The Canton Arms in Lambeth

First visit this week and certainly look forward to return. Lovely atmosphere, real ales and very good food. Going back tonight.

First time visiting and will definitely be back! Top quality food and drink in a great pub. Highly recommended.

Nadia & the team never disappoint. The pub is a brilliant atmosphere, service is spot on and the food is delicious. The festive menu was a treat

Excellent upmarket gastropub food

Great roast in traditional boozer setting.

Excellent Guinness, meticulously clean pipes and glasses. Certainly one of the best I’ve had in London. Apart from that fabulous staff, delicious food and pleasant atmosphere. I had a wonderful lunch.

Great food, great staff, great pub altogether!

We had an amazing Sunday Roast here! Very delicious and the service was exceptional! Highly recommended

The best restaurant in London, a warm pub feel with refined food. The range of dishes and the quality that comes with it is second to none. Service sublime and extremely friendly…no better way to spend an evening. 10/10.

The waitress was rude and dismissive. I came with my dad for lunch, it was not packed. She said you have to wait for 20 m at the bar, maybe heve a drink while a table frees up. After 30 m she came back and said there would only be a space to eat at the bar, and she pretended she had mentioned it before. Which she absolutely did not. I did not appreciate the gaslighting at all. Avoid.

Amazing food and everything else!

Had Sunday lunch on a late afternoon although it was still busy inside. Atmosphere was good and so was the service. Sharing beef shin was very tender with a good flavour. Slightly annoying to have to buy extra greens which I think sums up the experience (and seems like a few others too) that it’s more expensive than it really should be. We had the sharing beef, two desserts and a drink each and it was £120 with service.

It's a beautiful pub with great food and service and the locals that attend are so friendly, a bit pricey but overall a solid pub for a evening drink

Food selection for a Sunday seemed abit pretentious.... Or prehaps I'm just too basic for this very cool space. Lovely service from all bar staff and waiters. I'll just sink a pint next time.

Expensive for no real reason in my opinion. Friends had said The Canton was overpriced and overrated, and unfortunately I have to agree. Surly waiting staff (all round), atmosphere hectic, food very average and bill, insane.

One of South London's best gastropubs. Worth travelling to.

Good food. Nice environment. Good range of drinks. Small outside terrace which is always busy - so book early! Never had a bad visit. Surprisingly busy mid week. Always worth booking

No question. Has to be one of the true greats in lazy Sunday lunch. Remarkable service from a member of staff called Maddie. Discreet but always about when we needed something. Roast Dexter beef rare and so tender. Rabbit and smoked ham pie to die for. And a selection of the most delectable cheeses to finish can’t fault this gastro pub. It was our second time and no doubt there will be more.

It would be hard to find anything as good as this for a lazy Sunday lunch. Impeccable service from Maddie. Exquisite food from the kitchen. Just a brilliant experience all round. Never had a piece of beef so perfectly rare nor a place of cheese so agreeably matured and of course a great array of drinks. Perfect in every way

Took the French in-laws, who are comically critical of anything British, to this local favourite and — as always — it did not disappoint !

Made us reorder 3 times because they didn’t have the food on their menu. Expensive for what it is and the service wasn’t friendly, and failed to acknowledge the errors they made.

An utterly grim evening - the bar was cramped, noisy, draughty and cold (the door to the outside seating area was left open). The seating (in the bar) uncomfortable and badly planned. Drinks and bar snacks were on the expensive side. The place is furnished with scrounged/salvaged furniture and we were unfortunate enough to have a table in the middle of the floor so we were surrounded by people unable to get a seat so it was impossible to have a conversation. The more comfortable tables were reserved and not available for casual use. The food was ok but VERY expensive. We hated it and had a lousy evening. A place to be avoided despite the hype and the numbers of people it attracts. There are much better (not to say less expensive, more comfortable and friendlier) places to eat nearby - try Caminetto 5 minutes down the road towards Vauxhall park.

Unfortunately had a very poor experience at the Canton arms this evening. I came in with my partner and our 2 children. It was busy, which was lovely to see and they were able to get us a table accomodating for our pram. This was sadly the only good bit of customer service we received. We saw our server (Phoebe) 4 times throughout our dinning experience. First was to take our drinks order, the second time was to place our food order, the 3rd time was to deliver our food, and the 4th time was to pay our bill. When asking for food recommendations there was very little guidance given on the dishes. We ended up ordering 2 portions of the beef cheek rendang (£28), the cuttlefish (£19.80), the whipped feta (£10) and an additional portion of chips (£5) along with our drinks. I would recommend the whipped feta, however the cuttlefish (Phoebe's recommendation) was very much an acquired taste, but happy we gave it a try. The beef cheeks however we found extremely salty to the point that we couldn't eat either portions, leaving me and my eldest daughter to pick away at the extra portion of chips and whipped feta. Sadly our food was never checked back on and our server only found out there was an issue (despite both beef cheek dishes having 70% of the meal left on the plate) when we asked for the bill and we said that we found the beef cheeks to be too salty. The answer we got back was "we don't use salt. We just use spices" Our bill total came to £145.16 with drinks and service. Our server did apply a discount for the disappointing meal, which she informed us was the best she could do bringing our total to £129.05, which is just the bill removing the service charge. I guess we caught the Canton arms on a bad evening as as they seem to be a busy venue, however I can not recommend or want to give them another chance as it felt like I just paid £129.05 for a few starters, and some wine. It would have been nice to have a manager check in with us once the complaint about the food had been made, but I guess they were busy.

A beautiful pub, INCREDIBLE food, wonderful service and a fantastic atmosphere. We’d heard good things for a while, my wife and I stopped by on a Saturday night. It was busy, with many big groups having dinner. We ate at the bar and loved the whole experience, the quality and the staff were amazing. Would highly recommend.

Interior was really a nice vibe for dinner. It was super busy so I do recommend booking. Everything on the menu sounded delicious, we had the pork belly and lamb as mains and they were both really good. Amazing portion sizes. They have a great outdoor seating area too. Would go back and recommend.

An absolutely fantastic roast beef

Delicious food, great windles and service.

Very overpriced food which tastes just average. Extremely limited vegetarian options on Sunday's (1 main vegeterian option) which wasnt filling and unacceptable for the price. Not very attentive service, On top of that, the environment is very noisy.

Absolutely mental. Crazy food, service and energy.

Food and service amazing - highly recommend the roast beef

THE best Sunday roast lunch with rare Dexters beef perfectly cooked. Good roast potatoes, green beans and watercress. Excellent service by a friendly waitress. Inconsiderate bum in my face by diner on neighbouring table when he stood up holding a baby was not pleasant though! Just wish for a better, less ubiquitous cask ale selection here - Harvey’s & Timothy Taylor Landlord available everywhere! Would love to see them stock World Award-Winning cask Best Bitter from Long Man Brewery in Sussex (near Harvey’s Brewery!) which surprisingly I could not see (from the numerous cask ale pump clips on the walls) that they have ever had here! A more interesting selection of cask ales could entice our more frequent visits but we will nevertheless return for the rarely seen Dexters beef and Tamworth pork - and a table not near the inconsiderate neighbouring diner!

Had Sunday roast with my family here while visiting London. Honestly it was my favorite dining experience during our trip!

Best Sunday roast I have ever had. The roast beef delicious, potatoes exquisite, gravy, beans all out of this world. Only thing to improve, and am picking holes, is the horseradish needs more punch. Afterwards we enjoyed a very good couple of pints of Guiness at the front after.

I find it unprofessional that the manager insists customers make a purchase every hour. Is there a law requiring a customer to buy something every hour? Having worked in the restaurant industry in France myself, I believe there is an art and a way to encourage a customer to consume! She argues that it's her Wi-Fi, even though her bar is empty at 1 PM. Having customers around attracts other customers. That's how it works!

Staff is rude and unprofessional. During non-peak hours, I was asked if I was going to order anything else, even though I'm a regular customer and I often go there to work.

Service was effective and beers decent, but it's just unreasonably expensive here. Wines are marked up way too high and I just don't think it's right to serve a dinky plate of frankly bland chicken (poussin) and chips for 24.80.

Good hearty portions with a regularly changing menu. Some of the dishes are interesting, others are quite lazy and over priced. Restaurant is a bit chaotic at the weekend and very busy but that’s all part of the vibe. Fun place to go with friends

Amazing good and drinks, with friends, family or a date, this pub has everything for everyone!!

Worth the trip here, an absolute gem. Lovely for a drink outside on a sunny day. Restaurant also serves some spectacular and different food. The sharing lamb is also exceptional. Have been a few times and the food and service are consistently great.

Amazing spot for dinner - the menu changes regularly but you won’t be disappointed with anything you order! One of the best dinners in London in a casual environment.

On of the best gastropubs in south London.

Nicely kept and served real ale.

First visit and not disappointed. Food amazing and the staff were great. Vine leaves and sea bass starters followed by rump steak sharer with chips. Gallette and strawberry ripple to end.

Nice and down to earth restaurant and bar. People was enjoying the food and drink.. we did too.

Food was delicious and people are lovely

Such cheap drinks!!!! Hard to get a table outside but catches the evening sun so worth a visit. Will be back!

Thank you for amazing service as usual and great food.

Apparently as 3 people you are not allowed to order the lamb shoulder for 5 people, even though it’s on the menu. How do they know how hungry I am? It’s not a different price, it’s on the menu. Nonetheless food was decent enough. Left hungry though…

Faultless dining experience. The waiter was great fun. The food was incredible - slow cooked lamb shoulder. Great atmosphere. Big thanks.

It was a real shame that the acoustics were so bad you could barely talk to the person next to you let alone across the table. It didn't make for a good dining experience or meet up when we'd all made considerable effort to get there. We all felt the food was good, but not worth the elevated price mark, particularly the skate which was essentially fish and chips. If you don't want to share a main, or no one wants the same main as you, there isn't much choice because the majority of mains are for 2 to 4 people. The waiter who served us throughout was friendly, helpful and patient but a different woman came with the bill and was extremely rude which soured the experience. Overall, we felt the food was good but over priced and the terrible acoustics and noise level weren't conducive to a relaxed dinner and meet up with friends.

We walked from our apartment and we're excited to have our second Sunday Roast of the holiday. It was a busy pub, great atmosphere and we felt lucky to get a table. We both had the roast beef which was served with roasted potatoes and green beans. The beef was cooked perfectly to a medium rare and the potatoes were crispy on the outside and well cooked on the inside. There was no Yorkshire puddings which was disappointing, and while the beef was perfectly cooked, it was sliced very thin and there wasn't much of it. Price was 24.50 each for the roast beef dinner alone.

I had dinner and drinks here with a group of friends because it's been well reviewed and was in a list of the top 20 gastropubs in the UK. It was a real shame that the acoustics were so bad you could barely talk to the person next to you let alone across the table. It didn't make for a good dining experience or meet up when we'd all made considerable effort to get there. We all felt the food was good, but not worth the elevated price mark, particularly the skate which was essentially fish and chips. If you don't want to share a main, or no one wants the same main as you, there isn't much choice because the majority of mains are for 2 to 4 people. The waiter who served us throughout was friendly, helpful and patient but a different woman came with the bill and was extremely rude which soured the experience. Overall, we felt the food was good but over priced and the terrible acoustics and noise level weren't conducive to a relaxed dinner and meet up with friends.

A fabulous pub with amazing food and an excellent atmosphere. I love it

New chef and staff all ace. Best food imho south of the river. Sharing mains for two serve four, for four serve six. Excellent kitchen. Excellent value. Great wine and Harveys bitter for the ale lovers.

I went to my local pubs this week end Friday am a living locally ordered a drink, as I was about to order food white lady long hair was bloody rood telling me that's the bar side. If I was a customer trying to order food I would never talk to any one like that.

Service and staff very friendly. Unfortunately the food I had did not match. Had the Dexters beef. The beef was done as described but I found it had too much marbling through it. The garnish was over the top lots of pea shoot. The roast potatoes were probably the worst I have had in a while. Seemed like deep fried frozen, they were hard to eat. Had cheese and was present with 3 crackers, with no jam or chutney. The rest of my party had the shin of beef which was nice so might have just been my choice of dish. I had heard positive things but can only base my review on my experience. As I said the staff were nice and it was a good atmosphere.

A very pleasant restaurant with good cuisine...inspired a little by France

I went in for lunch and to shelter from the rain. A short menu with several of my favourites was presented. My mackerel and bread was just perfect once I had opened it up. Lunch times are quieter than the evenings.

Excellent beef beautifully cooked. Fabulous shared apple crumble Thank you

Great Sunday lunch - the roast beef was amazing and a nice vibe as well

A proper gastro-pub. Sneaky good negroni made with their own gin. Fresh, delicious, and well made meals.

Excellent menu, great wine list and real classic pub atmosphere. The duck confit and ham hock terrine are definitely worth a try, as are the sardines and tapenade. Would highly recommend.

Best pub in London! Next level food and an amazing wine list!

Decent roast dinner, but had to wait a long time for it to arrive and the beef wasn't very hot. It's very loud inside the pub and as a result hard to hear - but good to see it busy I suppose!

So rude in here! Have stopped coming because I can't be bothered with it and prefer a peaceful drink elsewhere

It was nice to go for a Sunday. Great atmosphere!

Went here for the first time for my best friends birthday and it was SUPERB! It was very busy for a Saturday lunch but had a great atmosphere! For a table of 5, we shared 2 steak and ale pies which were awesome! Only thing I’d say is I could have used abit more gravy so recommended asking for some extra. And then for the birthday dessert they made a giant stick toffee pudding for everyone which was incredible! Very impressed with everything and will certainly be back!

Always exceptional. A proper pub with an amazing restaurant, book but don’t book late as the changing menu goes fast. If in doubt have a pie, they are always amazing. Also lovely for a pint/ glass of wine and a toastie!

First the good stuff. The pub has a lovely setting and is full of character. Prices are steep to put it mildly. A sharing '7 hour lamb' was quoting £130. My friend and I ordered the steak pie and mash which was £54 - was tasty but nothing special and the mash was bland. Had to order a side of Savoy cabbage to make it a meal. £4 for 4 slices of sourdough is daylight robbery. Cleary this pub is aimed at the well to do with deep pockets.

Soooo good, make sure to book a table to avoid disapointment !

Arrived for a large group booking for 10 and had two small dogs with us. Our friend had called ahead and asked if dogs were allowed and they’d said yes but had not clarified the details. Subsequently informed dogs weren’t allowed in the back section of the pub. We were polite and asked if we could sit at the front of the pub (where dogs are allowed) and were blankly told ‘no’. The manager shrugged and was incredibly rude. We did our best to compromise and find a solution, confusingly they then sat us at a table in the front section and then moved us for another booking. Because of this we would have to sit in the back and take the dogs elsewhere, which proved an issue. We were told she was ‘trying to be nice to us’ but that we were making it difficult. The service throughout the meal was also very rude. No one told us about the specials or if any dishes had run out. When we were given plates for the sharing lamb main, the waitress quite literally dumped them on my lap and the table, she seemed pissed off and to be taking it out on the service. We were paying a lot of money and the service overall was pretty unacceptable. We were polite, respectful and wanted to help find a solution to the problem but the staff here just do not care. It’s a shame as the food is good but you’re not treated as you should be, it ruined our experience. Hard avoid because of the service, it’s that bad.

They accept pets🤍 We arrived at around 18:30 on Saturday, it was very crowded, we wanted to eat at the restaurant first, since there was no availibility, we sat at the pub and luckily got a table. It was interesting that the person who said I would not eat at the restaurant because there was no availibility, she served food to the table next to me in the other part of the pub, apparently you have to book a table or manager needs to approve. Later on I saw couple of people are having toasties by the bar and then I realized the bar snack toasts option, as a manager she could have mentioned that to me. They have outside seating areas and heaters 👍🏽 The pub is lively✨

We had such a special Sunday Lunch here. A testament to the menu being so fresh and constantly changing, lots of things were running out by the time we got there for the last sitting. The waiters were so accommodating and ensured we got plenty of delicious food. The beef shin was to die for, and puds were phenomenal. Amazing value for money based on the outstanding quality. Thank you!

A classic London pub. One of my top five in the city.

We are long-standing fans of the Canton and always tell anyone who cares to listen that it’s the best pub in London. It still is, but sadly no longer for the food. We have just had a very unsatisfactory dinner there: the staff, as usual, were delightful, so were the drinks, and so was the wine. Regrettably, we can’t say the same about the food: uninspiring skate that was overseasoned, chips that had clearly been frozen and put in the oven, none of the usual extras like salt in a little bowl, no tartar sauce, just mayonnaise served in a plastic Helmans’ bottle. When we asked if the chef was new, we weren’t surprised when the answer was yes. So hopefully this is only temporary, chefs come and go, but at £25 a pop, it really was not good value.

Food was OK. The staff are lovely though!

£16.89… and the chips were awful

If you’re a meat lover, then you will be well served. However, vegetarian and vegan options weren’t great. Three of our party ate the gnocchi which was oven baked. Bone dry and horrid. Service was reasonable, especially considering it was pre Christmas. Atmosphere was nice and buzzy. We probably won’t revisit as the food was very inconsistent.

I've been coming here for 7 years and it never dips in quality. Excellent food menu too. Only issue is it can get obscenely busy but that's the same everywhere in a city as overpopulated as London.

Marco should consider a different vocation in life

Very popular, hence the need to book, and I hadn’t been for some years. Noon reservation but we were told in that annoying way “we need the table back at 2pm” …. Unnecessary. Hostess then licked her finger to pick up a menu from the pile. We ordered a main that arrived just before 1pm, so we declined dessert. No spoon given to eat fairly liquid food. I used the paper napkin to mop up some spilled Coca-Cola and the waitress smoothed the stained paper out and placed a knife and fork on it. Later she whizzed passed as we had our mouths full saying “everythingokheregood” which was meant as a question. Don’t accept Amex either - a tedious and false economy. On the way out, no goodbye or thanks. Having not been in years it was a shame to see the various bottles of pickled food dotted around (no, it’s actually not appetising to see food stored in this way) covered in a film of dusty grease: maybe have a spring clean?

We arrived on time for a Sunday roast only to discover that they'd made our booking two weeks later than agreed on the phone, however, the manager was wholly unapologetic and seated us at a non-dining table for the best part of an hour while they waited for a table to come free. Eventually we were seated at the bar and immediately informed of when we had to leave, again with no acknowledgement of the error on their part. When a table was eventually vacated I asked the manager if we could be reseated, but again she was disappointingly unaccomodating, informing us that the table was reserved 45 minutes from now. She also blamed her staff for the confusion rather than taking accountability, which I feel is an important attribute for a manager. We were eventually reseated and served our food, which was of a good quality but by no means deserving of a spot in the TimeOut best sunday roasts in London. Most of the other staff were very warm and welcoming. In all, a nice pub but the experience was marred by the manager, who didn't go our of her way to make us feel welcome.

Delicious food! Great service. Top quality!

Great atmosphere. Great selection of beers. Staff friendly. Didn't eat but food looked good.

Love the Canton & the food is delish if a little too salty at times. Great pub atmosphere!

Disappointing. We booked a table at 8pm on a Saturday evening to find very little remaining on the menu. The food was fine but nothing exceptional and was pretty expensive for what it was - around £25 for a main course. Service was ok but the staff were rushed off their feet and it showed in the quality of the service. Wouldn’t recommend and won’t be coming back.

Buzzing pub, well run with brilliant atmosphere and great food

We booked 2 weeks in advance to get a table for Sunday roast. It was nice, the beef was correctly cooked and the portion was generous. However, it was really missing the Yorkshire pudding and the roasted carrots. It could also use a thicker gravy. We did appreciate though that when we asked for more gravy they did not charge us. They will be adding service charge to your bill. Expect to pay more than £30 for a main and a beer.

It was my second time at the canton arms and still did not disappoint ! Delicious meal, full of interesting flavours and there is a great ambience in the restaurant. Just make sure you save room for desserts !

Another delicious supper at Canton Arms. This is our favourite local eatery - fresh, seasonal food, always yummy. And excellent bread, fait maison, every day. Friendly, efficient service. Just so you know - the atmosphere is generally lively and quite loud, so if you’re looking for a romantic dinner tête-à-tête, look elsewhere!

We had the BEST time last night thank you so much to the team for being so fantastic looking after us and delicious food!!! Special thanks to Isobel who dealt with our rag tag table of 14 so effortlessly. The pie crust pastry was unbelievable !!! Can’t wait to come again ASAP.

Excellent food. We went on a Saturday for lunch and the food was super tasty. Had the burger and curry. The burger buns were freshly made, patty really meaty and juicy and sauce just absolutely delicious. Despite the amazing burger, the lemon curd gelato stole the show and should definitely be ordered with every meal. Well balanced between being creamy and tart.

Extra ordinary! Great food, fast service. Give me option to rate more stars

Great pub, really good food and lovely atmosphere any day of the week

Great local pub very busy at weekends. Friendly down to earth and safe. They sell food here also.

Great food and selection of beer. Lots of good sharing options for the table which is nice. Great place to meet up with a large group of friends.

Went to the Canton Arms for a birthday meal on Sunday. Menu is varied with lots of interesting seasonal options so we decided to order different dishes and share them. Every dish was delicious and a good portion size. Particularly enjoyed the miso aubergine, pea and feta tart and clafoutis. Lovely service from the friendly staff. Will definitely be back.

Had a wonderful lunch here over the hottest weekend! It was very busy with a great atmosphere, we ordered food based on recommendations from our waitress. It was all delicious, not pretentious. Everything arrived for us to share and we could not fault the food. We stayed for more drinks, all great value and the wait wasn't too long considering how busy it was. Would highly recommend this little gem!

Lovely family friendly pub with delicious food ! They have a varied menu and great selection of sharing dishes (ranging from British classics, to Asian inspired) - just make sure you have space for desserts, the clafoutis was the perfect end to a Sunday lunch !

Unbelievably rude staff. Charged a £48 fee for us to bring a cake in and said they didn’t want to ‘babysit our children’ - which at no point they did. Horrible place and staff hate kids