London’s best restaurants for breakfast

If ever proof were needed that not all caffs are created equal, this grade II-listed greasy spoon on Bethnal Green Road is it. People come here as much for the atmosphere and decor as for the grub. Inside, it has an almost opulent feel, harking back to a time when caff culture was king in the capital. Chrome-lined vitrolite panels cover the outside, and the wood-panelled interior is full of formica tables and original art deco touches. 

Known for their addictive Hong Kong-style french toast made with deep-fried milk bread – oof, right? – Brick Lane's HOKO Café weekends only brekkie offering gives you an authentic taste of Hong Kong in three separate breakfast set menus. Go for either ham soup macaroni with a toasted bun and fried egg; satay beef soup noodles with a toasted bun, fried egg and ham; or the veggie offering of tomato soup macaroni with scrambled egg, a toasted bun and buttered sweetcorn. Utterly unique. 

From 7.30-10.30am every weekday, this swanky St James's spot serves up next-level takes on your favourite brekky items; the royales are a must, wedged between two croissant rolls with black pepper hollandaise, while the black pudding benedict is served on a honey waffle. There’s also not a single avocado on the menu, if that means anything. Try and get a spot by the window, and definitely order the hash browns, served with Fallow’s intensely umami mushroom ketchup.

If you like to start your day with a sense of occasion, it doesn’t get much better than The Wolseley, Piccadilly’s iconic art deco grand café. From a just-baked pastry or an omelette Arnold Bennett, to a decadent kedgeree or the creamed porridge with fruit compote. Prices are not low, but at a place of this exceptional quality you wouldn’t expect them to be. During the week, things kick off at 7am. 

Ottolenghi has put shakshuka, the North African dish of eggs, peppers and tomatoes, on London’s culinary map. This is probably what your first breakfast in heaven tastes like. You can go sweet here too, with french toast accompanied by berry jam and orange yoghurt, as well as porridge with toasted buckwheat, Medjool dates and hazelnuts. The pastry counter will also flirt with you – let it, especially if the cinnamon brioche pretzel is on.

Honey & Co’s Bloomsbury premises offer a pert brekkie from 9am Tuesday to Saturday. Its massive Big Breakfast starts with a sharing mezze of bread, houmous, tomato salad, labaneh and za’atar as well as olives and pickles, fig loaf, house ashura cereal, yoghurt, poached rhubarb and homemade jams. Then it’s your choice of eggs. We like the green shakshuka and overspilling sabich – fried Italian aubergines marinated in chilli and garlic dressing, served on pitta with tahini and fried egg. 

This is the mother of all caffs. The iconic full-english and fry-up specialist has been around since 1946 and has rightly gained its institution status. Go back in time and plonk yourself at one of the mid-century tables, which you might recognise from any number of classic British films. Order all the stodge: eggs, lasagne, omelettes, baked potatoes and every conceivable cooked breakfast. Wash it all down with a cuppa. Heaven. 

Brekkies don't come much more bougie than at the modern art-filled Mount St Restaurant. It's the first London spot from Artfarm – the food and drink wing of fancy, world-famous gallerists Hauser & Wirth – and a seriously stunning space. Open from 7.30am on weekdays, you can feast on super trad British breakfasts, such as kippers, devilled kidneys on toast or a bacon chop with bubble and squeak and a fried duck egg. For something lighter, there's porridge with honey direct from Durslade, Artfarm's very own Somerset farm. Pure class. 

Udon noodle joint Koya has gone well beyond its remit, opening for morning meals from 10am. As well as the classic Japanese breakfast combo of grilled fish, miso soup, pickles and rice, Koya Soho serves up morning udon dishes such as hot noodles with raw egg and soy sauce (kama tama udon), and a full-english-breakfast-inspired egg, bacon and shiitake mushroom udon.

A new-gen greasy spoon that serves simple yet effective set menus, bacon sarnies, chip butties and piping hot mugs of tea. If it’s a full english you’re after – and the chance to eavesdrop on conversations between hungover natural-wine merchants in tiny little knitted beanies – you’ve come to the right place. Doors are 10am from Wednesday to Sunday; but get there early on the weekends, when there’s often a queue to get in. It’s the Fabric of fry-ups. 

This much-loved Jewish deli has been doing roaring buisiness in St John's Wood since 1944. But this London landmark isn't just great for getting global grocery goods – hit up their outdoor terrace for a slap-up breakfast featuring their famous smoked salmon with a toasted bagel, cream cheese and pickles. There's also challah french toast with blueberry and cardamom jam, creme fraiche and honeycomb for those who want to start the day with something sweet.  

The Covent Garden branch of this Bombay-styled café is ideally placed for morning meetings but has enough knick-knacks to make you feel a million miles away from London. The Parsi power breakfasts, bacon naan roll and gently spiced chai are hits among the masses. Green-chilli-flecked scrambled eggs are just as popular – a warming plate with traditional (and fluffy) pau buns served on the side. 

Inspired by the year she spent in Copenhagen, Alex Hely-Hutchinson’s Covent Garden café serves a range of wholesome porridges for breakfast, resulting in maximum hygge. The Turkish fried eggs with labneh, apricot harissa, chickpeas and herbs make for an indulgent start to the day, plus there are some creative comfort dishes worth a try, such as the banana, tahini, honey, cinnamon, sesame seeds and cacao nibs porridge. Clumsies should slurp their coffee with caution: the mugs are so Nordic-chic that they don’t have handles.

Sometimes all you want in the morning, especially a hungover one, is a Sausage McMuffin with Egg. Sometimes though, the shame of a 9am McDonald's visit can be too much to cope with. Step forward then Soho's chic bistro Nessa, an all day bar and restaurant which offers a classy take on the fast food brekkie classic. Nessa jazzes up the dish with a zingy hot sauce. Don't forget to order some brick-shaped hash browns on the side. The likes of a mixed grill, pancakes, eggs royale, granola and banana french toast are also available. 

The ground floor of super-chef Ollie Dabbous’s Michelin-starred restaurant-and-bar complex serves a range of divine breakfast treats. There are the glammed-up basics – like the Jersey milk porridge or the viennoiserie (freshly baked onsite daily) – but also some more adventurous, pricier options (try the smoked-eel omelette or oysters with caviar).

In the lowlands between Holborn and Covent Garden lies The Black Penny, a cheery café where diners will struggle to choose just one of the enticing cooked breakfasts on offer – there’s brioche french toast, crispy confit duck hash and even bubble and squeak. Make sure you sample the Gatherer – one of the finest vegetarian breakfasts in central London (grilled halloumi, sautéed spinach, roasted tomatoes, mushrooms and homemade baked beans) too. Also check out its Sloane Square branch. 

This place looks a bit like a really glittering ocean-liner restaurant. Fittingly, then, breakfast is a glam affair, replete with cleansing drinks and a ‘healthy’ section packed with buckwheat pancakes and baked hens’ eggs. If you’re after indulgence, though, 45 Jermyn St can do that too: in the ‘favourites’ section you can binge on scrambled eggs with caviar or white truffle.

Even at an early hour, the dark-panelled dining rooms of this ever-popular all-day Soho restaurant buzz with the animated chatter of media types. The smooth service eases things along nicely, too. It’s largely classics on the breakfast menu: eggs all ways, porridge, kedgeree, full english. There are fruit smoothies and Scots will be heartened to see tattie scones and lorne (square) sausage on the menu. 

A kind of mainstream riff on Norman's posh greasy spoon, Bangers breakfast bar does trad caff brekkies but with high end produce. Think Clarence Court eggs, meat from Lidgates, muffins and bread from The Spence Bakery. There are sausage sarnies (with a veggie option), bacon baps and sides of beans, hash browns, and on-the-go pots. 

The richly indulgent breakfast menu at this 24-hour restaurant has it all: fry-ups, shakshuka and South American-style scrambled eggs, plus a waffle section owned by the signature duck ’n’ waffle – crispy duck-leg confit on a sweet waffle, topped with a fried duck egg and mustard maple syrup. Temptation abounds: truffled and baked duck eggs are served with wild mushrooms, lots of melted gruyère and toast soldiers, while drinks options include cocktails, bubbly and hot chocolate.

Kiwi-owned Ozone Coffee Roasters is a big hit with office workers. Order eggs whatever which way, from eggs benedict on crunchy bubble ’n’ squeak cakes to chilli eggs with yoghurt and Cornish greens on toasted sourdough, or sourdough muffin with black pudding, spiced sausage, fried egg and red leicester. Or, if you don’t fancy the yolky stuff there’s braised Essex beef mince on wholemeal brioche, or very decent banana bread. 

A word-of-mouth favourite of Southwark Street’s many jobbing architects, journos and early-rising tourists, The Table is an ace little spot for grab-and-go coffees, pastries and superlative sandwiches. It’s also a fine place to dine in, with a wider brekkie menu heavy on eggs, avocado and pancakes, as well as a vaunted vegan riff on a full english. You can also ask for some off-the-menu granola. More ‘old-school’ morning meetings could – should! – be incentivised with a breakfast cocktail.

The bread’s the star of the breakfast menu at this swish Danish bakery. It’s all about simple, dough-based flavour combos, including rye rolls stuffed with ham and cheese. Take yours to go, or dine in style at Ole & Steen’s smart dark-wood tables. Avo and eggs, luxury porridge and yoghurt are on offer, too – but when the bread’s this good, why branch out? There are other outlets in Richmond, Canary Wharf, Bedford Avenue, Victoria, Wigmore Street, Westfield White City, High Street Kensington, Charing Cross, Eccleston Yards and Greenwich.