Brett Redman's small-plates dining room on Stoney Street next to Borough Market in London, opened 2010, runs wood-fire cooking and a market-driven daily-changing chalkboard.
Signature dishes: Wood-fired flatbread, Burrata with seasonal greens
Must order: Whatever the wood-fired flatbread topping is, and a burrata with whatever's in season.
Tip: Walk-up only at the bar. Tables book a fortnight ahead. Closed Monday; the Borough Market kitchen runs Wed-Sat.
Address: 12 Stoney Street, London SE1 9AD
Jonathan Lawson's Italian-leaning dining room on Rivington Street in Shoreditch London, opened 2017, runs hand-rolled pasta, North African accents and a Sicilian wine list.
Signature: Hand-rolled pasta, Whatever Sicilian special is on
Order: Whatever fresh pasta is on, and the Sicilian-spiced lamb if it's on the night.
Tip: Counter seats wrap the open kitchen. Walk-up only at the counter; tables book a week ahead through their site.
Owen Kenworthy's Modern European dining room on Columbia Road in Shoreditch London, opened 2010, runs a daily-changing menu of small plates with a natural-wine list.
Signature: Charcuterie board, Whatever offal special is on
Order: House charcuterie board, then whatever offal main is on the night.
Tip: Best on a Sunday after the Columbia Road flower market closes at 14:00; the kitchen runs to 17:00.
Charlie Mellor's wine-bar dining room on Hackney Road in east London, opened 2017, runs a Modern European small-plates menu with a natural-wine list and late kitchen.
Signature: Beef tartare, Whatever Modern European plate is on
Order: Beef tartare with bone-marrow chips, and a glass of Jura red from the natural-wine list.
Tip: Open Wed-Sun, kitchen runs to 23:30. The downstairs wine room takes walk-ins on weeknights.
The 1946 Westminster greasy spoon on Regency Street in London, white-tiled formica-tabled cafe, runs the canonical London full English at the counter for under £10.
Signature: Full English breakfast, Beef pie
Order: The full English with white bloomer toast, plus a mug of strong tea.
Tip: Cash and contactless. Closed Sundays and Saturday afternoons. The 09:00 queue is film-crew familiar.
The Pellicci family's 1900 east-London cafe on Bethnal Green Road, Grade-II listed for the 1946 marquetry interior, runs a daily Italian-British greasy spoon menu.
Signature: Full English breakfast, Pasta lasagna
Order: The full English with extra fried bread, and a slice of their housemade lasagna.
Tip: Cash and card; closed Sundays. Queue runs out the door on Saturday morning. The interior is the listed treasure.
Giuseppe Mascoli's original sourdough-pizza counter inside Brixton Market in London, opened 2008, runs slow-fermented Neapolitan-style dough at under £8 a pie.
Signature: Margherita pizza, Anchovy and capers pizza
Order: Margherita with mozzarella from a Cumbrian buffalo farm, plus a glass of Gavi from the list.
Tip: Walk-up only at the Brixton original. Friday and Saturday queue 30 minutes; weekday lunches walk in without waiting.
