Towpath Cafe in Hackney

We waited for over an hour to get a table so assumed it was so popular for a good reason. The food was not that great, very expensive for what it was, waiters kept forgetting to bring order. Menu was handwritten on the board and almost unreadable. There is NO toilet in this place. I really don’t understand all the queueing.

Waited for an hour to get a table, food was not good and very oily. Took ages, forgot part of our order. £25 main, £8.59 for a tiny glass of wine, no bathroom. After waiting for 1.5 hours for a table and another 1.5 for food we had to run to a bar nearby and buy a drink there so we could use the bathroom.

be prepared for a bit of a wait! we visited on a weekend and waited for just over an hour but still enjoyed a lovely meal by the canal. food was very tasty especially the taramasalata and cod! would love to come back again

What can be better than sun, water and great food?

Really nice cafe on the canal. Only open on sunny days and ideal spot for a quick bite and a coffee. They make their own oat milk!! Will definitely be back!

Amazing brunch! Every single thing was perfect. Little wait time luckily, started off with blood orange juice. Had sage fried eggs, the grilled cheese with quince jelly and a rhubarb yoghurt bowl. All the elements were delicious with clearly good ingredients. Brunch with a view of the canal, what more can you ask for.

We approached this restaurant hoping to find a nice Brunch place to eat. We went into this knowing that the queue would take a while- waited for around an hour, but the problem arose when after being seated and ordering the food at 1:50, and the first dish being a (very) small plate starter came out at 2:27, and the dishes were staggered, with the last two dishes coming at 2:50 after we enquired about where the food was. After this long waiting for the food, I was hoping the quality would make up for it. It did not. I myself had a lamb chop for £21 with some "charred" cauliflower- this was very chewy and it was very difficult to cut, bite or even rip the meat off of the bone. By far the worst lamb chop I have consumed. Furthermore, the staff on the general give off a somewhat unfriendly, shady vibe; especially the owner. Avoid unnecessary interactions with the staff. I found that on the whole, we felt the food was overpriced and the portions were small. Despite the small portions and overpricing of the food, we did still find that the starters were appetising and good in quality.

Sitting by the canal eating simple and delicious dishes cooked with maximal respect for the freshest of ingredients - what could be better? Highlights include tomatoes with an insanely moreish tonnato and a fantastically decadent pissaladiere.

Mi hija y yo paramos en Towpath al final de un paseo encantador a lo largo - bien el camino de remolque. Libre de las multitudes del fin de semana (era jueves), esto era algo excepcionalmente agradable de hacer. Claramente un lugar popular, y fue después de todo la hora del almuerzo, esperamos 15 minutos en la cola y nos sentamos a la mesa. El almuerzo fue excepcionalmente bueno. Desde la encantadora dama que nos sirvió, el otro que trajo nuestra comida y otro todavía que tomó nuestro pago - todos eran realmente encantadores, educados y entusiastas sobre este lugar y lo que ofrece. Compartimos platos de zanahorias asadas con labneh, albóndigas de pollo, mozzarella y los espárragos más encantadores. Todo lavado con delicioso jugo de naranja sanguinolento (y una copa furtiva de vino blanco). Es el hallazgo más encantador. Sin duda volveré. He notado algunas críticas negativas aquí - tal vez está muy ocupado en el fin de semana, o simplemente diferentes personas que trabajan en ese momento? No estoy seguro, no veo cómo podría ser tan diferente. Como alguien que come por todo Londres, a una amplia gama de precios, este lugar era simplemente maravilloso.

Best place to have a local life in London with delicious foods.

Lovely food and gorgeous surroundings. Obviously very popular so you have to be ready for a long wait but it’s definitely worth waiting as the food is great!

Food wa great but service is very hostile and alooof. Found both waitresses very rude and dismissive. Shame as it’s a lovely spot .

I was super excited to try this place out as I’ve heard good things but was really disappointed. I ate a porridge that had a large layer of butter and some brown sugar & walnuts thrown on top. Made me feel a bit ill. The location is super nice though!

Everyone who works here is hostile and kind of shady. Just came for a little lunch and I feel like I’m about to get into it with these girls. Weird people. Food is ok, location is fab.

I like this place but I honestly don’t understand why there isn’t a sign or some kind of notice letting people know that breakfast stops being served at 12:30, and that lunch orders don’t start until 1pm. This morning, we queued for over half an hour in the sun, and at around 12:25 a staff member came out to tell us that there were no available tables and that breakfast service would end in 5 minutes. At that point, we were already starving, and knowing we’d have to wait another hour just to order lunch, we ended up leaving. Why isn’t it possible to inform people about this setup before they start queuing?

Beautiful location along the canal with seating both in the sun and shade. Went for breakfast and had a delicious tomato pesto toast. My dining companion had some very delicious looking sage eggs. I wish there were some more protein options for breakfast for those that might not be able to eat eggs but still want a savory protein option. The blood orange juice was just so good and coffee was too. A lovely place to spend time chatting and eating.

No toilets for customers. (Service stops between 12-1pm for the lunch change-over, so expect an hour or two wait if joining the line at midday)

I rarely feel compelled to write reviews but just a fair warning, just don’t go. The only reason there is a line to get in is to sit next to the canal and honestly you’ll ruin your day in the process. I saw so many people ask the same questions that could have easily been addressed by a sign so I’ll help them out: 1. No take out service 2. No bathroom 3. To get a seat, join the end of the queue 4. The queue is 1.5-2 hours long 5. There is no digital or physical menu 6. No drinks other than water or juice 7. Sitting in the sun is not as fun as it looks 8. No garbage can for clients 9. Once finished, queue again to pay 10. Try to minimize interactions with owner and staff 11. The menu is small plates and bread/butter comes with meals 12. The meals come when they come 13. You are not a guest, you are a paying nuisance that has the privilege to eat there 14. Budget 3-4 hours for the “experience”

1.5 hours in line, 30 mins for food to come, 30 mins to pay, no toilet for customers for above average food imo.

Such a local gem - yes you’ll probs have to queue if the weather is good but the food and views are worth it!! Staff friendly and attentive as usual and delish coffee too. We love Towpath❤️❤️

Delicious food in an amazing setting. Staff b friendly and perfect place for lunch

UPD 2025: dishes can be hit or miss, like a total miss. The gentleman at the bar where you pay is quite unfriendly. That’s not how you speak with customers, makes you not want to come back. If he wasn’t an employee I would have told him off in a few not so nice words. That must say something about his attitude. Service is too long, clearly need weekend staff to be hired

The staff was incredibly unwilling to allocate us, given the fact we were two and there were a lot of options on shared tables. When we addressed that we were told that they know how to do their job. Wow.

Picturesque location with good quality food and lovely staff!

Rude staff! There is always space to share with other people in a table, but the staff instead of offering place to people to share, just let waiting for ages instead of calculating empty seats properly.

It caught my eye with flowers by the canal. Then flew me with great food and services also. Lovely people. Thank you for bringing joy to the area.

Truly one of my favourite places in London. Situated by the canal it is perfectly hidden from the London madness. The ever-changing menu generates a great variety in dishes, but vegan options can be skim. A must.

Finalmente cenamos en el Towpath que está abierto de Miércoles a Sol. El menú cambia diariamente sujeto a disponibilidad. Como era de esperar el menú del domingo fue limitado y no tan bueno porque es el último día que están abiertos hasta que reabran el miércoles. De todas formas sólo para marcar la casilla, tenía toda la alcachofa y ensalada verde.

Right on the canal. Very busy at the weekend. We went midweek and got the last free table.

Cannot fault towpath. We had to wait in line but were seated in 30 mins ! The food was impeccable.. I got a dal with caramelised onion and beans and it was so warming. Very delish! My friends got the tomato toast and they loved it.. it was such a cute atmosphere and really fun to people watch. I highly recommend.

A delightful cafe along the canal-side in Haggerston. Creative, seasonal and tasty food served by friendly and accommodating staff.

I love it here! Whatever the weather, they can always accommodate and deliver gorgeous dishes. Staff are super friendly and down to earth

This is where perfect atmosphere meets delicious food meets lovely hospitality. Fried eggs on anything is just glorious.

Amazing little quirky place. Curry for breakfast, mega!

Beautiful location. The toastie we had was terrible - very oily, far too much cheese, almost not edible. Even for London it was amazingly expensive - £15.19 for a sandwich (including service). I think that’s the most I’ve ever paid

Seriously delicious food, lovely staff, and in a tranquil setting. A delightful lunch on a warm autumn day. What more could you want? I don’t know why they aren’t scoring an average review score of 4.8 or over. Loved it, and love them!

Great place for brunch with really good, different dishes. The tomatoes on toast and the bircher muesli were fab!

Amazing location which seems to equal rude service (including from the owner) and stressful experience. The food was not that great either sadly

What a cute spot in the neighborhood - great menu which changes every day! Great for brunch 🥰

Very friendly but unfortunately rude staff

Really interesting menu and a lovely spot to taste it in.

Not worth the price or the long wait for the food really. Food was only ok and took an hour and a half to arrive. Left still hungry but not wanting to wait or pay for another dish.

Poor service, poor organisation, poor all round. I wouldn't bother

It was a bit expensive but nice food

Had the cabbage with romesco sauce on one of these rainy days. Would visit again for sure.

Food is fine, but it is not worth the very long queue for a table and the very slow service. The biggest issue however is that they don't have toilet facilities for customers (apparently they used to but no longer allow customers to use them) so I had to leave my table, walk to another cafe along the canal and buy a take away coffee from there, just to use a toilet during my meal. So ridiculous!

Lovely place by the canal, especially on a sunny day. The food was tasty, but to be honest, we didn’t find it worth it. Be prepared to wait quite a while if you arrive after 10:30, and even longer to be served. The menu changes often, so maybe we were unlucky, but we found the options quite basic and overpriced for the portions we had. We left still hungry and had to pay a 12.5% service charge.

Never disappointed, always leave with a huge smile.

In the sunshine this is a lovely place to eat by the canal side. Had breakfast there and essentially ordered fried eggs on toast. But it was really nice, done to perfection with a sage olive oil dressing, bread was really good. You do have to queue for a table for quite a bit. Unfortunately for us our orders appeared to get lost in their system, so that meant a further wait. But the staff were really nice, it was a lovely day, we had more time to talk, and when it arrived the food was good.

My friend and I stopped here for a coffee and snack on a Tuesday with our babies. The lady was so exceptionally rude and unfriendly. I rarely leave reviews but I couldn’t let this slide. Not understanding how ‘hip’ this place tries to be, I waited next to a large table already taken by two ladies who said they would be happy to share with me and my friend. The waitress proceeded to ignore me. My friend then arrived and tried to join me. The waitress intercepted her and said something about needing to wait at the other end (obviously there was a waiting system we were unaware of, the place was maybe 1/3 full and there was no obvious line. I actually have a photo of the cafe I sent to my friend, and it is clearly mostly empty). The waitress took us to a much smaller table and asked us to sit there instead (I thought it was because our prams would be slightly on the walkway if we sat at the larger table but apparently that wasn’t an issue…). As we tried to manoeuvre the prams around the table she said we couldn’t block the other two seats as people will need to sit there. We were SHOCKED. Why were we not allowed to sit at the larger table with the other two ladies that was still empty? Instead we were being seated somewhere we couldn’t breastfeed and would be crammed around a tiny four seater when the place was pretty much EMPTY. We said oh I’m not sure others will fit around this small table with the prams, she said that’s just the way it worked as they needed to maximise seating. We discussed between ourselves how this maybe wouldn’t be fair to whoever was sat next to us eventually (because we’d need to breastfeed etc) and talked about leaving, the waitress overheard us and said ‘oh if this doesn’t work for you it’s fine if you leave’. Are you kidding me???? Yes we left, and we were upset by how unfriendly she was. We don’t require special treatment just because we have babies, but some common sense (maybe flexibility when not super busy??? I know they like to ‘plan ahead’ but this was silly. It was already past midday…) and basic manners would go along way. All they seemed to care about was maximising seating so they have the potential to make the most money possible even when they are clearly not at capacity. I will never return. I’ve repeated this story a lot and have been assured the food is average.

Lovely homemade vanilla ice cream! A treat for a hot day 😊

Extremely slow service. Overpriced. Food was okay. No washroom. HOWEVER - staff was nice. I wouldn’t come back.

Great atmosphere, good place to grab a coffee or beer and enjoy the canal

I actually love this place. I did have the weirdest experience today though. One of the chefs brought out a wrong dish for our table. In the process of putting it on the table he poured oil all down my new trousers. He then said ‘I can’t help you with that’ and walked off. I was a bit thrown off as I was worried about it staining and I was feeling a bit annoyed. Eventually I managed to politely ask a member of staff to bring me a cloth with washing up liquid so I could try and get rid of the stain. At the end of the meal, the guy at the counter was like I’m really sorry. ‘Can I offer you a cloth to take away’ I hate complaining but it feels weird that they didn’t offer to comp anything or a drink or any sort of compensation. It kinda ruined my experience. Offering a cloth kinda felt like an insult. Great food. Just a bit put off to go back.

Lovely busy little cafe with healthy food choices. Forgot our coffees but very kindly did not charge us as an apology. Great customer service very friendly.

Superb coffee, next time I will be back for food.

A nice Café right at the canal, perfect setting, really nice people, and a great choice of very good, simple breakfasts

Obsessssssssed with this place !! On a nice day sitting by the canal having some orange wine, this is the dream !! Great selection of foods too and I neeed to return asap!! 🧡

I had porridge and a flat white, delightful. Love that the cafe is not roasty bitter, perfect amount of sour. The porridge is warm and nutty, the portion is quite big for me but thats a good thing. Best thing is still the canal view. I was a little bit confused about how to order though cuz the menu is hang at the counters so I figured I would order there, turned out staffs take orders at table.

No WC. In My country it will be against the law to open a café and no WC ! Thanks

Hands down favorite place in London. Fantastic food. Great entertainment passing by the water. Amazing wildlife. Inescapable charm! The food is beyond delicious and cheap for what you are getting!

My mum and I had a great late lunch here. We went around 3 which seemed to be a good time (as it’s walk in only ) between lunch and dinner . I think they close for food at 5pm -6pm. I’ve been wanting to come for so long and I was not disappointed. The food was so fresh, simple but the quality ingredients stood out. I said to family and friends this is one of the best meals I’ve had in london recently . Our servers were so friendly, calm and informative. We had some questions about the delicious crack cookies and the drinks and they even let us look through their cook book . Highlight was the skate wing with potato salad, green beans and ceviche. I would go back over and over!

El servicio bastante grosero, fue prácticamente despedido por tomar una mesa sin ser dirigido a ella por el personal - creo que es normal en los cafés para que se siente en una mesa libre. Así que no es acogedor, nada de "hola" o "bienvenido". Al menos es agradable sentarse con una linda vista del canal y la comida era sabrosa. Tampoco hay aseo. No hay aseo para los clientes y un servicio deficiente, pero aún así cobran 12. 5 % cada tarifa de servicio. Y luego cobró 17 libras. 44 para unos huevos y tostadas. Diría que bastante caro.

I can’t wait to come back to the Towpath cafe. The food was delicious, an interesting combination of flavours and used high quality ingredients. Lovely wine list, bread on the house and the service was friendly but relaxed. The gem of East London.

I will try to spend every sunny lunch that I can at this place, the food is just simple but soo good. Amazing wine selection and great staff and service.

I waited 1 hour for a table and another hour for the food, which was a plate full of oil. This was my experience. I ordered the crispy lamb, which was basically hummus with 3 liters of oil and a bit of non-crispy lamb. The coffee was good, but the food… I would not repeat. But i had to say that the atmosphere was nice but still not worth.

My happy place. Amazing food in a gorgeous setting and gorgeous, warm staff, some of whom change from season to season but they are consistently lovely. Front of house is the shining light Lori, who always has a smile on her face.

Really great food, you can tell the people working really care about the food. Be prepared to share tables with other groups if there are fewer than 3 people in your party. Good vegan options. Wasn't a fan of the tea, wish it was better quality.

Very delicious menu, great ethos, location and atmosphere. The menu changes a lot and does have vegan/vegetarian options but be prepared to lots of small plates to go home full.

A friend and I recently visited on a beautiful sunny day and wow it was a vibe! sitting along side the canal in the sun. We shared a Heritage Tomatoes and the Fried Eggs w/ Sage Butter and wow they were both delicious! Having half of each was perfect as the eggs were very rich and the tomatoes were so fresh and zingy with the mojo verde so it cut through so nicely! FYI there is also always a line but it moves pretty quickly and it lovely in the sun watching others run past. - @frugal.feeds

Bask in the backdrop of the canal, as you take in the the bustle of plates filled with creative dishes all around you. If you don't mind sharing a table check this place out. You will not be disappointed. The queue can be quite long but it's worth the wait. Prices are a little steep - the curry was £22.50 (which I finished in 6 mouth scoops) but honestly it was delicious. Service is a little slow but you are forewarned, as everything is prepared from scratch. Elderflower juice is refreshing. Our server, from California was super friendly also.

Good food, a little pricey, but really great vibe and atmosphere. In summer, you get sunshine until fairly late so great spot for a beer along the canal

I need to go back here. We came by on a bank holiday Sunday, were seated after standing in line for about 10 minutes or so and proceeded to have the most delicious breakfast/brunch I've had out in years. All the flavours were just right. The two of us shared three dishes (more than enough) and even though we were plenty full, we craved more. Definitely try the fried eggs with sage and the heritage tomatoes on toast. If they have fresh squeezed juice, just do it. Also the service was amazing. Sophie was a star and took great attentive care of us. Can't wait to return.

Lori makes the best Taramasalata in the world

The coffee, brunch, and desserts were all delicious :) The staff were friendly and nice! There may be a wait on weekend mornings, so I recommend going early. lol

There is always a line but worth the wait

Excellent location, food and service.

Amazing food and atmosphere, perhaps wine a little pricey apart from that would recommend

Food is good but the portions are very small. Service is really bad, like really bad, really slow and unapologetic/rude. I guess once it became popular customer service of any kind went out the window. Such a shame.

The place is lovely next to the canal and the food is nice very earthy. However the service was very unprofessional and rude I guess it is temporary season staff not hospitality staff.

Food was lovely if overpriced, unfortunately service was slow and then pretty rude. Annoying after queueing for a while to get a table.

Food is so delicious, very fresh, juicy, etc! If the weather is great like today I visited, this can be the best brunch place in London

Great location, but extremely overpriced even for the area. £12 for a basic cheese toastie and £13 for a sausage sandwich, plus service charge on top of this. We were charged £37 total for two sandwiches and two coffees and the food was mediocre.

One of the most overrated places I've been to in London. The sandwich I got was literally a sausage and tomato sauce. Two sandwiches and two coffees came to £37.50, which included a service charge. Service charge for a sandwich and coffee??Save your money and avoid below average food.

They use their “we only open in summer” thing to charge you extra for mediocre food. They are more focused on their “vibes” than on their service, forgetting drinks when they are barely serving 20 people. Save yourself from the queue and find some other place around to go.

Great little spot on the canal. Delicious fried eggs on toast with caramelized sage and chili sage butter. The server helped me navigate the menu which I greatly appreciated. The oat and walnut cookie was a delicious treat to finish the meal.

This gem of a cafe is located along a scenic canal and a red brick bridge. My visit coincided with an unusually cold day in April but there were still many people passing through to enjoy the ambiance. I can see that this place would be gorgeous on a sunny day. I ordered a cappuccino and the sage eggs with toast. All I can say is that I was throughly impressed. The creativity of the food was interesting and delicious. I’ll certainly be back next time I’m in town.

An essential experience if the sun is out (but get there just when they open it be prepared for a queue). Dishes are all going to come out excellent as they rely on simple dishes showcasing excellent produce prepared with love and skill. Don't expect anything lavish, this is stripped down food that is reliant on great ingredients prepped to show them off. There is a really warm and homely vibe as you watch the joggers run by and soak up the rays of sun. I prefer breakfast over lunch overall. Notes about scoring: 1 star = Memorably awful 2 star = Not good and would avoid 3 star = Good but would not return 4 star = Recommended 5 star = Incredible and must visit if you can

One of my absolute faves. Grilled cheese is a must.

Just not worth it. Let’s start with the good things. The place is lovely, by the canal and is a great spot for a coffee or a glass of wine in a sunny day, and then that’s it pretty much. The food is good, but average and very expensive for what it is. The service is dreadful. They are clearly understaffed for the amount of people queuing and they don’t seem to be bothered (which could be a choice, and that’s ok). I asked 5 times for some water, finally I got it and they didn’t leave the jug for some reason, and so I had to call someone each time. My friends ordered some white wine and they didn’t bring an ice backed; the waiter seemed a bit annoyed when they asked for a way to keep it cold. The food took ages, and they didn’t serve us all together. Plus there was mustard in one of the dishes and it wasn’t mentioned on the menu. Then, last, but not least, they don’t have a toilet. With a bit more effort this place would be lovely, but too many wrong things, most of it, we didn’t feel look after at all, and considering how much costs, it’s just not worth it.

One of the best breakfasts I’ve had in recent times. Great attention to detail and ingredients. And it’s lovely to sit by the canal. Outdoor seating only though so be mindful of the weather.

The cafe itself is a great location, lovely view of the canal and the atmosphere and vibes were great, design/look of the cafe was very pretty too. Male staff member who served us was not very welcoming however, and had a bit of an attitude... Also be warned this place has a no laptop policy! Food was delicious, menu had interesting range, however prices were a bit expensive than I expected, overall would still recommend this cafe as it is perfect for a summer afternoon.

I love this Cafe, discovered it last time in England. Very tasty food and very Kind Service

Queued for a very underwhelming experience. This place is so overpriced, food lacked flavour, portions are tiny and staff had to be called on multiple occasions. I really do not understand the five star reviews for this place. Very disappointed.

Nice setting by the river with very attentive service

One of the best places in London!

Awful service, waiter was rude and pretentious.

Delicious, vibrant, local place.

This is one of my favorite spots in London. Right by the canals. Friendly people. Delicious food. Worth the wait if there is a line.

Nice waterside breakfast and brunch. Get there early! On a sunny day it is a bit of a scene.