Kastner & Ovens in City of London, Westminster

Wow what a sad and stark contrast to the one in Liverpool st which I go to almost every day. None of the usual happy smiling staff for a start, no welcome no nothing just fixed stares and a very odd vibe.. Then the main event the food even that looked jaded and hard done by. Most of all the young girl who served me my small salad took great effort to make it super small and put about half a spoonful of each in the box where at Liverpool st you always get way more than that.. Maybe she had been told to do this who knows but I ended up with a half empty box where at Liverpool st it's always joyously full. I remarked on the contrast and was ignored until I pointed out i wasn't talking to myself and I got some mumble about a spoonful. (it really wasn't - so much so I asked for the same salad twice) I really don't know what's going on in this branch, maybe they're closing but going on this shenanigans it's Liverpool st all the way.

Best place in Covent Garden for lunch, hands down. Amazing fresh food, great ingredients, delicious salads and fantastic cooked food. And the best Banoffee Pie ever

Thank you so much for keeping me so well fed with homemade food every day! Best food in the area, all my colleagues are now going too 🥰

Love love love this place, my favourite takeout lunch spot. Affordable and tasty homely meals

The range of choices is great and dishes are well flavoured and seasoned! Dessert options there are also super!

Genuinely delicious, quality homemade takeaway food. The desserts are also top notch.

They serve you like mama take care of you. Varieties of food choice with great taste.

Decent healthy food if you love grains and salad pots! You get a lot for your money and staff are always helpful. The food isn’t always my cup of tea but that’s down to personal taste, there’s always a queue out the door. It does feel a bit rushed because of that, but that’s the trade off when you’re a hit with the locals!

Terrible sevice and extremely rude attitude towards customers. Never ever waste your money there.

My go-to for workday lunch takeaway over the last few years. It’s possibly also the only place left in the area that does home-cooked-style healthy (and delicious) food, especially after food-for-thought closed down some years ago. There’s nothing in the area that can compete with the quality of the salads and hot food. As of writing I’ve been paying £7.50 for a small box of a portion of hot food + a couple salads, enough for me. If sharing might want to go for the large.

This is my FAVOURITE SPOT to grab healthy takeaway lunch. I only work in London every couple of months and despite looking for other places just to spice things up, I always come back to Kastner & Ovens. There is variety, plenty of vegetables and decently priced for such a central Covent Garden spot. £13ish for 3 salad box, quiche and a drink. Love. It.

Service is poor and unprofessional.

Was excited to try this place. You can't see the ingredients well and service is rushed... had bacon in the salad... I don't eat pork. Could be dangerous for people with allergies. Salad was placed in the same box as gnocchi so was all a hot mess. Only good thing is I can tell the ingredients are fresh.

Love this place. Every day there are new choices with such a vast range of vegetables and salads all freshly prepared. Service is great and even though there is usually a queue at lunchtime, it moves quick. I have a large box which gives you a hot main and 3 salads. The box looks small but they pack it in and it’s actually really filling. That costs £9.30. I would have given 5 stars but for the fact they cook with vegetable oils. I checked with one of the team. Vegetable oils are so bad for inflammation so I can no longer have this every day which is a real shame. Please could you switch to healthy fats like olive oil, coconut oil etc and I’ll be there every day again!

Pretty bland and expensive for the quantity. Overcooked pasta that was ripped to shreds didn't help matters. Could be great, but sadly wasn't on our visit.

This place is very expensive compared to a lot of places, but it is really delicious, and if you get a big portion it will fill you up. I know they can't afford to lower their prices, I hope they can continue for many more years. One of my favourite places to get some great food, even if I can't afford it very often.

Its a cantine style vibes. Salads are incredibly expensive. I paid £13 for slice of lemon cake and small salad box. Better to go to planet organic, will be not only cheaper but better selection and organic food.

I have tried every salad bar in Covent Garden, but this one is by far my favourite! Great quality ingredients and lots of choice/variety. About 80% of food is vegetarian. Staff are always friendly, and service is efficient when it's busy. It's not cheap but the price is average for the area.

Nice spot and obviously popular as there was a queue outside when I arrived. It moved quickly though and didn't take long to get served. Some things were sold out as it was quite close to their closing hours, but the guy that served me was helpful and nice. The food was tasty but I think the small portion is quite overpriced, particularly given it is canteen food so is made in bulk. It was £7 for a small box which was only half full and didn't really seem worth it. I have been to other cafes in the area where they will pile your box high with salads and hot food for a similar price. I would recommend a visit but don't expect a huge amount for your money.

Delicious food and such lovely people too! I go every week!

What a gem! Don’t be fooled by the small looking boxes - they generously pack them full which is a rarity for these types of places. Friendly service too. They have a fantastic choice of fresh salads, hot dishes and cakes. I went for a mix of cold salads which were delicious

Food quality varies from pretty decent to average; customer experience never fails to disappoint unfortunately

i had such a delightful experience here! - friendly and fast service. since everything is already prepared, you just get a box, order, and youre good to go. the woman managing the store was so nice - the food is also so good. very wholesome, tasty dishes with unique combinations of ingredients.

Its expensive but its good, love the variety of home-style food

The place is a good option for lunch in the area. Usually they have plenty of choices when it comes to hot dishes, salads, and desserts. Personally I find the food a little expensive, but it is of good quality.

Took a recommendation from a colleague as their food smelled amazing, and I now have a new healthier spot for work lunches.

Delicious food. Love the variety of dishes available for lunch allowing you to mix. I wish they had another closer to me!

Large takeaway box costs 8.50. The food is quite good and the portion is decent, but it's admittedly quite expensive for what it is. One should be able to cook portions like these at home for less than half the price at most. It's a rather charming setup where you have these ovenproof deep dishes with all sorts of different stuff just simply placed atop a rack. It almost feels like a semi -professional , homecook setup, but it's quite cool. Minus one star because of the price.

The best and only place to buy a nutritious and delicious takeaway lunch in the area. Amazing home-cooked meals and salads for a very fair price (£6.50 for a “small” lunch box that keeps me full all day). Lovely staff and varied/reliably excellent menu. Thank you K&O X

Reliably delicious. Excellent, varied selection. Friendly staff. Decently sized portions.

The absolute best food in London. And make sure to leave room for the baked goods. Cannot go wrong. Take away shop where we've always had good service. They are busy (deservedly so), queuing works like it does everywhere in the world (well when people are good, less well when people are rude - that's not really the shop's fault/responsibility), and quality food costs money....not sure what some of these reviewers expect. Great food is well worth it! Especially in an area filled with cheap touristy food.

Fantastic takeaway salads. quiches, hot food and delicious cakes. Very good quality food, quite expensive but you get what you pay for. Always a queue so go early to get full choice as the salads sell out by 1.30 sometimes. You get to choose from all the different types of salad and 3 scoops is £6.50 but it fills you e.

Very ample and wholesome. Matronly madam serving us was very warm and welcoming. Food concept is essentially like a buffet in a take out box. An ample spread of food for you to choose. A full wholesome box of hot dishes is about 8 pounds or so. You can have cold dishes as well, so lots of salads, which means vegetarian options galore!

Popped in here for a lunch during my work break and was impressed with the high quality of food. Price is decent if you consider other lunch spots and I was full. Staff were helpful and friendly and full the box for you (and are very generous!). Looking forward to coming back next time I forget my lunch

Finding this cute place was a great find! My wife and I went back each morning while visiting London for their coffees and great assortment of breakfast treats! Sue, the owner, was extremely friendly and helpful with sightseeing recommendations! (My first trip-adviser recommendation… ever.)

😋 I work around the Holborn area and there are so many big chain cafés. This is a much better option for lunch!

I love getting my lunch from here. Always friendly service, and a selection of fresh, delicious food on offer. Very reasonable pricing considering all of this, and the portions are deceptively large! I would highly recommend this place to anyone looking for a yummy takeaway lunch in Covent Garden. Definitely class this as a hidden gem and I hope Covid doesn't force them to close!

Friendly, helpful staff, great food and the prices are spot on for the quality making this place an absolute must for lunchtime. Love the salads, adore the tartlets and need to keep me away from the cakes - all round amazing

If 'the path to a man's heart is through his stomach' then I'm in love. I discovered this place 3 weeks ago and I keep coming back for more. You can't see the spread from street level as there's a couple of steps up into the shop but take it from me (currently tucking into a Vegan curry and salad £6) that it's delicious nosh, made freshly on the premises daily. The staff are lovely too. Bon appetit!

Kastner and Ovens is the ONLY place worth visiting for lunch in Covent Garden. The food is completely out-of-this-world, get-it-in-my-belly, home-cooked-excellence. The staff are as friendly and helpful as any in London and your friends and colleagues will stare at you in a green-eyed rage when they see/smell your goodies. One word of warning - if you take a late lunch, prepare for disappointment, they WILL sell out of the best options.

Best food in the area, great taste, healthy, good price, and the staff are very friendly.

Wonderful food to take away, always a great selection and absolutely worth it. If you want delicious home cooked food on the go I don’t think you’ll find any better.

I ordered a medium lunch box with 3 different items and was told that this would cost me 5.65 and the large box had 5 items for 8. However, i got to the till and the lady incharge charged me 8 pound for the medium box and tried to justify this. My friend got the same 3 choices as me in the same box but got charged less. I feel like I got overcharged and its not good for a business to do that. Will never come back to this place!!

Really good food at affordable prices

Well to my delighted wife we got the salad we wanted and it was perfect...this take away only outlet has a most interesting set up and similar to Botanica back home in Australia. They have added the not so healthy options of the most beautiful pastry selection though...I loved and so did my wife...

Beware of long queues and food selling out by 2pm but oh my it's so worth it. Lovely salads, pies and bakes as well as pastries. A big box of salads (5 salads of your choice) is £7.30 and will keep you full till dinner.

Delicious home style food and a welcome break from the norm of the chain healthy fast food options in the area. Prices are on par with the area, plus you’re more assured K&O uses fresh ingredients and it’s a delight that the menu changes over time (likely due to their use of seasonal availability)

Delicious salads and very friendly staff, lots of options to choose from

Siempre he disfrutado y amado la comida en Kastner and Ovens, es absolutamente deliciosa y sabrosa. Sin embargo, es una verdadera pena que el personal sea tan grosero y desagradable. Parecen enojados por servir a sus clientes cada vez que alguien les pide información sobre los productos, responden de manera muy agresiva y arrogante o no responden en absoluto.

Great and amazing selection of salads! not a great selection of vegan desserts and a bit pricey though

I think it's best you get main inc the salad. Really tasty and filling. I always end up getting a slice of cake too nom nom. They've always been nice to me, gets hectic at lunch time.

Overpriced and unfriendly. 3 selections of salads for a small salad box and box is only about half full. My friend asked more and got three pieces of penne pasta. I didn't even bother with mine. Very small portion for the price. Quality and taste are nothing special to write to home about either. The cashier lady is very unfriendly. She always has been. She says, "small salad? 5.20!" No 'please' or a little smile. Very rude. My friend and myself were coming here about a couple of years ago and finally stopped coming for the exact same reason. We thought things might have changed now after two years, but NO. We won't be coming here again.

One of my favorite spots in London. The food is amazing and the service is awesome as well, they will explain to you what ingredients are in the food you want to order, strongly recommend!

Delicious range of salad options, hot food and sweet treats to takeaway, with very friendly service

I have been buying my work lunch from Kastner & Ovens for 13 years. The shop is there mainly to serve the lunchtime trade, as they start to clear up after 2pm. The salads and cooked meals are prepared fresh every day and the menu changes every day. Whats more the food is priced to provide excellent value when you compare what is provided by other establishments. The highest commendation I can give them is that my plate is cleared every day.

Nice food, but a bit pricy (£5.10 for 3 spoonfuls of salad, £7.20 for 5). Service is rather chaotic as there's no obvious queuing system and everyone is rather on-top of each other as there's no proper counter. If it was 50p or so cheaper it'd seem more reasonably priced.

Came here after a long time, asked the staff what is what in the salads, got a reply "We could be all day here, lets start with what like!". For a place that does not have a written menu, either the staff don't know whats offered or they done care. Food is excellent, could improve customer service

This place has a good range of salads and hot food to choose between, changing every day, and the prices are OK considering that they are clearly using good quality, fresh ingredients. To be honest though I found much of what I’ve tried there, which is mostly salads, to be slightly on the plain side – some more salt, or pepper, or a squeeze of lemon juice is needed to make it properly flavourful! It can get quite busy at lunch so arrive in plenty of time.

I have noticed this lunch destination a few times and walked past today and decided to give it a try. A range of salads and cakes, all made I think on the premises, but not too sure. One lady was helpful and tried to explain the various choices but one or two were not on the list, but she tried hard. I went to pay and agree with the last review a cold response and when I asked if I could have a bag was given a huge sigh of irritation. I went back to the office hopeful I had made good choices but did not enjoy as the vegetables were all rather soft, so rather disappointed and then shock to find some grit in the food. Best avoid.

Stood for over 5 minutes while the staff chatted amongst themselves and didn’t bother to approach me. Their loss! I was going to have a huge buy!

Delicious, wholesome food. This was a staple when i worked in Covent Garden. Just wish i had one near my new location!

Recommended here by my colleagues who work locally. 500 of us. Went in and had the loveliest staff member guide me through the selection (as it was my first time)... truly could not have been more pleasant or helpful. Went to the register. Me: 'do you take american express' Cashier: (Disgusted look and exasperation of breath)...'absolutely not.' Me: 'Ok. A simple no would have been ok.' (puts back Amex and presents debit card) Cashier: They're much too expensive. We are a small business. We don't need to subsidize your holiday. .... I don't expect small businesses to take Amex so that;s why I asked. And I'm ok to offer another form of payment... that's no problem. And I'm happy to support local business... actually prefer to do. But what I won't take is snappy attitude...unprovoked... and a commentary on how I run my finances and personal life. I believe the cashier may even have been the owner / manager as she was instructed others on what to do. shame. I absolutely and categorically won't be back. Pleasantries are why we go to small establishments.... huge fail.

Incredibly tasty and delicious salads!!! However, it seems that if you charge a flat rate for a box size, it should be full OR charge by weight as some servers fill up the box and some don't?

Best fish pie and quiche in London. Amazing salad selection, amazing cakes. Whole Foods or Titbits on steroids, much healthier.

Small take away lunch shop. I just found out this shop by accident. You could have salads and hot dishes sych as rice, pastry etc.

I always come here for takeout for salad and hot food. I love the food here as the salad is super yummy and fresh. I feel healthy getting my lunch here. The cakes and desert is very good too, generous portion and not too sweet. This place does great vegan and gluten free options for both sweet and savoury.

Really delicious, healthy home-cooked food. There are lots of hot options as well as accompanying salads, so much to choose from! Not the mention a huge array of cakes and pastries. It's all really fresh as well, and although a little bit on the pricey side, very worth it.

Tried out for a takeaway lunch. Huge variety of salads, pastas, vegetable bake. Lots of different cakes. All made there. Little bit on pricey side. But really excellent food.

Always fresh and different, like home

This hidden gem is by far one of my favourites in London. I was lucky enough to be working a street away from it, so it was my go-to lunch choice and I found myself 'treating myself' to it probably a little too many times a week if I'm honest. All of the food is absolutely lovely, and the menu changes daily so you're always able to try something different. They upload the days menu at 8am every day and no word of a lie it was the first thing I would do every day when I started work. Brilliant for all types of diets, and very vegetarian friendly. They include any types of allergy ingredients when they list their menu for the day so you know what you can and can't eat and they're happy for you to mix and match! Boxes are a very decent price around the £5-7 mark and though it is tiiiiiiny (and if you go around lunch time - frequently a bit of a line out the door) I always found the staff very friendly and informative which was part of the reason I kept going back. Although there was often a line, they keep it running smoothly so that it moves very quickly. The vegetarian lasagne was probably in my top 10 vegetarian meals I've ever had (and part of the reason I made it such a habit to check the menu every single morning) to see if it was on the menu for today! Always an amazing variety of food, great service and one of my all time favourite places for quick food. I have recommended this countless times to my friends.

Best take away lunch in the West End. Delicious salads and hot dishes, reasonably priced.

Staff are standoffish, the whole place has a smugness feel to it with my fellow London workers keen to 'be seen' getting their lunch here when infact it's just homemade over priced salad...

I love everything about this independent business serving up hearty healthy lunch fare in the heart of Covent Garden. Choose from two sizes of disposable lunch boxes and fill it to the brim with fresh salads and just baked warm dishes. They also have a vast selection of desserts that you purchase separately.

Great food wish there was more place to sit! Lovely service too!

A wonderful independent serving fresh real food, excellently prepared. It's not the cheapest, but the quality of the food means it's still excellent value.

This divine bakery is situated on Floral Street in Covent Garden ( to the east side as you walk away from CG market). It's hard to know where to start as we had 5 pieces of culinary heaven from here. The spinach and Feta filo, cherry tomato and mozzarella tart, and quiche Lorraine were sublime. The lemon tart and cheese scone equally so. Cakes and savouries aside, it also serves an assortment of hot dishes to take out. What we liked about everything we ate was the way the flavours shone. Perfectly seasoned and unctuous. Please be aware that, for reasons known only to them, it isn't open at the weekend, which is a terrible pity.

London has many sit-down restaurants that are set up to allow take-out. Kastner & Ovens is a restaurant that focuses exclusively on take out or take away; there are no tables and seats at all. We have been there on three or four occasions during the past week. In some cases it was about buying pastries and desserts, and in other cases, buying sides for a home-prepared main course. If you go early (they open at 11 AM on weekdays), you will find about five main courses, and perhaps a dozen sides. Our experience is that the mains and sides are very nicely prepared. The sides range from starch-based, e.g., pasta or quinoa salads, to ones that are rich in vegetables and often meatless. As a result, you can construct an essentially vegetarian meal if you wished to do so. I did not enquire about which dishes might be vegan, but I suspect that some of them are. You can buy bread, cookies, muffins, slices of cake, etc., as well. We noted that several of the desserts were gluten-free, should that be an issue. Prices are modest, food quality is high, and the value is high. It is decidedly worth visiting, and the overall rating should be much higher than it is. There are two major caveats. The first is that if you wait until the lunch hour, you will be dealing with a line and a potentially substantial wait. The second is that if you go after lunch, a substantial number of items may no longer be available. We went on a Thursday in the late afternoon, hoping to pick up some salads to supplement dinner, and the very few items that were left were not of broad enough appeal. The following day we arrived at opening. There was no line, and everything on the menu for the day was available. It seems as though the menu of the day is not always posted in advance, but looking at the menu will give you a good feel for the types and variety of items that are prepared. We enjoyed a gnocchi dish with a beef-mushroom ragu, a beet salad with cucumber, a radicchio-heavy salad, and their lentil salad. Again, whether these specific items will be on the menu when you go is uncertain, but it is worth going. Along with Farmstand, Kastner & Ovens provides access to high-quality mains and sides for easy and economical take-away lunches and dinners. If you are staying in a hotel or are renting an apartment, both provide you with many pleasant lunch and dinner options, and in combination, great variety. I wish we had equally good and similarly themed and priced options in the Berkeley CA area.

Had lunch there with a few colleagues from work; got the small lunch box with 3 different salads. Super delicious and filling. Would happily have lunch there again. All my colleagues like the place too.

I just needed to review this place as I go here now & again, but would literally live off this food if I could. Incredible!!

Kastner & Ovens offers a wide variety of choices for lunch. I love the fresh salads and the quiche was amazing. Quite a healthy lunch option, perfect for a quick grab and go.

They change their collection of salads and hot entrees daily. It's fresh, delicious and on the healthier side. My only compliant is its not closer to my office!

There's no arguing that the range of food and quality of dishes is exceptional but the system for ordering and paying can be quite chaotic. As you walk in you will be immediately greeted by a member of staff who'll ask what you want. This means the pressure is on from the start to choose quickly and efficiently. I am the kind of customer who likes to look at the options and then make a decision but it doesn't feel comfortable to do so. I recommend checking the menu on the Facebook page so that you can get an idea of what you'd like and then take a quick look once you arrive. The only other negative is that it is quite pricey and the owner lady is quite abrupt (not necessarily rude but friendliness seems to be a chore). Overall, the food is awesome quality and the choice amazing but it will cost you some pennies and you'd better be prepared to get in and out in lightening speed without requiring any customer service warmth.

Small local, they focus on the food. Good for dishes of the day and cakes etc.

Normally go to spitalfields for a quick grab and go. The best thing about this place is you get freshly made salads with good variety and taste. Being a vegetarian that's not the case with all places hence would highly recommend it.

Great place to get a healthy take-away lunch. Different every day. Approx 6.50 for a large box. I usually go for a mixture of salad and a hot dish, stuffed in a box of deliciousness.

Un des dermiers traiteur indèpendant de londres, de la nourriture faite maison

Delicious, interesting, fresh salads and hot mains to take away. Don't miss their stunning selection of baked goods. Different everyday, but always delicious. Not cheap, but you get what you pay for - in this case, fresh, seasonal dishes that could be right out of a Jamie Oliver TV show (in a good way!).

This place is amazing. The options are endless and it is all homecooked goodness. If you have any dietary requirements they can make sure you avoid them.It is a little bit over priced but offers way more variety than any other lunch place, especially good for those that work in the area.

I ate at Kastner and Ovens in Spitalfields. Small place with very delicious Food which varies every day. Tastes like eating at home but much better!!!

The food is delicious but the ordering process is a bit confusing. You have the queue up and then someone will ask what you want and get it for you - even though the food is laid out in the open as though you'd serve yourself. It's quite expensive so it's more of a treat than somewhere you'd get lunch everyday. There's not really any seating and the card minimum is frustrating when you're paying a lot for your food anyway (why can't they just cover the card charges themselves given the prices they charge).

This is one of my favourite bakeries in London. There is always a great range of salads, hot savouries and cakes and I've never been disappointed. Well worth getting here early before they sell out!

Always an interesting and varied selection of hot and cold lunchtime dishes to choose from which can be mixed and matched. They also have some fab cakes esp the chocolate one which we sometimes but whole for the office

I come to the spitalfields one a lot and the food is delicious. However when I went today the guy that served me (I think he may have been a manager) gave me such tiny portion for the salads it was not even a proper spoon per choice. He was really pushing me to get the 5 salad deal rather than the 3 which i always get because it is usually perfect and when I said no he had the cheek to make some remark about not eating enough. Like no idiot, your portion sizes are just deliberately stingy to make people spend more money.Will not be going back again.

たくさんの料理の中から好きなものを選んでランチボックスに詰めていきます！野菜がたくさん使われていてヘルシーだし、味も最高！お値段も安い！かなりおススメです！観光地のコベントガーデンの近くにあるので、テイクアウトして公園や広場でくつろぎながら楽しめます。

Helpful staff fill boxes with lovely/healthy fresh salads and quiche for you to take away. There is one tiny table at the back where you can eat in, but don't bank on it being available. Great-looking cakes are on offer too.

Staff are friendly and attentive. Salads are very good and the hot options are tasty, especially lasagna. Whole cakes are reasonably priced. The chocolate raspberry cake is our recent favourite. There are reasons why there are always long queues at lunch time, unlike Benugo just a minute away in a much more prominent location.

First impression. Delightful staff. Beautiful looking salad and cake offerings. I chose a 5 option salad yesterday; including the chickpea and squash, broccoli, brown lentil, broad bean salads. However within an hour of eating, my stomach started playing up, and I am still unwell today. No vomiting, so not the worse case, but I think there may have been some cross contamination - perhaps in the washing of salad items and other raw ingredients; or perhaps less likely, some food on the way out (but it did look all very fresh). Something to be addressed it seems.

If you are travelling in Covent Garden you just check Kastner & Ovens in Floral street. You can pick and choose from a variety of salads and hot food. Worth every penny!

Awesome choice of salads and tempting desserts. Simply delicious.

Lucky I dont life around the corner to this great place. Food looked amazing and changes every day. Also love the look see kitchen on the side great touch