The best waterside dining in London
Unleash your inner Wind in the Willows, there's no better place to be eating than on the river
The best waterside dining in London
Riverside dining just got better. Long anticipated, the restaurants at Battersea Power Station Riverwalk are now open, giving Londoners even more choice for riverside dining with new restaurants by some of our favourite chefs, including Francesco Mazzei at Fiume, Vivek Singh at Cinnamon Kitchen and the redoubtable oyster specialists The Wright Brothers.
Fiume
Calabrian chef Francesca Mazzei's third and largest restaurant with a huge terrace overlooking a water feature is smart yet relaxed, with teal blue leather banquettes and lots of brass and marble. There's counter-dining by the bar for quick plates of cicchetti (calamari, crostini) and homemade breads from the wood-fired pizza oven. Great antipasti includes burrata and radicchio, as well as octopus with cannelloni beans. Best among the homemade pasta is taglioni with crab, Amalfi lemon zest & chilli. Seafood fregola is a must order too as are the zucchini fritti and a very sophisticated tiramisu.
For more details and to book
Rick Stein at Barnes
The tranquil river setting and huge conservatory for riverside views add to the allure of Rick Stein’s best of British fish menu, with the addition of some of his international favourites so familiar from his TV programmes. For those who relish fully and messily engaging with their dinner, the Singapore chilli crab (bibs provided) is superlative. The Kerala seafood curry is a spicy delight, though we love the more classic fish grills as well, and pavlova for dessert.
For more details and to book
Brady's
What could be more British than fish and chips by the river Thames?
Brady's, a Wandsworth stalwart, now have a waterfront restaurant just south of Wandsworth Bridge. It is a bright, airy, maritime-themed space both indoors and out with floor-to-ceiling windows looking out over patio decking,
Battered cod is firm and flaky with the lightest of batters and fluffy chips. We like the fresh herb infused sauces brought to the table in jars. There are also simple grilled fish options: sea bream and other specials. Starters include a properly retro prawn cocktail in a sundae glass and gloriously nostaglic puds from crumbles to ice-creams – all good, retro nosh. In the bar (no reservations) there's a decent cold seafood menu.
Click here for more information and to book
River Cafe
Chef Lady Ruth Rogers (with the late Rose Gray) has run the River Café since it opened more than 30 years ago. It is famous for its regional Italian inspired cooking and was spreading the gospel of seasonality and respect for good ingredients far and wide, long before many of today's chefs were even on solids. The dizzying prices reflect the unsurpassable quality of the ingredients even if it makes eating here a true once in a life time experience for most of us. They installed their dramatic wood-fired oven long before every Shoreditch chef started talking cooking with fire. The River Cafe has long held a Michelin star and we’d be there every weekend if someone else was treating us. Really everything on the menu is superlative, from the simplest langoustines with fresh peas to the chargrilled Cornish monkfish with anchovy and rosemary sauce, agretti and broad beans sott'olio. If Amalfi lemon tart is on the menu, there is no contest; though the chocolate nemesis is also mesmerisingly good. Go once if you can.
For more details and to book
Pont de la Tour
The most sophisticated restaurant in the D&D clan has recently had a gentle Art Deco makeover, retaining the best views of Tower Bridge from its windows. The limited outdoor seating is possibly London's most sought-after riverside spot, so book early. Julien Imbert – previously head chef at Jason Atherton’s City Social who gained the restaurant a Michelin star within four months of opening – has taken over the kitchen and promises a serious menu reboot.
In the less formal bar and grill, dishes include: steak tartare; mussels with white wine, mustard and saffron; slow-cooked beef cheek with mashed potato and red wine sauce; and (of course) a Croque Monsieur.
More complex dishes are served in the main dining room: halibut with curry velouté, mussels, and a gruyere crust; braised lamb shoulder with black garlic emulsion and lemon yoghurt; and a whole duck served to share between two, with a confit leg salad.
For more details and to book
Rotunda
A hidden gem behind the brilliant King's Place art centre. Rotunda has masses of outdoor seating overlooking a quiet spot of canal away from the rather more hectic Granary Square. Over the summer, there is a special rum menu served from colourful shacks. Rotunda's owner has his own Northumberland farm, so expect exceptional lamb and beef. It's an especially good spot for Sunday brunch/lunch.
Click here for more information and to book
Towpath Cafe
Towpath Cafe, south of De Beauvoir, on the Regent’s Canal by the Whitmore Bridge is technically a café. For the spring and summer only, Lori de Mori (the owner) and Laura Jackson (the chef) create one of east London’s best little spots for lunch. Rosie Sykes, author of The Sunday Night Cookbook who's worked with all of the best including Alastair Little in Soho, is a frequent guest chef adding her inimitable style. Expect an assembly of seasonal ingredients, like radish and whipped cod’s roe or simply the finest cheese toastie. In the evenings, it becomes, unofficially, a buzzy canal-side sort-of-bar serving up vermouth-based cocktails. Officially Towpath Cafe is open Tuesday to Saturday from 8am to 6pm and on Sundays (busy) from 9am to 6pm. Towpath Cafe may introduce some evening openings over the summer, word will spread fast.
No reservations and no website
Plaquemine Lock
Cajun and Creole food in an English pub setting on the Regents Canal in Islington is refreshingly different and the newish project of Bocca di Lupo's Jacob Kennedy. There is a family connection as, at the turn of the twentieth century, Jacob Hortenstein came to Plaquemine to build a lock to enable heavy cargoes of Louisiana timber from the Bayou onto the mighty Mississipi. Carrie B Stewing, a Hollywood actress opened Plaquemine Lock in 1909, swooshing a champagne bottle against the lockhouse as the family steamer (called Carrie B Schwing) passed through the lock gates. Jacob is the great grand-son of Carrie B Schwing and Jacob Hortenstein, hence the name and the kitchen serving uncomplicated Cajun and Creole cooking – just like the food that his high society great grand-ma probably had someone make for her.
The walls are painted a hot, sultry yellow with murals of life on the Bayou; plantation houses and river boats. It’s all bare caff tables, cutlery in tins and orders taken at the bar. There are sections for oysters, both raw and grilled, and for Po’boys, overfilled sandwiches stuffed with the likes of 'beef debris'. Gumbo, by the cup and bowl, is as it should be: a deep, luscious stew of sausage and chicken, with crawfish added for dramatic impact as it is served.
There's an all day menu specialising in oysters, boiled crawfish, po’boys and gumbo plus cocktails and beer.
For more details and to book
The London Shell Co.
Not just by the water, properly on it, The London Shell Co is a quirky, picture book pretty, barge on the Regent's Canal with a tiny diesel powered kitchen serving up thoughtful, simple, seasonal dishes with a Mark Hix alumni chef running the show. At lunchtime, it stays moored and offers a ridiculously good value set menu. Come the evening, after safety announcements, it sets off thrumming down the river, prettily candle-lit. Feast on dishes such as charred mackerel with chilli spiked purple sprouting broccoli and toasted almonds, or pappardelle with shavings of salty Berkswell cheese, wild garlic and seared king oyster mushroom. Indulgent meringue with poached rhubarb or summer fruits is the dessert of choice to finish. Delightfully different for a balmy evening out.
For more details and to book
Daisy Green
Beany Green, located on Regent's Canal, just down from Paddington Station at the entrance to Paddington Central has a huge kitchen counter displaying Aussie inspired treats. Salads are bold, vibrant, inventive and thoughtful. There's bottomless brunch and they serve breakfast, healthy lunch and Aussie inspired treats on weekdays. All-day brunch menu and Bottomless Brunch menu is available everyday. From Wednesday – Friday nights, Beany Green in Little Venice becomes a fun and vibrant gin bar with live music and extensive outdoor seating. Close-by is newish Dulcie Green Darcie on the Grand Union Canal which has been sensitively restored, and thrillingly is designed by legendary British pop artist Sir Peter Blake, best known for co-creating the sleeve design for the Beatles' album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.
For more details and to book
Fiume
Calabrian chef Francesca Mazzei's third and largest restaurant with a huge terrace overlooking a water feature is smart yet relaxed, with teal blue leather banquettes and lots of brass and marble. There's counter-dining by the bar for quick plates of cicchetti (calamari, crostini) and homemade breads from the wood-fired pizza oven. Great antipasti includes burrata and radicchio, as well as octopus with cannelloni beans. Best among the homemade pasta is taglioni with crab, Amalfi lemon zest & chilli. Seafood fregola is a must order too as are the zucchini fritti and a very sophisticated tiramisu.
For more details and to book
Rick Stein at Barnes
The tranquil river setting and huge conservatory for riverside views add to the allure of Rick Stein’s best of British fish menu, with the addition of some of his international favourites so familiar from his TV programmes. For those who relish fully and messily engaging with their dinner, the Singapore chilli crab (bibs provided) is superlative. The Kerala seafood curry is a spicy delight, though we love the more classic fish grills as well, and pavlova for dessert.
For more details and to book
Brady's
What could be more British than fish and chips by the river Thames?
Brady's, a Wandsworth stalwart, now have a waterfront restaurant just south of Wandsworth Bridge. It is a bright, airy, maritime-themed space both indoors and out with floor-to-ceiling windows looking out over patio decking,
Battered cod is firm and flaky with the lightest of batters and fluffy chips. We like the fresh herb infused sauces brought to the table in jars. There are also simple grilled fish options: sea bream and other specials. Starters include a properly retro prawn cocktail in a sundae glass and gloriously nostaglic puds from crumbles to ice-creams – all good, retro nosh. In the bar (no reservations) there's a decent cold seafood menu.
Click here for more information and to book
River Cafe
Chef Lady Ruth Rogers (with the late Rose Gray) has run the River Café since it opened more than 30 years ago. It is famous for its regional Italian inspired cooking and was spreading the gospel of seasonality and respect for good ingredients far and wide, long before many of today's chefs were even on solids. The dizzying prices reflect the unsurpassable quality of the ingredients even if it makes eating here a true once in a life time experience for most of us. They installed their dramatic wood-fired oven long before every Shoreditch chef started talking cooking with fire. The River Cafe has long held a Michelin star and we’d be there every weekend if someone else was treating us. Really everything on the menu is superlative, from the simplest langoustines with fresh peas to the chargrilled Cornish monkfish with anchovy and rosemary sauce, agretti and broad beans sott'olio. If Amalfi lemon tart is on the menu, there is no contest; though the chocolate nemesis is also mesmerisingly good. Go once if you can.
For more details and to book
Pont de la Tour
The most sophisticated restaurant in the D&D clan has recently had a gentle Art Deco makeover, retaining the best views of Tower Bridge from its windows. The limited outdoor seating is possibly London's most sought-after riverside spot, so book early. Julien Imbert – previously head chef at Jason Atherton’s City Social who gained the restaurant a Michelin star within four months of opening – has taken over the kitchen and promises a serious menu reboot.
More complex dishes are served in the main dining room: halibut with curry velouté, mussels, and a gruyere crust; braised lamb shoulder with black garlic emulsion and lemon yoghurt; and a whole duck served to share between two, with a confit leg salad.
Rotunda
A hidden gem behind the brilliant King's Place art centre. Rotunda has masses of outdoor seating overlooking a quiet spot of canal away from the rather more hectic Granary Square. Over the summer, there is a special rum menu served from colourful shacks. Rotunda's owner has his own Northumberland farm, so expect exceptional lamb and beef. It's an especially good spot for Sunday brunch/lunch.
Click here for more information and to book
Towpath Cafe
Towpath Cafe, south of De Beauvoir, on the Regent’s Canal by the Whitmore Bridge is technically a café. For the spring and summer only, Lori de Mori (the owner) and Laura Jackson (the chef) create one of east London’s best little spots for lunch. Rosie Sykes, author of The Sunday Night Cookbook who's worked with all of the best including Alastair Little in Soho, is a frequent guest chef adding her inimitable style. Expect an assembly of seasonal ingredients, like radish and whipped cod’s roe or simply the finest cheese toastie. In the evenings, it becomes, unofficially, a buzzy canal-side sort-of-bar serving up vermouth-based cocktails. Officially Towpath Cafe is open Tuesday to Saturday from 8am to 6pm and on Sundays (busy) from 9am to 6pm. Towpath Cafe may introduce some evening openings over the summer, word will spread fast.
No reservations and no website
Plaquemine Lock
Cajun and Creole food in an English pub setting on the Regents Canal in Islington is refreshingly different and the newish project of Bocca di Lupo's Jacob Kennedy. There is a family connection as, at the turn of the twentieth century, Jacob Hortenstein came to Plaquemine to build a lock to enable heavy cargoes of Louisiana timber from the Bayou onto the mighty Mississipi. Carrie B Stewing, a Hollywood actress opened Plaquemine Lock in 1909, swooshing a champagne bottle against the lockhouse as the family steamer (called Carrie B Schwing) passed through the lock gates. Jacob is the great grand-son of Carrie B Schwing and Jacob Hortenstein, hence the name and the kitchen serving uncomplicated Cajun and Creole cooking – just like the food that his high society great grand-ma probably had someone make for her.
The walls are painted a hot, sultry yellow with murals of life on the Bayou; plantation houses and river boats. It’s all bare caff tables, cutlery in tins and orders taken at the bar. There are sections for oysters, both raw and grilled, and for Po’boys, overfilled sandwiches stuffed with the likes of 'beef debris'. Gumbo, by the cup and bowl, is as it should be: a deep, luscious stew of sausage and chicken, with crawfish added for dramatic impact as it is served.
There's an all day menu specialising in oysters, boiled crawfish, po’boys and gumbo plus cocktails and beer.
For more details and to book
Not just by the water, properly on it, The London Shell Co is a quirky, picture book pretty, barge on the Regent's Canal with a tiny diesel powered kitchen serving up thoughtful, simple, seasonal dishes with a Mark Hix alumni chef running the show. At lunchtime, it stays moored and offers a ridiculously good value set menu. Come the evening, after safety announcements, it sets off thrumming down the river, prettily candle-lit. Feast on dishes such as charred mackerel with chilli spiked purple sprouting broccoli and toasted almonds, or pappardelle with shavings of salty Berkswell cheese, wild garlic and seared king oyster mushroom. Indulgent meringue with poached rhubarb or summer fruits is the dessert of choice to finish. Delightfully different for a balmy evening out.
For more details and to book
Daisy Green
Beany Green, located on Regent's Canal, just down from Paddington Station at the entrance to Paddington Central has a huge kitchen counter displaying Aussie inspired treats. Salads are bold, vibrant, inventive and thoughtful. There's bottomless brunch and they serve breakfast, healthy lunch and Aussie inspired treats on weekdays. All-day brunch menu and Bottomless Brunch menu is available everyday. From Wednesday – Friday nights, Beany Green in Little Venice becomes a fun and vibrant gin bar with live music and extensive outdoor seating. Close-by is newish Dulcie Green Darcie on the Grand Union Canal which has been sensitively restored, and thrillingly is designed by legendary British pop artist Sir Peter Blake, best known for co-creating the sleeve design for the Beatles' album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.
For more details and to book
