The English Restaurant in Tower Hamlets

I had their bread and butter pudding with some coffee and banana bread - all of them were delightful. The pudding was creamy, not too heavy and had just the right amount of sweetness. The atmosphere is wonderful - had the nostalgia of an honest old English tavern. Lots of pictures and antiques. Would definitely visit again for dinner or supper.

First time here for lunch and absolutely loved it. Great lunchtime menu in terms of size and choice. Staff really friendly and helpful. Nice atmosphere and would definitely recommend/return.

This review is for breakfast. And I love coming here for it each time I’m in London. Food: Breakfast! Weekend breakfasts are tops as they do the Full English then, but weekday breakfasts tick the box too. I had the Eggs Benedict – eggs cooked to a runny perfection with the most delicious hollandaise on a lightly toasted English muffin. And a supporting flat white to wash it down with. Service: Friendly and attentive without hovering. Space: A great spot to work out of (quiet work, don’t do your calls here folks, please) and enjoy a beverage and a meal. I can’t say they’ll be OK with folks hogging a table at peak times but I’ve only ever been there pre-lunch. Cost: So very reasonable for central London, about £25 for breakfast and a coffee. Takes cards and cash. Give it a go!

A gastropub with old world ambience and relatively focused menu. The food and drink were freshly prepared and delicious, with British classics like pie. Friendly service.

Fabulous food. Lovely settings. Amazing wines. Loved everything.

Amazing meal, fabulous service, great price for size of dishes. Love!!

Nice lunch starters turned up with mains and appeared to be ‘normal’ Great atmosphere

Lovely food, great interior and atmosphere. Perfect place for a cosy get together with friends and family.

Great as always. Superb menu. My favourite place for dinner with friends

Always an amazing experience eating here… incredible food, amazing service - never misses

We had a rarebit cheese with pear, delicious. And the Christmas special, goose leg. They have a very original beer and cider menu. We loved the experience.

Lovely independent restaurant. Very friendly team and great atmosphere. A real gem .

had 4 small plates. to share with another person. Nice selection. smoked haddock croquettes a bit on the dry side, corn fritters a bit fatty. Puy lentils could have been seasoned more

Delicious dinner, charming ambiance; a delightful dining experience overall.

The Flank steak head the texture of my leather soles.

Terrible food, met up with large group of friends for Sunday lunch. Roast beef was overcooked and looked like shoe leather. No horseradish available. Tiny Yorkshire puddings. Skins still on the roast potatoes. Fish and chips poor. The veggie option of gnocchi was weird and slimy. Wine massively overpriced. Luckily spending time with friends was lovely. Shame about the food.

Slow service, food was not good, cold eggs on untoasted bread, weak coffee, compulsory service charge.

Staff where very helpful and very friendly.Would recommend to eat here Food was delicious.

Simply disgusting. Need a new chef. We had good hopes in this warm and welcoming atmosphere combined by seeing good looking plates passing around us. Sadly we ordered scrambled eggs on toast, and fried mushrooms on toast with side bacon. Both were tasteless. Mushrooms were not fried and watery, eggs were flavourless and bacon undercooked. A huge disappointment for a simple dish

Really lovely atmosphere, gorgeous place and friendly service. However the food we had as Sunday lunch was unfortunately poor. For the price we expected more but the quality was even below average sadly. Our fish and chips had no salt at all, felt very greasy rather than high quality and the chips were horribly soggy. Was a real disappointment sadly

Old world atmosphere yet relaxed and informal. Great lunch menu with choices for vegetarian as well. Hogget chop was very good, roast gnocchi delicious too.

Breakfast for 5 of us took an hour. The poached eggs were solid. The scrambled eggs stone cold. We sent them back took another 20 minutes to get that sorted. The English Breakfast tea is like gnats p*** so avoid that at all costs. Other than that the interior is pleasant old worldly and staff apologetic.

Good welcome. Nice ambiance - not echo-y. No stainless steel. Coffee was excellent (and I’m fussy about my coffee). Breakfast menu (till 12:00) was good. But, if you’re going to serve bacon in a brioche bun then why not put it on the menu? This fad about brioche needs to go away. I mentioned this to the waiter and he promised to mention it to the owner.

After a long day of walking we ended up in this neighborhood and around 8 in the afternoon it was not very open but it disappointed us a lot First we ordered shandy and the habit of bringing you the giant glass (for God's sake!) and since we didn't like the menu at all for dinner we ordered a cheese board... I'm sorry I didn't take the photo... a complete joke 4 “leftovers” of cheese the size of a fingernail and some crackers with some grapes. Totally ridiculous!! These people should come to our city and see what a cheese board is. Recommended 0%!!!!!

Service was extremely slow, waited almost an hour for our breakfast order to be served with no updates on waiting times/apologies from the staff. Paid £13 for French toast with maple syrup and crispy bacon which turned out to be one piece of toast with a drizzle of maple syrup and limp bacon. Couldn't believe the standard of the food and small portion size for the price so refused to pay the service charge which the waiter was understanding about. Really disappointing breakfast.

First time visiting this restaurant, took friends from out of town. God food, excellent service, super friendly and a great location.

Called in here for quick coffee and cake. Excellent service and delicious cake.

Such an amazing place to dine in the East End. Atmospheric and great food and service. A real treat.

Really disappointing. Coffee good, service awful and toilets dirty. Ordered french toast with maple and bacon. Hardly any maple syrup and had to ask for more which arrived in a tiny ramekin dish between 2 of us. Waiter was surely and grumpy. By the time it arrived are food was almost cold. £13 for one slice of toast and 2 rashers of bacon with barely any syrup and nothing else was very expensive. We were never asked if our food was ok and did not even get a smile from the waiter who seemed to be rudely staring at one of us. The dryer in the toilet was dirty and the light for the cubicle did not work either, To add insult to injury they added 12.5% service charge and did not even say thank you for coming or goodbye when we left. Atrocious customer service, over priced food and small portions. This place relies on its vintage decor and looks attractive. Much better places close by in Spitalfields market itself. Alarm bells should have sounded as it was not that busy, if it carries on at this rate it will go out of business,

The food was good, if slightly on the small side portion wise, however, the reason the score is so low is because at the end of the meal, when it came time to pay, my friends and I opted to not pay all of the service charge that had been added to the bill as we felt the service hadn't been stand-out amazing (to be clear, we were still leaving a tip, just not as high as the service charge had calculated). However, when the waiter came over he insisted that we had to pay the full tip, when I pointed out that UK law leaves service charge to the customers discretion, he very rudely suggested that I wasn't from this country and insisted that we legally had to pay the service charge and that he and the other wait staff wouldn't make a wage without it. My friends and I had been having a really nice day and didn't want to ruin it by arguing as we felt the waiter was beginning to draw attention, so my friend paid and we got out of there as quickly as we could. I understand that (as of May just gone) by law the business has to pay staff the full tips received, but it's not compulsory for customers to have to tip, nor was it made known to us before we sat down that the business runs the service charge as compulsory. It's a shame, as we'd had a rather nice time up until then!

Always a treat to have a meal at the English. Food was exceptional, the beer choice is superb and the staff are attentive, but not overbearing. Highly recommended.

This is one of my favourite restaurants in London - generally an oasis of calm in the mad bustle that is Liverpool Street/Spitalfields, with friendly, attentive staff. The night we went there was live jazz, which was fantastic, but the big brass sound of a saxophone did mean we have to fight a little to hear each other.

Great place for breakfast and lunch also. Just across from Spitalfields Market. I also had a beer here once or twice. Staff are very welcoming and helpful.

Superb setting and very excellent service. Food delicious. Will come again!

amazing place. I loved it, already made another reservation

Really enjoyable evening. Staff very welcoming, friendly and efficient. Food was lovely - really fresh and a mixture of plates to share worked really well. The chocolate fondant pudding was fantastic too. Good quality and good value. Highly recommended

Great food, friendly attentive staff. Reasonable priced for central London.

We stopped here for breakfast as the menu looked inviting. My partner ordered eggs benedict. When our food arrived his eggs benedict was missing the hollandaise sauce. When one of the staff was questioned about this he was not really sure but said he would go and check. After a couple of minutes we stopped another member of staff who said that the kitchen had also sent out another order lacking the sauce. He took the plate away and promised to replace it. The original guy brought out a ramakin of something cold and horrible which he said was hollandaise but tasted like a nasty mayonnaise. It most likely came out of a jar. I had by now finished my breakfast when some fresh eggs benedict arrived minus the sauce. My partner put some of the cold orange gloop over the top but it sort of just melted into a fatty puddle on the plate. He ate it as he was hungry but it was nothing like the eggs benedict he was expecting. We mentioned this to the second member of staff and he said it would not be added to the billed. When we came to pay it was on the bill which we then had to ask to be removed. A disappointing 1 star for the kitchen who send out eggs benedict missing a key ingredient and then sending out something nasty which was not proper hollandaise. 1 star also for the staff who should know how to rectify things efficiently when they do go wrong.

Lovely food and good service. Limited main menu and one choice requested unavailable but what we had was delicious.

Buono il cibo e carino l’ambiente, gli mancava però un po’ la magia che cercavo. Non so bene perché ma sembrava che tutte le energie fossero dirette alla attività di birreria.

Great food- a jazz band was playing. Lovey little booths to hide away in. A gem.

As always staff are friendly polite and efficient. Food was lovely and atmosphere great. My favourite place and very dog friendly. Nothing is too much trouble and the dog gets a bike if fresh water as soon as we sit down 👍

only went for takeaway coffee because the place looks so nice - dont bother coffee as weak as dishwater yet it looked lovely for the patrons sitting down - I guess takeaway is not what they are looking for

Fabulous spot for dinner. Food, service, ambiance were all just perfect. Our international guests really enjoyed the experience. Great quality food and friendly and helpful staff always a good recipe for a really lovely evening. Highly recommended!

Good food and drink, and wonderful friendly service. Great place to spend an evening

Gav vores bestilling på kaffe og 2 gange morgenmad. Kaffen kom efter en halv time, morgenmaden blev leveret til et andet bord….🤔

Food was pretty good. Waiters pleasant but service on the slow side. Lovely setting.

I love this place, rare to find a family run independent restaurant / bar in the city. Great food, I like that there is now a range of small plates. Particularly good, mostly French wines by the glass. Much better value than some of the trendy wine bars nearby. Saturday afternoon treat is the piano player- jazz and classic tunes.

Staff are lovely food excellent chilled atmosphere good selection of wine.

It has a classic and warm atmosphere as if stepping into a movie set of a period film. The space is just enough and not feeling crowded. The staff (Efe) was very friendly and we felt very welcomed. The food is fantastic; well presented, excellent taste and not “over decorated”. They have a piano where one of the guests played for the rest of us and my son had a chance to play as well. We really had a good day.

Initially I was a bit disappointed that the full breakfast wasnt on during the week. However, the scambled eggs on toast with extra bacon and sausage was just what the doctor ordered. The coffee was excellent too! Staff were all marvellous! Thank you!

The staff who were on duty on Sunday 4th June are a very rare find for a London venue. They went over and above. I've been here over the years, having first visited almost 15 years ago. The coffee is great as is the food and beverage. But the polite, friendly staff made our day. Note to the owner ; Look after them well and you'll do great business.

Pleasing traditional style character bar. Our simple lunch (crab cakes and battered haddock, both with chips) were delicious with great chips. The coffee was top notch, so good ae had to order second cups! What could have been a perfect 5 star visit was let down by the personality bypassed waitress. Perhaps she was just having a bad day but please somebody teach her to say hello/smile/show some interest. The other staff looked friendly enough.

We were drawn to this restaurant not only by the beautiful, authentic looking exterior but also we really wanted a typical English bacon sandwich. We were greeted warmly and shown to a lovely dark wood booth and immediately felt like we were transported back to the Victorian era. Having soaked up the atmosphere we ordered two bacon sandwiches, a tea and a coffee. We hadn’t read the menu properly and neither did the waitress bring to our attention that the bacon comes in a small bap not bread and hence the brown sauce was dripping all over our hands and became messy. We ordered another coffee but had finished our bap long before it arrived, to the point that we had to ask if they’d forgotten, at which point she apologised and explained they were short staffed. We then started to see young, unkempt staff start to arrive. Such a sad state of affairs as clearly the owners have put a lot of thought and hard work to successfully recreate the atmosphere of a Victorian coffee house.

What a lovely place. The beers are fantastic and decor the classic Spitalfields mix of modern-traditional but I must say the staff and the service here really stands out. The staff create such a lovely welcoming vibe that for me, is unmatched in the area. Thank you for creating such an inclusive space.

Nice lunch spent at the restaurant. The service was well attended and the food was nice.

Try Scottish Eggs, really nice. I'll cime back. The place is nice, looks like an old saloon 😄

Visited Saturday afternoon 20th May, celebrating Brentford FC brilliant win. Excellent piano player, giving it a relaxing atmosphere. Slightly limited menu, but friendly staff and good food, made up for it. Would definitely recommend the experience.

Fantastic restaurant, friendly and helpful staff, great beer menu, and the food was excellent, beef cheeks and confit of duck, would highly recommend

We love it here. One of the most authentic, traditional and chic restaurants in London. Great decor, candles and white tablecloths. The food is simple but very well executed. We’re vegetarian and still had LOADS of choice. Highly recommend the Welsh Rarebit

Having been to the van Gogh Experience just round the corner we needed lunch and started looking round Spitalfields which of course has lots of streetfood and fun quick eating places. We wanted a little more and came across Market Coffee House. Lovely worn wooden...

We visited this restaurant a few years ago and the food was great and have been other times since then but sadly this visit was just average. Four main courses to choose from on the menu so in my opinion very limited options. Not as...

So sad to have to write this but was extremely disappointed with our visit here. The waitress was delightful but the food was awful - i sent my fish back, it wasn’t fresh and the skin was wet and rough. My husband had steak -...

Wonderful, low key bar and restaurant in Spitalfields. Great food, old style service. Highly recommended

Have eaten here before but a while back. Good to see it's had a coat of paint and a polish-up. Food was fine and service good. Plan to celebrate a birthday there in June.

I loved the inside of this pub. Super cute and cozy, with friendly service and pretty good food. We came for breakfast and had the eggs with smoked salmon and the French toast. They also served a pretty decent flat white. Everything was reasonably priced as well. We came around 9:30 AM on a Saturday morning and it was not too crowded yet. Would definitely come back.

We went on a Sunday and the fish wasn’t fresh , we also had oysters and meat pie not tasty and overpriced, the cocktails were delicious tho

I have passed The English Restaurant on many occasions and always felt rather jealous of the diners inside as it looks so inviting! So when looking for somewhere to have lunch after one of my walking tours of Spitalfields I booked a table for myself and a friend and we had a really delightful experience. We were welcomed very warmly by the staff and offered a choice of tables. The service was perfectly timed, no hassle, no long wait and the whole experience is totally to be recommended.

Gorgeous, atmospheric restaurant with really friendly staff. Love the booths! Whether stopping off for a pot of tea or enjoying a full meal with friends, I’ve never had a bad experience here. The small plates are especially delicious.

Frisch und leckeres Frühstück- süß und herzhaft für jeden Geschmack was dabei sowie große Auswahl Kuchen - wir waren begeistert....

Overall very nice ambience and cosy place. However, food wasn't as great as I have remembered it and it was quite expensive. There was a little bit a lack of care for the food. It's a nice place to come for a drink or coffee and maybe a small bite.

Nice pub. Liked the atmosphere and the service. It was not too noisy, so comfortable to speak and the seating was comfortable, too. However the food was awful - not just mine. Everything seemed to be frozen food that wasn't cooked too well and microwaved for too long. My cottage pie was very soupy and I've never had such a bad one before. It was also very expensive at about £17

As I sit here pondering over the exquisite meal I had at this charming restaurant, I am struck by the delicate balance of land and sea that was so expertly executed in each dish. The flavors danced on my tongue, each bite bringing forth a new sensation, a new wave of pleasure. But it wasn't just the food that made this dining experience so memorable. The wine selection was top-notch, with each glass perfectly paired to complement the flavors of the dish. And the warm, humble welcome we received upon arrival made us feel right at home. I must confess, however, that I was slightly taken aback when our server apologized for serving us British cuisine. As an Anglophile myself, I found this to be a most delightful surprise, and I was eager to try everything on the menu. And oh, the atmosphere! The music, played by a truly exceptional jazz pianist, was simply divine. The notes floated through the air, mingling with the scents of butter and salt, creating an ambiance that was both sophisticated and inviting. The servers, dressed in elegant attire and speaking with charming accents, added to the overall experience. They were knowledgeable about each dish and took great care to ensure that our every need was met. And speaking of butter, it must be said that this cuisine was certainly not for the faint of heart. But for those who appreciate the richness and depth that only butter can bring to a dish, this was a feast beyond compare. In short, this restaurant is a true gem. It's a place where the finest elements of land and sea come together to create a culinary experience that is nothing short of magical.

Excellent experience as always. I take myself on a date here as often as I can!

Great food, great service, great price! What’s not to like.

We loved our visit to the English Restaurant! The staff were friendly and couldn’t have been more helpful. The food was excellent and we had a thoroughly enjoyable evening!

This is one of my favourite restaurants and bars in London. The bar and restaurant has a peaceful and timeless ambience. They play a great range of smooth jazz classics, including live piano some evenings. I’ve always found the staff very helpful and welcoming, I highly recommend visiting!

Had a memorable lunch here with friends. Attentive wonderful service and great fresh food

A lot of items from the menu were already gone by 4:30, besides that everything was fine and it’s a lovely place to spend Sunday afternoon in. We were able to stay for about 1.5 h and place wasn’t too busy at that time.

We enjoyed the ambience of the place. The menu was good for us, with the exception of the absence of the Bread and Butter pudding - this was initially announced as missing the custard, which could be replaced with cream but then we were told that the couldn't make the pudding because they had no eggs. It seems that an adjacent table had pre-ordered 5 portions of the pudding. Does this suggest that the pudding is very good?

Loved it. Been going there for oysters since 2021

This my favourite restaurant by far. Great food and the menu is always bursting with classics. The team there are beyond amazing and so welcoming

I have eaten here in the past and chose to host an after Christmas lunch. Unfortunately they have changed the menu and the chef. Two of our party had steak and the other three had halibut which included a child under 10.. The steak was well prepared but all the food came out on stone cold plates and the fish was completely cold and uninspiring. Unfortunately we will not be returning, which is a shame as we loved the food previously.

We love having dinner here. Always a great experience. Very nice and attentive staff, excellent food and drink. We shall return soon.

Great service as always. The beef marrow was poor value and the affogata a bit mean but the other dishes were fine.

Great service, food and ambience. Its my second visit, and well return again in the future. Nice Peter

Love this family owned pub. From the decor to the service and the ambiance. Highly recommend.

Amazingly friendly and helpful staff, great atmosphere and incredible food. I had my 11 month old with me and they were so accommodating- even when I had to change the reservation last minute. Couldn’t recommend enough!

Wonderful atmosphere and service, but food was uninspired

Luchtimme booking in great location. The food was good, not excellent, but the service was exemplary. Would come back.

Wonderful brunch, very tasty. Staff very pleasant and helpful. great ambience. Definitely recommend.

Such a lovely place! We were extremely well looked after and had a delicious meal. The wine selection is excellent. It's a unique place.

Four of us went for 12 oysters. They were lovely and fresh. Good selection of wines.

I left a review on Google some time ago. Terrible.

We were late and the wonderful staff were about to clear our table. Everyone was so kind and welcoming - in the end we had a fabulous dinner. This is such a wonderful restaurant with delicious food and an atmosphere that extends from eighteenth century Fournier Street to the East. A magical and genuine corner of old London.

Lovely, cosy and atmospheric. Had a booth which was private and cosy. Good value

Lunch today while in the area for an exhibition. The decor is interesting traditional style and there is a very warm welcome. We had a pear, walnut and stilton salad and a terrine that was excellent and pleasantly served. service was good and attentive and...

As always, we enjoyed well prepared food from the seasonal menu, accompanied by lovely drinks, great service from the team, in what may be the suggest café-restaurant in Spitalfields, without costing you an arm and a leg.

We visited this place exactly 3 years ago and were so satisfied with the breakfast back then that we wanted to come back this year. very sadly, the breakfast dishes changed to the worse. Scrambled eggs were served on too hard/maybe old bread, the plate...

Delightful hospitality from the entire team :)