto: ‘You can always order extra garlic, but never less.’ Food ranges from snacky tapas to heartier mains: think spicy chili garlic beans, spicy pasta dishes and the likes of their zesty fish burger. Expect to be fully marinated by the time you’ve polished off the desserts (yes, they contain the pungent stuff too). At least five of the shots on the 101-strong list have also succumbed to garlic overload. 

Time Out tip: The deep-fried potato skins offer precision-engineered bar snackage. Extra tip: if you suspect on any level that your friend might be a vampire, don’t bring them here.

Address: 14 Frith Street, Soho, W1D 4RD.

Opening hours: Mon-Thu 5pm-midnight, Fri-Sat 2pm-1am, Sun 5-11.30pm.

Expect to pay: Starters £5.50-9, mains £15-24, desserts £5.50-6.50.

What is it? 24/7 food with some of the best views in town.  

Why we love it: When a signature dish is as famous as the views, you know you’re onto something. Duck & Waffle has been a London staple since 2012 and its eponymous concoction, a slab of crispy duck leg confit nestled over two pillowy waffles and doused in devilishly spiced maple syrup, has remained a menu favourite ever since. And then, of course, is the restaurant’s location. Take the lift to the 40th floor of the Salesforce Tower, which resembles a spaceship dropped in the middle of Bishopsgate, and enjoy an eyeful of the Shard, the Gherkin and more. Just remember to tear your eyes away from your meal and take in the cityscape.

Time Out tip: Duck & Waffle is open 24/7, so you can take midnight snacking to the next level – literally.

Address: Heron Tower, The City, EC2N 4AY.

Opening hours: Open 24/7.

Expect to pay: Small plates £12-22, sharing mains £26-49.50.

What is it? British and French fare served in decadent environs. Like a Bond villain’s lair, but with automated Champagne.  

Why we love it: When a restaurant offers particularly noteworthy décor – and that’s a wild understatement when it comes to Bob Bob Ricard – it risks overwhelming the food. Not so at this playful and indulgent space, where guests dine in plush booths and almost every surface is adorned with some kind of gold-coloured accenting. This is a place where even the pies are made with Champagne, and the turbot coulibiac (an ultra-posh pasty) arrives with the pastry arranged around the shape of the fish inside. Silly, decadent and the perfect antidote to high-class establishments that take themselves too seriously. 

Time Out tip: The tables come with a button that reads: ‘Press for champagne.’ Use it wisely. 

Address: 1 Upper James Street, Soho, W1F 9DF.

Expect to pay: Starters £10-22, mains £19-50, dessert £4-15.

What is it? A steak restaurant on the balcony of the historic Hippodrome.

Why we love it: If you’ve ever wanted to feel like a Temu George Clooney in Ocean’s 11, Heliot Steak House is where to come. Sit yourself down on a balcony table overlooking the rattling roulette wheels and blackjack tables, as distractions don’t get much better than a hedge fund manager losing his first-born child’s private school tuition fees as you chomp on prime cuts. As a starter you can’t go wrong with the shrimp cocktail, with juicy, fat prawns and a potent, US-style horseradish sauce. The spicy chimichurri packs a serious punch and there’s also thick, creamy béarnaise, red wine sauce, and a house steak sauce. Martinis are ice cold and there’s a big old wine list too. 

Time Out tip: Heliot Steak House is open until 2am on weekends, making it the latest steak in London by far. Ideal for those insatiable midnight meat cravings.

Address: Hippodrome Casino, Cranbourn Street, Leicester Square, WC2H 7JH. 

Expect to pay: Starters £4-15, mains £19-39, steaks £31-99, dessert £8-9.

What is it? A French restaurant where food is served in pitch black darkness. 

Why we love it: Dans Le Noir puts dinner in a whole new light. This slightly daunting dining experience aims to encourage participants to re-evaluate their approach to eating. You eat in complete darkness, so it’s the taste, smell and texture of the food on which you focus. You select a two or three-course mystery menu (meat or vegan) and are steered through the pitch-black basement dining room by the restaurant’s partially sighted guides/waiters. They’ve been known to serve cucumber tartare, pressed Corsican meagre (that’s a fish) and dark chocolate shell with milk chocolate mousse. It’s a profoundly sensory food adventure that makes for a unique evening. 

Time Out tip: There’s the option to add ‘surprise wine’ to your mystery menu. Always a nice surprise, wine.

Address: 69-73 St John Street, Clerkenwell, EC1M 4AN. 

Opening hours: Tue-Thu 5.30-11pm, Fri 5pm-midnight, Sat 12-3pm & 5.30-11.30pm, Sun 5.30-11pm.

Expect to pay: Two-course menu £58 (£67 with wine), three-course menu £68 (£77 with wine).

What is it? Incredible value Indian food.

Why we love it: When you’re short on dosh,  you can fill up on authentic curries in this utilitarian dining hall attached to the long-running Indian YMCA. The canteen is open to all, so join the merry gang of office workers, tourists and bargain hunters as they queue up at the counter. Breakfast is an east-west mash-up, while the best Indian deals are on the lunch and supper menus. Check the pegboard for the day’s freshly prepared home-style dishes – the egg curry wins hands-down, but also expect mutton, fish and chicken, plus a couple of tandooris and biryanis, dhal, onion bhajis and the like. For afters? Tinned fruits!

Time Out tip: The coffees here are also fantastic, so pick yourself up off the ground with a much-needed caffeine fix.

Address: YMCA Indian Student Hostel, 41 Fitzroy Square, Fitzrovia, W1T 6AQ.

Opening hours: Mon-Fri 7.30-9.15am & 12-3pm & 5.30-9pm, Sat-Sun 12-2pm.

Expect to pay: Breakfast menu £7.50, lunch set menu £13, dinner set menu £13.

What is it? Dinner meets opera at this Turkish-Mediterranean quirkfest.

Why we love it: There are plenty of options for a pre-show dinner in the West End, but what if we told you there’s a place that combines the two? Welcome to Sarastro, which offers a three-course set menu and is decked out with opera boxes, gold curtains and general theatrical paraphernalia. It’s a decadent setting, with each box furnished in a different style (rococo, gothic, o ttoman). Opera singers entertain the guests on a Sunday afternoon and evening; if you’ve ever wanted to tuck into succulent chargrilled chicken skewers and great piles of hummus while being treated to lung-busting operatics (who hasn’t?), tick that box.

Time Out tip: The Pomegranate Royal cocktail – a delicate blend of prosecco, rosewater syrup and pomegranate juice – will steal the show.

Address: 126 Drury Lane, Covent Garden, WC2B 5SU.

Opening hours: Mon-Wed 3-10pm, Thu-Fri 3-11pm, Sat 12pm-11pm, Sun 12pm-10pm.

Expect to pay: Starters £10.45-13.25, mains 20.95-36.50, dessert £7.45-16. Three-course set menu £48pp.