Minced lamb braised with onions, carrots and peas in rich gravy, topped with buttery mash fluffed with a fork to scorch in the oven. London pub Sunday-supper standard.
Where to eat it: 6 restaurants across 1 city.
Shepherd's pie (lamb) and cottage pie (beef) both emerged in the late 18th century in northern Britain as a way to repackage Sunday-roast leftovers; cottage pie is the older of the two (1791 in print), shepherd's pie (1854) gained its lamb-specific name when sheep farming dominated certain regions. London adopted both as pub-grub mainstays in the Victorian era; today the lamb version is on most traditional British pub menus across the city. The crisp, fork-scored mash top is the defining textural feature; without it, it's just stew with potato on top.
Common allergens: Gluten, Dairy
Tip from the editors. The Marmite is non-negotiable; one tablespoon adds the depth that takes the pie from school dinner to pub standard. Yeast extract substitutes work.
Britain's oldest restaurant on Maiden Lane in Covent Garden London, opened 1798 by Thomas Rule, runs an estate-game-led menu through grouse.
Signature: Game pie, Steak and kidney pudding
Order: Game pie in season, then steamed steak and kidney pudding with mash.
Tip: Lunch is a third of dinner's price and just as well-staffed. The upstairs cocktail bar runs to 23:00 most nights.
Chris Corbin and Jeremy King's grand European brasserie on Piccadilly in London, opened 2003, runs the city's most-traditional power-breakfast crowd.
Order: Eggs Benedict with smoked salmon, plus a flat white
Tip: Weekday breakfast at 07:30 is the easy slot. The weekend full English at £24 is the marquee brunch order.
Neil Borthwick's upstairs dining room above the historic French House pub on Dean Street in Soho London, opened 2017, the city's most-defended phone-free.
Why locals love it: An upstairs Soho dining room above a historic pub that bans mobile phones and serves the Modern British canon to a hushed dining room of regulars.
Tip: No mobile phones, no music. Tables book one week ahead. The downstairs pub still pours a proper half-pint of bitter for £2.50.
Britain's first gastropub on Farringdon Road in Clerkenwell London, opened 1991 by Mike Belben and David Eyre, still serves Mediterranean-leaning.
Signature: Bife Ana steak sandwich, Whatever is on the chalkboard
Order: The Bife Ana steak sandwich, on the menu since 1991, and a pint of bitter.
Tip: Walk-in only. The chalkboard menu rewrites every day at 12:00; the best dishes go by 14:00 on a busy lunch.
Andrew Edmunds's candlelit Lexington Street bistro in Soho London, opened 1985 by the print-dealer Edmunds, still the city's preferred Soho dining-room.
Why locals love it: A candlelit Georgian townhouse bistro hidden between the Soho tourist circuit and Carnaby Street since 1985, established by Londoners and missed by visitors.
Tip: Bar seats at the front are released as walk-ins after 21:30. The handwritten daily menu does not appear online.
The 1869 Farringdon Road working-class dining room in Clerkenwell London, restored under Will Lander since 2012, runs daily-changing British cooking.
Signature: Confit potato, Mince and potatoes
Order: The famed confit potato, then mince and potatoes off the daily menu, with a bottle from the shop next door.
Tip: The wine shop next door is corkage-free if you buy a bottle there. Lunch takes walk-ins at the counter Tue-Sat.
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