The Best Restaurants Near St. Paul’s

10 Excellent Restaurants Near St. Paul’s

St. Paul’s: the centre of the original City of London. Home to the eponymous cathedral, history-steeped livery companies, its own governing body and a financial district responsible for £2.7 trillion in transactions per day… and a host of good restaurants to sate them, of course.

If you’re looking for restaurants near St. Paul’s Cathedral itself, you’ll be met mostly with speedy lunch spots and chains to feed the area’s workers. But head a little further east, and you’ll find a wealth of highly commendable eateries…
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Bread Street Kitchen | 2 minutes’ walk

The Bread Street Kitchens make up the ‘everyman’ collection of casual Gordon Ramsay restaurants.

Hence the space pod (with room for six diners on request).

The vast, open, industrial(ish), warehouse(ish) design of the St. Paul’s restaurant is said to be inspired by its east London(ish) location. Reclaimed furniture, vintage armchairs and leather banquettes litter the room, leading up to a big open kitchen at the back where the theatre happens. The energy here parallels that of a buzzy New York brasserie.

This is echoed in the menu, which is available from breakfast ‘til late. Expect plates with serious wallop, including wagyu meatballs and spicy tuna tartare to start; followed up by beef wellington for two to share; and a selection of rare breed steaks available in 100g increments that are scorched on a Josper grill.

Details: 10 Bread Street, One New Change, The City, EC4M 9AJ | Book here
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Brigadiers | 7 minutes’ walk

Brigadiers ranks pretty highly amongst the restaurants in St. Paul’s.

Owned by the formidable JKS group (Trishna, Gymkhana, Bao), Brigadiers is inspired by the Indian mess halls where the military would go to socialise, or in this case, wolf down all things Indian BBQ.

Expect a decadent ruby-red and tobacco brown dining room, offset by huge chunks of animal that have been grilled, roasted and smoked in the restaurant’s tandoors, charcoal grills and classic Indian smokers. Dry tandoori masala ribeye; smoked Nepali bhutwa lamb belly ribs; and wood roasted Goan suckling pig are all on the menu.

A tap room boasting craft ale collaborations and hand pump cocktails; and a pool room with a whisky vending machine also feature in this hedonistic adult crèche.

Details: 1-5 Bloomberg Arcade, EC4N 8AR | Book here
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Coq D’Argent | 7 minutes’ walk

One of the most popular restaurants near St. Paul’s, nestled on the top of the postmodern monolith that is 1 Poultry. Coq D’Argent’s modern brasserie and rooftop garden terrace play host to sophisticated French fare (garlic snails; Comté cheese tart; 28 day dry-aged sirloin steak frites) and an award-winning wine list – and, most importantly, stunning views across the City.

Details: 1 Poultry, London EC2R 8EJ | Book here
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Lina Stores City | 7 minutes’ walk

Lina Stores is one of the best fresh pasta restaurants in London. But aside from the handmade noods, it also serves quintessential Italian antipasti like bruschetta and fried artichokes; larger mains to share like grilled prawns with Datterini tomatoes; mouthwatering dolci and every kind of spritz under the sun. In short, it’s the kind of place that people trek across town for. And you happen to be right next to it.

Details: 19 Bloomberg Arcade, London EC4N 8AR | Book here
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Goodman City | 8 minutes’ walk

The Goodman group run some of the best steak restaurants in London, and the City steakhouse doesn’t plan on dropping the baton any time soon. Smart leather seating, intimate booths and double-height windows provide a setting built just as well for business lunches as for low-lit date nights, making it a reliable pick for any occasion. Apart from meeting up with your vegetarian friends.

Details: 11 Old Jewry, London EC2R 8DU | Book here
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The Trading House | 8 minutes’ walk

Formerly the Bank of New Zealand, this restaurant/bar serves comfort food and cocktails in an impressive setting.

The classic, grand old wood panelling, intricate carved features and parquet flooring have been offset with taxidermied birds of paradise and exotic palm leaves as a homage to the land of the long white cloud, giving it a feeling of the fantastical – like Gringotts, but with live music and not so many goblins.

So if you’re looking for St. Paul’s restaurants that can provide an array of rotisserie meats, club sandwiches, grill classics and pies off the food menu, as well as an eclectic cocktail list inspired by far-off lands, such as Legends of Sakura (Jinzu gin, Umeshu plum sake, rose syrup, egg white, lychee juice, and Morello cherry purée), made to be sipped at the long 360-degree bar in the centre of the restaurant… this is really the only place.

Details: 89-91 Gresham Street, EC2V 7NQ | Book here
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Hawksmoor Guildhall | 9 minutes’ walk

The Guildhall branch of this multi award-winning steak house/restaurant/cocktail bar/everything-else-you-can-win-an-award-for-place… is good. It’s also just a teeny tiny bit fancier-feeling than its siblings, thanks to glossy wood-panelled walls; firm, oxblood leather chairs; parquet floors and opalescent lighting that makes you feel like you’re in some sort of 1940s NYC steak house. And in a way, you are, because it’s here that you can get exceptional, half-kilo cuts of hand-reared steak, lavished with Hawksmoor’s famous bone marrow gravy.

Details: 10-12 Basinghall Street, EC2V 5BQ | Book here
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Koya City | 9 minutes’ walk

This is the second branch of the authentic Japanese noodle bar that originated with Koya Soho.

A much bigger space than its sibling, it still has all the minimalist Japanese charm with in-and-out countertop dining in front of the busy, steamy kitchen, traditional noren curtains, and plain wooden features and tiling throughout.

The menu is made up of their hand-stretched udon noodles in hot and cold varieties, with the new addition being a Full English Breakfast udon, with egg, bacon and shiitake mushrooms. A daily blackboard of specials like clams, broad beans, capers and dashi butter is on hand to persuade you away from the classics.

Details: 10-12 Bloomberg Arcade, EC4N 8AR | Book here
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The Ned | 10 minutes’ walk

The Ned is the jewel in the Soho House crown.

Spanning a massive 320,000 square feet, this grade I listed former Midland Bank building houses seven (yep, seven) of the best restaurants in St Paul’s in one place – plus two bars, and all the other mod cons of a Soho-House-owned-super-hotel-in-the-City.

Come here and pick from Millie’s Lounge, serving British classics; Cecconi’s, the Italian-inspired restaurant where you can get your hands on the likes of veal Milanese and wood oven pizzas; Malibu Kitchen, which serves all things Californian for the health conscious, such as superfood brunches and a host of vegan dishes; Lutyens Grill, an upmarket grill serving super high quality steak; Electric Bar & Diner (based on their Portobello original); and Kaia, an Asian-Pacific style joint that does poke bowls, sushi and robata-grilled mains, all of which is regularly accompanied by live music. Or, head downstairs to The Parlour – an intimate dining room with nightly entertainment including live bands and burlesque performers.

Details: 27 The Poultry, EC2R 8AJ | Book here
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temper City | 10 minutes’ walk

Sure, telling someone you’re taking them to temper City might sound oddly hostile. But actually, it’s one of the most exciting places to eat near St. Paul’s – heavily tattooed chefs play with fire along a 6m grill, where they give hunks of meat (butchered in-house) the ‘low-and-slow’ treatment. That meat then finds its way onto skewers, tacos, and other Mexican-inspired dishes – an influence which extends to the mezcal-heavy drinks menu.

Details: 2 Angel Court, 30 Throgmorton Street, EC2R 7HJ | Book here

Already exhausted all the restaurants in St. Paul’s? Check out the best restaurants in Clerkenwell