Top Street Food in United Kingdom: 30 editor-picked rooms

30 street food worth the trip across United Kingdom, editor-ranked by TableJourney. All United Kingdom guides.

L'Alba D'Oro ★ 4.7 · Edinburgh

new-town · 7 Henderson Row, Edinburgh EH3 5DH

L'Alba D'Oro on Henderson Row in Edinburgh New Town, opened 1975 and named UK's best fish and chip shop by The Times, sourcing haddock fresh daily.

Tip: Evening-only, no lunches. Arrive at 17:00 on a weeknight to avoid the post-work queue that builds fast.

Beigel Bake ★ 4.7 · London

shoreditch-spitalfields · 159 Brick Lane, London E1 6SB

The Brick Lane Beigel Bake bakery in east London, trading since 1974, runs hand-rolled bagels and salt beef sandwiches from a 24-hour counter.

Tip: Order at the counter, pay at the till. Salt beef bagel with mustard is the orthodox order. £6 cash-or-card, queue runs 15 minutes after midnight.

Mackie Mayor ★ 4.7 · Manchester

northern-quarter · 1 Eagle Street, Manchester M4 5BU

Smithfield Market hall in Manchester, restored 2017. Vendors: Honest Crust pizza, Tender Cow burgers, Pico's tacos, New Wave Ramen, Reserve wines.

Oink ★ 4.6 · Edinburgh

old-town · 34 Victoria Street, Edinburgh EH1 2JW

Oink hog roast counter on Victoria Street in Edinburgh Old Town, opened 2008, the city's whole-pig-on-a-spit lunch counter with three branches selling.

Tip: Order the haggis-stuffed roll for the proper Edinburgh combo; they close when the pig runs out, often before 15:00.

Borough Market Cheese Toastie ★ 4.6 · London

borough · Borough Market, 8 Southwark Street, London SE1 1TL

Kappacasein's grilled cheese counter inside Borough Market in London, trading since 2002, runs the city's most-photographed cheese toastie made.

Tip: Counter only. The 09:00 Saturday queue runs 45 minutes. Order the raclette plate if the cheese toastie line is too long.

Dishoom Shoreditch ★ 4.6 · London

shoreditch · 7 Boundary Street, London E2 7JE

Dishoom's bacon naan roll counter on Boundary Street in Shoreditch London, served from breakfast service since 2012, the morning Bombay-cafe sandwich.

Tip: Walk-in only for the breakfast rolls before 10:00. £6.50 a roll; chai £3. Faster than the dinner queue all week.

This and That ★ 4.6 · Manchester

northern-quarter · 3 Soap Street, Manchester M4 1EW

Manchester's original rice-and-three canteen on Soap Street since 1984. Pilau plus three curries served from the heated counter, under a tenner the lot.

Pizza Geeks ★ 4.5 · Edinburgh

canonmills-inverleith · 138 Dundas Street, Edinburgh EH3 5DQ

Pizza Geeks counter on Dundas Street in Canonmills Edinburgh, opened 2019, a 60-second wood-fired Neapolitan kitchen with 00-flour dough and Italian San.

Tip: Their second branch on Drum Street takes walk-ins more reliably than the Canonmills original. Vegan dough version available.

Edinburgh Larder Takeaway ★ 4.5 · Edinburgh

old-town · 15 Blackfriars Street, Edinburgh EH1 1NB

Edinburgh Larder takeaway counter on Blackfriars Street in the Old Town of Edinburgh, opened 2009, the city's reference Scotch pie and sausage roll counter.

Tip: Pies come out from 11:00. Loaves and sausage rolls sell through the morning; preorder via the website for collection.

Stockbridge Market Food Stalls ★ 4.5 · Edinburgh

stockbridge · Saunders Street, Stockbridge, Edinburgh EH3 6TQ

Stockbridge Market food stalls on Saunders Street in Edinburgh, trading every Sunday since 2011, with rotating traders serving venison rolls, dim sum, paella.

Tip: Arrive by 11:00 for the best stalls; the market wraps by 17:00 in summer, 16:00 in winter. Bring cash for some stalls.

El Perro Negro ★ 4.5 · Glasgow

finnieston · 964 Argyle Street, Glasgow G3 8LU

El Perro Negro is a multi-award-winning burger joint on Argyle Street in Glasgow's Finnieston, fusing American and Korean flavours into dirty, messy patties.

Tip: The Top Dog is the signature; it started as a market stall before landing this permanent Argyle Street site.

Bao Soho ★ 4.5 · London

soho · 53 Lexington Street, London W1F 9AS

Erchen Chang and Shing Tat Chung's Taiwanese bao counter on Lexington Street in Soho London, opened 2015, runs the classic pork bao that defined the British.

Tip: Walk-up only at the counter; queue 30-60 minutes on weekend nights. £6 per bao; pair with peanut-milk shaved ice for dessert.

Padella Counter ★ 4.5 · London

borough · 6 Southwark Street, London SE1 1TQ

Padella's hand-rolled pasta counter at Borough Market in London, opened 2016 by Tim Siadatan and Jordan Frieda, the budget-priced (£8-15) fresh pasta.

Tip: Use the Padella app for the virtual queue at 12:00 sharp; otherwise 60 minutes on Saturday. The Shoreditch sibling has same kitchen.

GRUB Mayfield ★ 4.5 · Manchester

deansgate · Baring Street, Manchester M1 2PY

Rotating Manchester street-food fair at the Mayfield depot. Pizza, burgers, Vietnamese banh mi, dumplings, vegan; vendor lineup changes each weekend.

Mughli Charcoal Pit ★ 4.5 · Manchester

rusholme · 30 Wilmslow Road, Manchester M14 5TQ

Curry Mile Manchester institution since 1991. The focal charcoal pit produces lamb chops, paneer and chicken tikka the crowd orders by the platter daily.

Mosque Kitchen ★ 4.4 · Edinburgh

southside · 31-33 Nicolson Square, Edinburgh EH8 9BX

Mosque Kitchen on Nicolson Square in Southside Edinburgh, opened 1998 inside the Edinburgh Central Mosque courtyard, a counter-service Pakistani-style.

Tip: Order at the till, pick up at the counter; the lamb biryani at £7 is the long-running lunch deal for medical students.

Civerinos Slice ★ 4.4 · Edinburgh

old-town · 5 Hunter Square, Edinburgh EH1 1QW

Civerinos Slice counter on Hunter Square in Edinburgh Old Town, opened 2016, a Roman al taglio square-tray pizza counter serving slices from a rolling rack.

Tip: Late-night slice with a negroni at the counter is the local move after midnight. Slice list changes through the day.

Leith Walk Police Box ★ 4.4 · Edinburgh

leith · Pilrig Street, Leith Walk, Edinburgh EH6 5AS

Leith Walk Police Box on Pilrig Street in Edinburgh, opened 2016 inside a 1950s blue police box, a 3-square-metre coffee counter pouring filter and espresso.

Tip: There is no seating; coffee in hand on Leith Walk's central reservation. Cash only on most days.

Valvona and Crolla Deli Counter ★ 4.4 · Edinburgh

canonmills-inverleith · 19 Elm Row, Edinburgh EH7 4AA

Valvona and Crolla deli counter on Elm Row in Edinburgh, opened 1934, Scotland's longest-running Italian deli with a sandwich counter making prosciutto rolls.

Tip: Sandwich list runs from a chalkboard; the porchetta with rocket and house mayonnaise is the long-running favourite.

Koshari Street ★ 4.4 · London

covent-garden · 56 St Martin's Lane, London WC2N 4EA

Karim Salama's Egyptian street-food counter on St Martin's Lane in Covent Garden London, opened 2014, runs koshari (the Cairo bus-station dish).

Tip: Box of koshari is £8 with all toppings. Counter takeaway or eat in the small upstairs space. Closed Sundays.

Mangal 2 ★ 4.4 · London

stoke-newington · 4 Stoke Newington Road, London N16 8BH

Mangal 2 Turkish ocakbasi on Stoke Newington Road in north London, trading since 1994, runs charcoal-grilled lamb adana, doner, lahmacun and pide.

Tip: BYOB; £3 corkage. Open until midnight Mon-Sun. The artist Gilbert and George are regulars; their original Mangal is across the street.

Bánh Bánh Brixton ★ 4.4 · London

brixton-tooting · 326 Coldharbour Lane, London SW9 8QH

The Nguyen family's Vietnamese counter on Coldharbour Lane in Brixton London, opened 2016, runs bánh mì, pho and small-plates from a Saigon street-food.

Tip: Bánh mì at £8 is the marquee handheld; pair with a Vietnamese iced coffee. Closed Mondays; weekend lunches walk in without waiting.

Hello Oriental ★ 4.4 · Manchester

deansgate · South Pavilion, 2 Symphony Park, Circle Square, Manchester M1 7FS

Three-floor East Asian street-food hall under Symphony Park at Circle Square, off Oxford Road. Vietnamese pho counter, Cantonese roasts, dim sum bar.

Honest Crust ★ 4.4 · Manchester

northern-quarter · 1 Eagle Street, Manchester M4 5BU

Sourdough pizza stall inside Manchester's Mackie Mayor hall. Forty-eight-hour ferment, wood-fired oven, the queue is the longest in the room at lunch.

Harajuku Kitchen Counter ★ 4.3 · Edinburgh

bruntsfield-morningside · 10 Gillespie Place, Edinburgh EH10 4HS

Harajuku Kitchen counter on Gillespie Place in Bruntsfield Edinburgh, opened 2013 by Kaori Simpson, a Tokyo-style izakaya counter selling Japanese dumplings.

Tip: Lunch bento set at £12 is the value play; the Stockbridge offshoot is brighter and easier on weekends.

Kimchi Cult ★ 4.3 · Glasgow

west-end · 14 Chancellor Street, Glasgow G11 5RQ

Kimchi Cult is Scotland's original Korean street-food counter, a tiny room off Byres Road in Glasgow serving bibimbap, bao and Korean fried chicken.

Tip: It opened in 2015 as Scotland's first Korean fast-food spot; the kimchi burger is the cult order.

The Cheese Bar Camden ★ 4.3 · London

camden-primrose-hill · Unit 93-94, Camden Stables Market, London NW1 8AH

Mathew Carver's all-cheese counter inside Camden Stables Market in London, opened 2017, runs British cheese-led plates from a small kitchen including.

Tip: Walk-up at the counter for grilled cheese; the £30 tasting menu at the back runs full evenings only with a booking.

Top Street Food in United Kingdom