Ranked by TableJourney editorial score.
Britain's quintessential dessert: a dense date-and-treacle sponge cake, soaked in a butterscotch toffee sauce, served warm in a pool of more sauce with vanilla ice cream or a pour of double cream.
Sticky toffee pudding has disputed Northern English origins, with Sharrow Bay Country House Hotel in Cumbria claiming the modern recipe (chef Francis Coulson, 1970s) and several Lake District establishments contesting. The dish became a London restaurant fixture through the 1980s and 1990s; today it appears on virtually every British gastropub menu. The defining elements are the chopped dates, the treacle or molasses for depth, the toffee sauce from butter and brown sugar, and the warm-serve-with-cream finish. The Wolseley and St. John run benchmark versions.
4 editor picks for Sticky Toffee Pudding in London, ranked by editorial score. All London signature dishes · Sticky Toffee Pudding across every city.
The candlelit Lexington Street bistro in Soho London, opened 1985 by print-dealer Andrew Edmunds, still runs a daily-handwritten Modern European menu.
OrderWhatever seasonal main is on the handwritten menu, and the sticky toffee pudding for dessert.
TipBookings take a six-week lead; bar seats at the front are released as walk-ins after 21:30 on weekdays.
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.
OrderSunday roast for four (booked in advance), or whatever whole-animal cut is on weeknight dinner.
TipSunday lunch books a fortnight ahead and serves until they run out. The bar room takes walk-ins all evening.
Britain's first gastropub on Farringdon Road in Clerkenwell London, opened 1991 by Mike Belben and David Eyre, still serves Mediterranean-leaning.
OrderThe Bife Ana steak sandwich, on the menu since 1991, and a pint of bitter.
TipWalk-in only. The chalkboard menu rewrites every day at 12:00; the best dishes go by 14:00 on a busy lunch.
The Ritz Piccadilly dining room in Mayfair London, opened 1906 in Cesar Ritz's hotel, holds one Michelin star and runs classical French cooking.
OrderSole Veronique or the Beef Wellington carved tableside, with the cheese trolley to close.
TipAfternoon tea in the Palm Court is the easier reservation; dinner books 8 weeks ahead with strict dress code.
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