Guide by Vana

Where to eat in Clerkenwell

8 places to eat in Clerkenwell, each one on the Guide on merit.

1. 

   Aux Pains de Papy

   Patisserie · European

   A family-run boulangerie doing the kind of rural French baking you don't expect to find in central London.

   Keep it simple and judge it on the plain croissant.

2. 

   Bouchon Racine

   French bistro

   Chef Henry Harris runs a French bistro above a 300-year-old Farringdon pub. The menu changes often on chalkboards, with staples like jambon de noir de bigorre and rabbit wrapped in smoked bacon. Lanterns glow at night in the loft-like space.

3. 

   Brutto

   Italian restaurant · European

   Russell Norman's candlelit Florentine trattoria: red-check cloths, handwritten menus, bistecca, and a £5 negroni that's the talk of Clerkenwell. Noisy, dark, sexy.

   Order the bistecca and the negroni; it is a Florence thing, not a London one.

4. 

   Colonna & Small's

   Specialty coffee

   One of the most serious coffee names in the country, finally within London reach. Order the filter and let them guide you.

   The coffee menu changes constantly, so order whatever is newest and ask for the story.

5. 

   Fidelio

   Live music venue · European

   A Clerkenwell café that transforms into an intimate classical music venue after dark. By day it serves coffee, brunch and lunch. On Monday and Tuesday evenings it hosts chamber performances with dinner or drinks.

6. 

   Luca

   Italian restaurant · European

   A Clerkenwell Italian opened by The Clove Club's owners, ten years in, with a covered garden room that could pass for a Roman palazzo. The move is the front bar: a Negroni, the parmesan fries and the sausage ragù rigatoni.

7. 

   Scotti's Snack Bar

   Italian caff · European

   A 1967 Italian caff on Clerkenwell Green with no written menu. You ask, the owner tells you what is on, and the chicken escalope ciabatta is what cabbies and chefs come for.

   Weekday mornings to mid-afternoon only. There is no menu, so just ask.

8. 

   Sessions Arts Club

   European restaurant · European

   A dilapidated-boudoir dining room in a restored 18th-century courthouse: arched windows, candlelight, salvaged furniture and Florence Knight's cooking. Like stepping onto a period film set.

   Ask for a table by the tall arched windows for the best of the light and the room.