Pork sausages on buttery mashed potato with onion gravy. London's defining pub plate, eaten in gastropubs and chippies across the capital since the early twentieth century.
The bangers-and-mash name came from World War One British troops, when sausages with high water content tended to burst (bang) in the pan. The pairing of pork sausage and mashed potato is older, with London piesmiths and butchers selling versions on Fleet Street and Whitechapel from the 1800s. Gastropubs revived the dish from 1990 onwards: The Eagle on Farringdon Road, Mark Hix at the now-closed Le Caprice, and S&M Cafe (1992) made it a kitchen-led plate. The modern London version uses Cumberland, Toulouse or Lincolnshire pork sausages, finished with a deep onion gravy.
3 editor picks for Bangers and mash in London, ranked by editorial score. All London signature dishes · Bangers and mash across every city.
Quality Chop House ★ 4.6
clerkenwell · 92-94 Farringdon Road, London EC1R 3EA
The 1869 Farringdon Road working-class dining room in Clerkenwell London, restored under Will Lander since 2012, runs daily-changing British cooking in original Victorian booths.
The Camberwell Arms ★ 4.6
peckham · 65 Camberwell Church Street, London SE5 8TR
Mike Davies's gastropub on Camberwell Church Street in south London, opened 2014, runs a daily-changing seasonal menu and a famous family-style Sunday roast.
The Eagle ★ 4.4
clerkenwell · 159 Farringdon Road, London EC1R 3AL
Britain's first gastropub on Farringdon Road in Clerkenwell London, opened 1991 by Mike Belben and David Eyre, still serves Mediterranean-leaning daily-changing food at the bar.