London’s best restaurants for breakfast

Inspired by the year she spent in Copenhagen, Alex Hely-Hutchinson’s Covent Garden café serves up a range of wholesome porridges for breakfast, plus birchers and toasties for maximum hygge. The almond-milk-soaked oats with chia seeds make for an indulgent start to the day, plus there are some exotic dishes worth a try, such as the loquat and sweet cicely porridge. Clumsies should slurp their coffee with caution: the mugs are so Nordic-chic that they don’t have handles.

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 out with chia seeds. If you’re after indulgence though 45 Jermyn Street can do that too: in the ‘favourites’ section you can binge on scrambled egg with caviar.

This cute Clerkenwell café’s secret weapon is its co-owner, a qualified nutritionist who wields her knowledge for noble ends: a healthy breakfast that also ticks the taste box. The massive full english is entirely oven-roasted and includes genuinely tasty, gluten-free toast, while the frittata muffins are each loaded with three eggs and daily changing extras. There’s a spread of cakes and pastries by the kitchen, too, so grab a seat at the back for drooling purposes – plus there are ace smoothies. 

It may be a gluten-free zone, but this branch of the Beyond Bread Bakery is a rousing success – particularly if you roll up for breakfast (served till 3pm each day). Of course, you’ll be wanting some bread, and the staff of life is everywhere – from toasted banana loaf with natural yoghurt to charred goat’s cheese on sourdough. The full english is a cracker too (with more of that sourdough toast, of course).

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. 

The Ned’s attempt at a grand railway café in the Parisian mould means that anyone looking to start their day with a ham and cheese croissant would do well to stop in here. The vibe is informal, and the menu is basically just omelettes and pastries. Nothing wrong with that.

From the same crew behind The Palomar and The Barbary, this Tom Dixon-designed restaurant dishes out the flavours of modern Jerusalem – it’s a melting pot of the region’s most exciting edibles, from North Africa and the Middle East. Dishes include pancakes with date syrup, winter vegetables with tahini, plus a red or green shakshuka. 

This riverside joint near Tower Bridge has plenty going for it – ace aquatic views from the sunny south-facing terrace, a luxe brass wraparound bar, striking herringbone flooring – but the glam-but-chilled breakfast menu is one of its best features. The eggs line-up is benedict or kiln-smoked salmon royale, both served on toasted english muffins or ‘naked’; while the virtuous ‘garden breakfast’ comes with field mushrooms, roast tomato, eggs and halloumi. 

An all-day café in a handsome glass and zinc pavilion – this place bashes out quality dishes with slick service. The food here is well executed – organic bacon sandwiches, coconut-milk porridge and hearty scrambled eggs – and the specialty coffees (made with Assembly Roast) are awesome.

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. 

The Covent Garden branch of this Bombay-styled café is ideally placed for morning meetings but has enough colonial knick-knacks to make you feel a million miles away from London. The Parsi power breakfasts, bacon naan roll and gently spiced chai are a hit 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. In a hurry? The bacon naan roll is a cult favourite, and you can grab it and go.

The richly indulgent breakfast menu here has it all: English 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.

It’s all about the all-day brekkie at this sweet Portobello Road café, but if you’re after a greasy fry-up, forget it – this place offers more wholesome deliciousness. Wolf down one of its superfood-stacked dishes, from to acai bowls to granola with orange zest and elderflower. Slightly naughtier are the berry pancakes (made with buckwheat flour) or the three-egg omelette (cooked in coconut oil). There are also Farm Girl outposts in Soho and Chelsea. 

This eco-friendly opening initially caught our eye thanks to a health-conscious daytime menu not stinting on flavour. Breakfast’s the same bag. Rich, creamy porridge is great, literally brimming with chia seed and quinoa goodness. There are also dairy-free pots – from yoghurt with berry compote to the all-day breakfast smoothie. Farmstand has a branch in Canary Wharf, too. 

Ah tea and crumpets, the most English of breakfast duos. Thankfully, the folks behind this café have steered clear of stuffy chintz and instead present a very modern version of the combo. Buttermilk sourdough crumpets are served with a choice of toppings – we liked the raspberry jam best. After strong coffee and grease? This probably isn’t the place for you. But for a light morning bite, in a laidback setting, with a professionally brewed cuppa, this is a proper nice spot.

This bistro may be known for its former chef Ollie Dabbous, but now under Sylvain Roucayrol it’s become an extremely decent Basque-influenced spot. Try the iberico ham toastie with quail’s eggs, lip-smacking churros and chocolate, or go all out with the full Basque breakfast. 

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

This bustling Sicilian café, with its perfectly formed pastries, posh cereal bowls and virtuous egg-based breakfasts, is a regular South Kensington stopping point for well-heeled local mamas and their kids en route to the local prep school. Interior design nuts will swoon over the patterned pottery and vibrant colour palette, while the rest of us can just enjoy a serious slice of la bella vita at surprisingly un-SW7 prices, complete with iced coffee that comes in a Martini glass and an array of hand-pressed exotic juices.

Breakfast might look like an afterthought on The Ivy Kensington Brasserie’s all-day dining menu, but despite the less-than-imaginative options, you’re guaranteed to get impeccable food for a bright start to your day. Luxurious dishes such as the lobster-and-asparagus gratin are highlights and really play to the westside London crowd.

Originally launched as the overflow branch of udon noodle joint Koya (since closed), this place has gone well beyond its remit, opening for morning meals too. As well as the classic Japanese combo of grilled fish, miso soup, pickles and rice, Koya Soho turns breakfast on its head with morning udon dishes such as hot noodles with raw egg and soy sauce (kama tama udon), and full-english-breakfast-inspired egg, bacon and shiitake mushroom udon.

The bread’s the star of the breakfast menu at this swish Danish bakery. It’s all about simple, dough-based flavour combos: floury white rolls stuffed with bacon; a parma ham and cheese toasted focaccia seasoned with just the subtlest lick of mustard-mayo. Take yours to go, or dine in style on 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, High Street Kensington, Charing Cross, and Eccleston Yards. 

An understated canteen set in a classy converted bike shed, Rochelle Canteen is best enjoyed in the summer: what’s nicer than breakfasting outside surrounded by flowers? The menu here is short and sweet: choose between porridge, eggs on toast and a few other items. NB: It opens at 9am, so it’s one for the later workers. 

A kind of produce multiplex, Sourced Market bills itself as a shop-deli-off-licence. The menu features breakfast bagels, vegan and avo hotpots, and handy build-your-own grain bowls. Think: quality fruit and veg, goji berries and a lot of milk substitutes. If you’re not around Marylebone, there are also joints around St Pancras, Barbican and Victoria. 

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 plate of smoked salmon with scrambled eggs or the creamed porridge with peach and apricot compote. Prices are not low – the oligarchic caviar-and-lobster omelette is a whopping £55 – but at a place of this exceptional quality you wouldn’t expect them to be. During the week, things kick off at 7am.

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.