The Jugged Hare in Islington

Every city needs a restaurant like The Jugged Hare. In my (albeit brief) trip to London, this was the best meal I had. Local ingredients with wild game, traditionally prepared, with a modern twist and an extra attention to detail - with some delicious local wine to boot. My server, Lauren, was outstanding and made sure my experience was optimal. Add this to your list.

Love this pub, always a great atmosphere. Good selection of wines.

We had an amazing meal at the Jugged Hare today. The food was great and our server Lauren was fantastic, really engaging, helpful and great with my two kids. Highly recommend

Avoid the place!!! What a disappointment! We arrived on a Sunday for lunch, first of all, the service was very confusing, 3 persons coming to us and no communication between them. We were asked three times our orders and they managed to miss one item. We had to wait for it! The food was not very good and quantities ridiculously small. Overall we ordered only two glass, pigs in blankets and scotch egg and the price was just crazy! £56… oh by the, the small piece of bread they will bring you without you ordering it, you will have to pay for it at the end! It’s NOT on the house….

Had such an amazing hare stew! Recommended by a very professional waitress called Lauren. She offered fantastic service! I wasn’t having the greatest of days but it really does take one person to brighten it up. Thanks.

We attended the Jugged Hare having read the reviews and had high hopes. We arrived and were shown to our table. I ordered a lamb roast and my wife a child's roast, as it was a smaller sized plate of food. Within 4 minutes of ordering our food, it was brought to our table. We were sat opposite the serving station and it was more like a glorified Toby Carvery. My Roast potatoes were cold and not at all crispy. The large Yorkshire pudding was cold and chewy. On my plate was 1 Yorkshire pudding, 3 roast potatoes, 2 slices of lamb (cold and very chewy) 1 carrot and some cabbage. This was priced at £32. My wife's child portion, was exactly the same as mine, but had 1 slice if lamb and no carrot, so, you pay £20 extra for 1 slice of meat and a carrot. My wife left half her food as it was cold and not very good. Not once were we asked if there was a problem, our plates were just taken away. We were there for just over 1 hour and the tray of Yorkshire puddings and roast potatoes, were just stuck under a hot lamp, so no wonder ours weren't very nice and cold. From the time our plates were taken, we waited around 20 minutes and had to grab someone's attention to pay. There were multiple people around us, who also left piles of food and were complaining about their food being cold, not once did a member of staff seem bothered. I certainly wouldn't recommend, or go back. Seriously overpriced, very poor quality and staff lacking attention.

The venue is nice. Staff are good. Some of the food very disappointing. The chicken was cooked beautifully. The lamb however was very tough and really fatty. Certainly not recommended. We love going to Blacklock with much more value and taste for your money. Jugged hair is rather overpriced for what it is. We shan't be returning.

Good ambience and good staff. Bit pricey though . Over £17 for a beer and glass of wine.

I think the quality here is exceptional. It costs a little more money but the food is excellent especially if you like game or other interesting meat dishes.

The jugged hare is a must. Lovely service and food.

Service a little slow and at times chaotic.. even though wasn’t all that busy at the time we went (2pm) - Food was, rest assured, excellent

Had our works get together event upstairs.. with about 25 peoplr Service was excellent, food was yummy and great choices.. everything was lovely ...thanks to the chef.. and read natalia, Daniel, jollita, jenny,

A country pub in the heart of London. Well appointed dining room and very friendly staff in a lovely atmosphere. When I visited in the early afternoon it was getting ready for lunch guests. I didn't have time to stay longer but wish I had. I could have spent hours admiring the taxidermy.

Probably seems obvious, but the vegetarian options were v limited, out of stock and not what I had hoped for. The group I went with enjoyed the food though. Staff lovely and the taxidermy cool to look at.

It has amazing atmosphere! We didn’t have a chance to try the food but the sevehce at the bar was great

Friendly and helpful service. Excellent food - we ate off the pre-theatre menu. Good value. The only slight annoyance was that, when paying by card the card machine gave me the option of adding a tip (or not) when there was already a 12.5% service charge on the bill.

Entering though a busy active bar you'll need to navigate an easy course to the restaurant which as the name suggests is heavy on game. A room with a lot of atmosphere and obviously popular. The food is generous and tasty and while the Jugged Hare might be expensive it should be given a shot! Handy for the Barbican if this is pre theatre but great for bar hanging post a busy day.

I'm not usually one to leave a review but after our experience at The Jugged Hare for Mothers day I felt compelled too. We arrived a little early and enjoyed a drink in the bar before we were seated at our table, the bar staff were extremely friendly and welcoming from the outset, once we were sat in the dining room our lovely waiter Yash greeted us promptly and was incredibly knowledgeable about the menu. He really is an asset to The Jugged Hare, my mum loved the homemade bread and after giving her compliments to the chef at the end of our meal, Yash arranged for some complimentary bread for her to take home. This may seem a minor gesture but she was honestly really touched by it. All the food was gorgeous! BIG thank you once again to Yash & the team for a lovely Mothers Day - we will be back!

This was the first I dined at The Jugged Hair and it was terrific. The staff were friendly and the atmosphere nice. I hosted six family members and they all enjoyed their dinner. Best to stick to simple drinks as two of us were drinking gin martinis and they came in different sizes and tastes each time! I look forward to going back.

This was a fantastic restaurant pre Covid and I visited nearly every week during game season and regularly for rest of year. The choice of game was best anywhere, but since the end of Covid I have visited several times and the choice of game is only fraction of what it was previously and the price increase has been more than other establishments, but my main disappointment is the quality and this is reason I do not come back on a regular basis, I have tried the Signature Dish three or four times since Covid and you would not know it was made from Hare as there is absolutely no meat whatsoever in the Jug and this is just vegetable soup. I complained to waiter at end of meal and asked that he pass on my comments to the “chef” I have introduced many of my work colleagues, friends and members of my different shooting syndicates to this restaurant but I would not recommend to anyone and in fact quite the opposite. I do hope that you can get the old manager and chef back and serve the same top quality game again, I will come back only once or twice a year now to see if the Restaurant has changed back to how it used to be

Relaxed, popular pub next door to the Barbican Centre. Didn't eat this time, but it has won awards for its food, highlighting game and foraged ingredients. Sunday roasts are a must, and British Pie Week is coming up soon.

Very disappointing. Booked pre-theatre meal before going to the Barbican. Service good, wine was lovely but no choice if not wanting to spend a huge amount. Starter lovely but few of the dishes on the menu were unavailable and was offered cod collar rather than cod fillet. It was uninviting and totally tasteless and barely warm. My friend's venison was tough and extremely rare. She asked for it to be cooked more and they did apologise and give a new portion but it was still tough. Felt the pre-theatre menu was too limited and was very disappointed with the meal.

Superb game. Nice enviro and staff were excellent

Amazing Sunday roast and service was great thanks again

Attentive bartending from Cameron. He loves his job, and it shows. Magenta's warm welcome lead to a delicious and relaxed meal. Thank you!

A bit expensive, didn't eat so can't rate .

we had a fabulous meal on saturday night .3 friends catching up and celebrating a belated birthday .We had to wait at the bar briefly for our table to be ready .Bar staff were so friendly and there was a good vibe in the bar area.The food was delicious-we had steak ,fish and chips but i know from a previous visit that the game dishes are top quality .The cocktails are the best ,actually the best negroni i’ve had ! All the staff were very pleasant and attentive but a special mention for Yash who is so professional and friendly and looked after us so well.Thank you for a wonderful evening .I will be back .

What a find. Could not fault a thing. Highly recommend and will definitely be back.

Had a few lunches here over the years. Usually after visiting the nearby Barbican centre. Traditional game dishes are their forte. Recommend trying the Grouse, Wood Pigeon, Rabbit & Venison when on the menu. Ambience has usually been relaxed. Service attentive & friendly, if slow on occasion. Menu changes fairly regularly in keeping with the seasons. And the dishes are pretty good. If a bit pricey.

Very enjoyable pre-theatre family dinner. Food was nice, particularly the burgers and the steak. Only negative was the unpleasant cheesecake for pudding. Discovered it was plant-based, which is perhaps the reason why we didn’t like it. And, seems like a slight anomaly really, given the rest of the menu. But, overall would definitely recommend this place for a group or family get together.

What a unique and delectable culinary experience in the heart of London. This well curated menu offers many items that you wouldn’t normally find anywhere with game meats prepared the traditional way. The Haggis Scotch Egg was out of this world.

Lovely staff, lovely food amazing, great atmosphere. I usually come here for a beer or two, but the Jugged Hare also has a great kitchen on offer. On Sunday they have a Sunday roast on offer. I opted for the woodcock which was very very good. Highly recommend.

Ye Olde Pub. Closest thing to time travel in the City.

Busy pub on the edge of the City of London. Good place for a drink prior to visiting the Barbican.

Some good game options, but my deer was undercooked. Overpriced.

I loved The Jugged Hare’s Sunday Roast! The food was amazing, but the service made it exceptional. We were greeted by Magenta and taken care of by Vicky and Nancy and Olivia! Truly a stellar team. The chef’s were first class. The roast was delicious and there was so much food. I had the chicken roast dinner and the side of sweet corn as well. I recommend The Jugged Hare wholeheartedly and can’t wait to go back! Thank you!

Decent bar Very busy Loads of comings and goings And lots of people doing strange things Mason like ritual dining area downstairs Toilets decent Interesting place

Really nice place but way overpriced. £32 for a Sunday roast, as nice as it was, is not worth it. Other than price, it’s a great place.

Pre-theatre dinner. Perfect delivery pace. Great taste of food at a right price.

Really late food despite staff knows we needed to go on to the Barbican for an event.

This Sunday roast had been on our list for a while. We arrived a little earlier than our booking and were happy to perch in the bar but the staff were very accommodating and sat us early at a nice spot in the restaurant area. Overall this was a solid Sunday roast. I opted for the roast chicken and my husband went for the beef. The meat was the standout of the dinner. Succulent, flavourful and well cooked. The gravy was also delicious. Rich with depth of flavour and not too thin. The only items that let the plate down were some of the veggies. Unfortunately it’s just really difficult to cook roast potatoes/roast veggies and keep them at their best for service. They were cooked well but were just a little too cool temperature wise to really be savoured and enjoyed. We also ordered a side of pigs in blankets and these were definitely also on the cool side. But having said that we would return if we found ourselves in the area. We both enjoy game and so would be very interested in exploring more of the regular menu.

Came for Sunday roast. Really nice food and very good atmosphere. The ingredients are very fresh and well made. We came a bit late for dinner so the beef was sold out. Would like to try next time.

This Sunday roast had been on our list for a while. We arrived a little earlier than our booking and were happy to perch in the bar but the staff were very accommodating and sat us early at a nice spot in the restaurant area. Overall this was a solid Sunday roast. I opted for the roast chicken and my husband went for the beef. The meat was the standout of the dinner. Succulent, flavourful and well cooked. The gravy was also delicious. Rich with depth of flavour and not too thin. The only items that let the plate down were some of the veggies. Unfortunately it’s just really difficult to cook roast potatoes/roast veggies and keep them at their best for service. They were cooked well but were just a little too cool temperature wise to really be savoured and enjoyed. We also ordered a side of pigs in blankets and these were definitely also on the cool side. But having said that we would return if we found ourselves in the area. We both enjoy game and so would be very interested in exploring more of the regular menu.

Food was disappointing. Bread with salmon was stodgy, venison haunch quite fatty.

Do not visit this pub if you're vegetarian! I had to eat my meal looking at dead rabbits and birds hanging on hooks, also no veggie or vegan roast option. However the fish I had was nice and it has a buzzy pub atmosphere. Overpriced for the roast

Great place for a Barbican pre-show drink - take time to notice the wall decorations!! The restaurant section looked nice but I'll try that another time.

Great Guinness, served with a smile.

We booked for a pre-theatre meal at 5.30pm today (24.1.24) as we were attending a concert at The Barbican at 7.30pm. Menu choice was ok. The main course took one hour to arrive. The kitchen was disorganised and service was therefore very slow. Lots of waiters/waitresses hanging around editing for the food. There did not appear to be anyone in overall charge and no apology or updates were given as to why food was so slow to appear. We had to ask twice where it was. Portion size was minuscule, I ordered venison and there were two medallions the size of a 50p coin. This was so embarrassing as I had chosen this place to take friends. The chocolate dessert was average and like a shop-bought tart. There is a semi-open kitchen - one very unpleasant sight was the staff supervisor wiping the drips off plates before they were served with a j-cloth. The enclosed kitchen area looked dirty and there were greasy fingermarks on the door frames. I eat better at home most nights. I would not recommend this ‘gastro’ pub.

It’s a gastropub catering for corporate groups of the city, overrated and too busy so the quality of food and service is quite bad for the average spend. Food : Scotch egg with haggis was good Turkey pie definitely not worth £27 as it was 50% undercooked carrots, 2-3 chunks of meat. Jugged hare for £38 was not worth the money in terms of flavour ( the shallots were crunchy) and amount of hare going in there. Burger was ok. Service : really inefficient, won’t go into details .

Delicious and interesting food - our group enjoyed pike, hare and woodcock - with friendly, relaxed service.

We had the Sunday roast, which was very average for the price of £32 a head. You can find better fairly easily and cheaper despite the claim on their website of it being the ‘best roast in London’. Particularly disappointing is the horseradish cream which is all cream and barely any horseradish. Average service and the very poor acoustics means you can barely hear.

We never got to eat here in the end. They claimed the booking was for 2 people only when there were 4 of us. Whilst this is likely a fault at our end, I wasn't impressed with the way it was handled. The restaurant didn't look particularly busy but apparently they have a limited number of chairs. We were offered the bar area which was freezing and told dismissively to order food from the bar. Thankfully we were able to go to Cote over the road. I do feel they could have provided a better solution - it wouldn't have needed a Jesus like miracle to accommodate two extra people on a table. Thankfully this was not a lunch with clients otherwise this would have been terribly embarrassing. I will not ever go again to this place and will advise my colleagues to avoid as well.

Nice environment but we felt the sunday roast at £32 a plate did not represent good value. We don't normally have any objection paying good price for good food but didn't feel it represented quality for the price. Perhaps better during the week when they have more free rein to be creative. Staff lovely and friendly.

Great place. Excellent extraordinary food and good choice of beers.

Sunday roast to ring in 2024. I must say Yash was ELITE! We couldnt believe we were at a pub and not a 5 star restaurant, the service was top notch. The food was good and everything came out in record time! Great experience.

nice restaurant . Could have a few non game dishes on the menu . Nice atmosphere. Staff very good. Toilets very clean. Very near Barbican

Stopped in for a burger and drink with a colleague, not much change from £75. Overpriced but reasonable quality.

I really wanted to like the jugged hare. The location and general setup is great. But the day we went the service was painfully slow - we had to hunt down a waiter to get served for most things we wanted. The restaurant isn’t that big and there were quite a few staff, so perhaps a training issue? The food was ok, not amazing and not bad. When you charge £40 per main course you have to really knock it out of the park on food and service, which they just didn’t do on the day we visited.

The signature dish Hare in a Jug was delicious. I'd visit again.

Not impressed at all by the food, but the staff and wine were great.

Lived in London my entire life and have never walked out of a pub before the mains arrived. Sat down at 530 with a show at the Barbican (round the corner) at 730. By 7pm the mains hadn't arrived yet despite many conversations with the waiter so we had to leave having not eaten. It's a shame because the vibe was good but it was obvious as we left other tables were experiencing the same thing. Might be worth a lunch visit if you dont have plans for the rest of the day.

Food was good. Service was terrible, our order had clearly been forgotten, whilst we chased it up, nobody came back to us. After an hour, when we asked again, our starters finally arrived. There was no apology given. We complained to the manager and were then taken seriously, as a result we got a sizeable amount taken off of the bill. Whilst this went some way to rectify the problem, the reality is we wanted someone to own up to the problem and apologise without challenge.

I give you a high mark, because in our pub they polish glasses until they shine, it’s very nice

OK pub near the Barbican Centre. Only one cask beer on handpump when I last visited - Sambrook's Junction - and it was in really poor condition. There are much better pubs in the area.

Enttäuschendes Weihnachtsmenü. Freundliches Personal, Location sehr rustikal und authentisch. Essen war leider nichts besonderes und dafür einfach übertrieben teuer. Für die Hälfte des Preises gibt es auch in London deutlich bessere Menüs.

Staff keeping smoking out of side door had to deal with cold wind every 10 mins. Food was niche with small portions and not great. Rude waitress and managers

Had a christmas lunch with colleagues. Foods were amazing! Drinks were excellent. One of the waiters was too rude but others were nice and kind. Great atmosphere and decorations.

The Pheasant pie was very very good. Good ambience and good selection of drinks as well. If you do like game, you are in for a really good meal! Enjoy.

Wine, service and starter all fine. But the star dish of jugged hare was very poor. The tiny bits of meat in the vegetable stew were minuscule. I doubt we had more than an ounce each. For what they were charging I would expect a proper portion of meat.

We visited on Sunday for a roast to celebrate my partners birthday. I don’t usually write bad reviews, but to provide some constructive criticism, I will on this occasion. The roast was very underwhelming following the images on Instagram. £32 for a roast which was not hot, one carrot, no side gravy provided, sauces only when asked for. The service was also poor. We asked on multiple occasions for the juice for my daughter and were incorrectly charged £27.50 for a glass of Malbec. I would politely suggest that you do not add images to social media that do not represent what you are intending to serve. I have given 2 stars as the children’s serving was better than the adult meal. We would visit again for drinks at the bar when visiting Barbican, but I would not order food again. Please take note of these comments as The Jugged Hare is a beautiful place, I would love to recommend it to others in the future, but presently it is just another restaurant with inflated price for a below par product.

My first Sunday roast beef lunch in November was so good, meat that melt in the mouth, that I went back 3 weeks later, but this time I struggled with the meat. Every morsel was stringy. I had to spit most of it out as it was inedible. For a place that prides itself on the quality of its meat, that was my worst experience with beef (roast or otherwise) ever. Be consistent chef, shame on you.

Loved this place. Went for Sunday roast and everything was excellent. Proper British pub/restaurant with great decor and great service.

We loved it here, came for our first Sunday roast in London and the food was amazing! Service was also amazing with Ferdos. She looked after us very well :)

A bit pricey but it's worth it. The dishes were very tasty and I would definitely return. It was also baby friendly with available high chairs and enough space for a pram.

A really great venue with a warm inviting atmosphere. The food was delicious, the service not stuffy and really good value for money. Good for kids.

Thank to guy of name Yash. He was absolutely amazing. Best experience in London. If I will come again to this city I will come back for sure . Thank you

Underwhelmed. The pie had by two guests tasted of a strange vinegary flavour. Probably the whole grain mustard. The pastry was lovely however. Truffle cabbage lacked truffle. The glass of bubble arrived minus bubbles. Overall it was an underwhelming experience. Staff were lovely and resolved issues with professionalism and charm. From this aspect the venue was ace. But a bar staff pouring flat champagne and not noticing is disappointing. Can’t say I’d recommend the venue, but it’s an institution so perhaps we arrived on a bad day.

Ridiculously expensive - A pint of Brixton lager and a medium Chardonnay with packet of crisps £24!!! The medium Chardonnay was £12.80 alone.won't be returning

Se siete alla ricerca del perfetto sunday roast siete nel posto giusto! Pub storico, arredato magistralmente, che sintrova giusto affianco al centro Barbican. Il sunday roast è tradizionale, ben fatto ed estremamente ricco. Esite anche la versione vegetariano e vegana. Ottimo anche il resto del menù ha un livello molto elevato per essere un pub. Per il sunday roast vi consiglio assolutamente di prenotare per tempo (qualche settimana prima) perche anche se il locale è grande i posti si esauriscono rapidamente.

Love the Jugged Hare but a while since I've been. Menu now even better including Monkfish livers (a mate raved about them) and a first for me - Congar Eel, which was fabulous. Haunch of deer, venison tartareand Jugged Hare all scored highly. Can't wait to go again

About as close to a perfect lunch venue as you can get. The snails were delicious, the black pudding croquettes were stunningly good, the Lanarkshire pheasant pie was superb and extremely filling, and the service was excellent (thank you Magenta and your colleague). Cannot recommend this gastro pub enough. Officially one of my favourite London restaurants and a brilliant dining discovery.

Food is akin to boarding school dinner. Service and the venue is filthy.

It was pleasant, slightly more expensive than other pubs in the area.

The food is by far the best I had on this trip to London!!! The haggis Scotch eggs are NOT to be missed!!! A must have, along with the black pudding croquettes!

Great food and good busy atmosphere. Would be good to have a better priced house wine as £11 plus a glass is expensive when you can get a decent bottle for that

I love this place, great food and atmosphere. The wine list is great, coupled with good service. Great for business meetings.

Excellent and tasty meats but also very well cooked vegetables. Good cask ale selection served at the right temperature. Also enjoyed the friendly atmosphere and very kind staff.

Overpriced for small, overseasoned food with inattentive service.

Hors de prix et pas très bon. Donc très authentique en Angleterre

Crazy, unjustifiable prices; standing at the bar, a single gin&tonic, one absolutely minuscule ginger ale, and one packet of crisps - £17:33 which includes a service charge. A service charge standing at the bar? Perfect way to lose customers

Great environment for casual lunch but amazing gamey options on the menu. Service was really good - friendly and very attentive!

Was busy so I ate at the chef counter

Really great food. Worth the effort.

Subject: Disappointing lunch Experience at Jacket Hare Restaurant Dear Management, I trust this message finds you well. I recently dined at your establishment and, while the ambiance and menu intrigued me, I feel compelled to express my disappointment with the overall experience. Upon arrival, I ordered 4 starters along with a sparkling water. Regrettably, the service fell short of expectations. The wait time for four starters was considerably lengthy, approximately 20-30minutes, which, in my understanding of the hospitality industry, is below the professional standard. I acknowledge the challenges that can arise in a busy restaurant, yet I believe that customer satisfaction should remain a priority. Unfortunately, the delay and subsequent departure of my companion left us with a less than favorable impression. In the spirit of constructive feedback, I encourage a review of the service timelines and efficiency to ensure a more seamless experience for patrons. I value the potential for improvement and hope that this input contributes to the ongoing success of The Jugged Hare. Thank you for your attention to this matter, and I appreciate your understanding. Sincerely, KJ

Such a gem of a place, the food is fantastic and seasonal which brings something new every time we go there. The Sunday roast beef was melt in the mouth, and veggies cooked just enough to retain flavour and a bit of a bite. Staff were welcoming, courteous and very attentive, we were lucky to find a table even without a booking (note to self, book on a Sunday!).

Great place if you like game and shooting! The food is a bit pricey but its central London so I wasnt expecting anything to be cheap, but the quality definitely reflected the price. I had the Grouse which was seasoned beautifully and the chips are...

We had a lovely family pre theatre meal here the food was lovely and the service excellent and everyone was very welcoming a very enjoyable time.

Great lunch with party of 8 old friends

They have beer, what's not to like!

I was staying in the hotel above which connects to the bar. Nice pub and nice atmosphere.