Layered glass bowl of sherry-soaked sponge, raspberry jam, vanilla custard, and whipped cream, topped with flaked almonds and glace cherries. The British Christmas-table classic.
Where to eat it: 6 restaurants across 1 city.
Trifle dates to the 16th century in England as a simple cream-and-rosewater dessert; the layered modern form with sherry-soaked sponge and custard emerged in the 18th century in Hannah Glasse's 1747 The Art of Cookery. By Victorian London, trifle was the show-off centrepiece of any Christmas or formal dinner, served in a cut-glass footed bowl. The dish remains a Christmas Day or Boxing Day institution in British households; London restaurants from The Wolseley to Quality Chop House feature seasonal trifle (rhubarb in spring, raspberry in summer, sloe-gin and blackberry in autumn).
Common allergens: Gluten, Egg, Dairy, Nuts
Tip from the editors. Make the layers a day ahead and assemble overnight; trifle needs sherry and jam to soak into the sponge, and custard to set before the cream goes on.
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.
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.
Fergus Henderson's St John in Clerkenwell has cooked the nose-to-tail British canon in London since 1994. Priced at £££. Kitchen leans modern british.
Signature: Roast bone marrow and parsley salad, Eccles cake with Lancashire cheese
Order: Roast bone marrow with parsley salad and toast, then Eccles cake with Lancashire.
Tip: The bakery counter near the front sells the same Eccles cakes, doughnuts and brown loaf to take away if you can't get a booking.
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.
Jeremy Lee's Dean Street dining room in Soho London, opened 1926 and restored under chef Lee since 2012, runs a daily-changing seasonal British menu.
Signature: Smoked eel sandwich, Steamed mutton pudding
Order: The smoked eel sandwich on rye, and whatever pudding is on the chalkboard at the door.
Tip: Lunch menu is a fraction of dinner prices and just as well-staffed; book a Soho-show theatre lunch a week ahead.
Mourad Mazouz and Pierre Gagnaire's Conduit Street dining rooms in Mayfair London, opened 2002, hold three Michelin stars in the Lecture Room and run a famed.
Order: The Pierre Gagnaire signature plate in the Lecture Room, or afternoon tea in the pink Gallery.
Tip: The Gallery serves the bistro menu and books a fortnight ahead; the three-starred Lecture Room is the eight-week wait.
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