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St John Bar and Restaurant

4.2 (344 reviews)
PriceyBritish, Bars
Closed 12:00 pm - 5:00 PM, 6:00 PM - 12:00 am (Next day)

St John Bar and Restaurant Photos

ST JOHN BAR AND RESTAURANT ATMOSPHERE

What's the vibe?
Moderate noise
Good for groups

Recommended Reviews - St John Bar and Restaurant

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Brown Crab on Toast
Lawrence C.

I was curious about checking out more classic British cuisine while looking for an experience that would be harder to get back in the states. While searching online, I saw various sources recommending a restaurant called St. John that has been a staple in London for a while. I decided to book a reservation here for lunch, and as I entered the first thing I noticed was the striking minimal but rustic decor. Another aspect I noted was that the chefs seemed to also act as the waiters here, and so it looked like they ran the show for the whole restaurant. The service was good, and they seemed to be knowledgeable about all the dishes. I decided to start off with the brown crab meat on toast for the appetizer, as it was one that was highly recommended. This was delicious, as the fresh creamy brown crab paste paired with the acidity of the lemon made for a great opener. Then came the bone marrow, which is what St. John is really known for. Although I've had bone marrow before, this is the first time I've had to scoop it out of the bone itself and onto the toast which took a bit of trial and error. However, once you're able to get it onto the toast the fattiness of the bone marrow goes well with some salt and parsley. Afterwards, I got the buttermilk pudding for dessert which I feel was an excellent choice. The texture of the pudding was silky smooth, while the sweetness of it combined with the plum on the side made for a memorable dessert. Overall, I enjoyed this experience a lot and think it's worth checking out if you want some iconic British cuisine in London!

Pigeon and radishes
Cliff N.

Adding a photo of my outstanding squab dinner, delicious, tender, moist, deep in flavor and succulent!

Menu
Elise B.

I ate here for dinner with my family. It was busy in the restaurant and at the bar downstairs. I enjoy a menu that rotates with what is fresh and in season. The Roast Bone Marrow is so delicious and juicy- great start to the meal. The Grey Mullet was light, moist, and flaky. To finish the meal we ordered three of the dessert options. The blackberry & hazelnut tart and strawberry pavlova were both light and had fresh flavor due to the fruit.

Kohlrabi
Gab G.

This restaurant has been on my list for years, and I finally got to it on a recent trip. Came with a large group and booked the private room, which was perfect for our needs. Service was excellent. We ate: + Roast Bone marrow and parsley salad + Kohlrabi + Whole roast suckling pig + Potatoes and greens + Rhubarb pavlova + Ginger loaf and butterscotch sauce The bone marrow was as perfect as everyone says - such a generous portion in each bone. Definitely the most amount of bone marrow I have ever seen in one place. It was the large format dining option, but still. The whole roast suckling pig was just ridiculous. Really good. Also enjoyed the potatoes and greens because I am a huge cabbage fiend. The desserts were tied with the bone marrow as my favorite dishes, though. I think I ate more of the dessert than anything else. This location also has a mini bakery counter during the day, where they sell the bread and doughnuts. I grabbed a vanilla doughnut the next day and it was excellent. Amazing all around!!!

Potatoes, lamb
Nicole K.

I was quite disappointed by this meal, from start to finish. I'll start with the parts I enjoyed - the potatoes were great, dessert was great, and wine was great. The pigeon was prepared very well. Unfortunately, I don't have many positive things to say beyond that. We had to push through a crowd to enter the restaurant, and then we were seated in a dining room that felt like it belonged in an American bbq joint. The doors to the dining room were opened the whole time as servers were going in and out, which led to an unfortunate draft throughout the meal. This was probably a night-specific experience, but it set an unpleasant tone. Service was slow and impersonal, although allergens/dietary restrictions were accommodated well. The braised lamb was added onto the menu as a substitution for the game pie, and I truly could not eat more than a few bites of it. Flavors were unpleasant, and it was not prepared well. Everything else was forgettable - the cabbage that came with the pigeon was ok, the beef and lentil broth was ok. Altogether it felt like a disjointed, careless meal. I am disappointed because people talk about this place with such reverence, so I hoped my experience would be more pleasant. Not the place for me!

Fish
Chie J.

We were super excited to dine at St John. Many food loving people recommend this place to us. I love whole animal butchery and simple honest cooking methods so why 2 stars?   Sad to say, we did not enjoy what we ate at St John Bar. Maybe it was an off night? Or I was expecting something more. I prepare similar but better food at home on a week night. For example, the bone marrows were just ordinary and needed more parsey. I prepare it the similar way but I cook local grass fed beef bone marrow over hard wood fire, sprinkle with flaky Læsø Salt & Tellicherry Peppercorns then dress it with fresh parsley from our garden and splash of white Balsamic vinegar. Other dishes were ok as well but we felt they were overly rich and not balanced. Fish was fresh and fine but I do not understand their sauce pairing. Greens were overgrown, tough and too fibrous. People call me Bunny because I love raw greens more than anything but I could not eat it. Kids enjoyed a mountain of the freshly baked Madeleines. They were 5 stars.

Saddleback
Lloyd M.

It may sound like an oxymoron, but an unpretentious Michelin restaurant. I had a business lunch and it was great. The atmosphere is more like a bistro than a formal dining room, the service was efficient and formal rather than pretentious. I started with the brown crab, which was nice but the star was the saddleback, pork loin cooked a little pink. It was flavorful, tender, as good as can be. An enjoyable restaurant.

Middle White pork shoulder (foreground) and lamb's hearts.
Gilbert R.

Last evening on my trip to London and saved it for a dinner at Michelin Star St. John. Made reservations a few month's in advance and were seated immediately. The restaurant itself is not very large and the seating is mostly indoors. There are a tables outside, but only a few. Menu changes daily and the prices are surprisingly reasonable for a restaurant of this caliber. The atmosphere is relaxed and there's a nice mixture of casually dressed folk and the London mobile fashion district. You'll fit right in, so long as you make a reservation. The food is quality, as expected. It's nose-to-tail food, as described by the restaurant, meaning they aren't afraid to use all parts of the animal. So, if you aren't into bone marrow or lamb hearts, then this probably isn't for you. Ordered the following: - Roast Bone Marrow - 4/5: Came with a parsley salad and some bread. Two large bones and they give you a utensil you can stick inside the bone to pull out all that goodness. Very good - Pork Cheeks - 2/5: Roasted and crisped, this had way too much salt. Almost made it inedible. If they didn't overseason it, it would've been excellent as it's super decadent and fatty. Just too much salt! - Roast Middle White with Carrots - 5/5: My favorite dish of the evening. Large pork shoulder cut that was cooked and seasoned perfectly. Nice balance of meat and fat. Roasted carrots were perfect complement to the dish. - Grilled Lamb's Heart - 4/5: Lots of pieces, very filling. Haven't tasted lamb's heart before, so I didn't know what to expect. Very palatable, tender, and tastes like beef. Nice dish. - Buttermilk pudding - 4/5: Never had this before. Looked like Panna cotta, but a lot softer. Has a little tart, kind of like yogurt. Very good. Everything was nicely presented and the wait staff was excellent and helpful. Would definitely come back if I was in town.

Roast Bone Marrow & Parsley Salad
Rachel H.

I had dinner here, and I thought it was just alright. Maybe my expectations were too high, but I found the food to be just ok. The service was great, though! To start, we had the smoked cod roe on toast and the bone marrow and parsley salad. The smoked cod row basically just looked like smeared canned fish on toast, and that's how it tasted, too. The star of the whole meal was the bone marrow. That was amazing! For my main, I had the ox tongue with bacon and peas. It tasted like corned beef to me, but I'm not opposed to that. I really enjoy corned beef, but I wasn't expecting the tongue to taste like that. For dessert, I had the madeleines and Abbey's chocolate cake. The madeleines were warm, fluffy, and so light! I loved them! The chocolate cake was HUGE, and it was quite dense. I couldn't finish it.

Bread and butter on the house
Connie C.

Overall, ok place imo. The bread at St. John's is really good, along with the hot Madeline's that you can end your meal with. It's hard to get dinner reservations for St. John, which is testament to how good its perceived. Personally, not a fan, but did enjoy the bone marrow which is a most order along with the Madeline's. Our other main dish, was the special of the day, which was pig's head- a soupy type dish. Reserve a month in advance to get the date and time you want; lunch reservations are much easier to come by.

Asparagus and Spenwood (they ran out of ricotta)
Nicole R.

All around great food experience with high quality ingredients! Highly recommend the chicken liver toast to start! Dishes were full of so much flavor! I got the monkfish and my husband got the park beef, it was extremely tender. Menu does change daily though. Our server was helpful and walked us through the menu and his favorites. Reservations are a must! With seats still available guests walking in were turned away. I believe they run out of food and only have so much to serve each day. In other words, ingredients are fresh!! You won't be disappointed with any of the dishes you can't go wrong, it's truly an explosion of great flavors in your mouth with each bite!

Welsh rarebit
Shawn H.

I was very excited to eat here. The menu changes daily and uses the animal head to tail. I fear my expectations weee too high for this place. The dishes were good but extremely simple. And that's their style. Simply dressed and seasoned. The very present Welsh rarebit and Madeline's were not to be missed. Reservations are must. Service was unexpectedly spotty but there may have been a shortage. Michelin rating very questionable in my opinion.

Roast Bone Marrow & Parsley Salad -- must order it!
Evan D.

I had the pleasure of eating at a collaborative dinner between Fergus Henderson and David Chang at Ssam Bar back in 2009 and was blown away with the amazing tastes that Henderson could coax out of the nastiest bits of meat -- made a promise to myself I would try to make it to St John one day. Fast forward almost 14 years and my wife and I were in London and at St John. Despite going there the day we arrived thus running on little to no sleep, St John was still the best meal we had in the 10 days we were there. The ambiance is literally non existent, with white walls, no noise and no decor except for lots of coat hooks (which came in handy considering it was January). Service was perfunctory but polite. As to the food: 1. Bone marrow salad -- as much as it is a definite must order it was my least favorite of all the dishes; 2. Crispy pork with chicory -- fantastic, shatteringly crisp pork in a mustard dressing with assorted lettuces; 3. Welsh rarebit -- the best cheese toast I've ever had; 4. Mallard with beetroot -- the duck was a tad chewy but the tastes were fantastic; 5. Braised halibut with Swede -- assertively fishy but wonderful with the turnips alongside it (a combo I never would have thought of) And 6. Madelines -- not too sweet and perfectly baked, great way to end the meal.

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The Alchemist - Truffle, tater tots and prawn popsicles or maybe it was lollipops

The Alchemist

4.3(100 reviews)
1.3 miCovent Garden, Strand
££

food: dint grab food only drinks but the were yum and barely tasted like alcohol. also they were…read moreobviously presented super uniquely service: the staff was nice but kinda slow getting to us at a table and there was a lot of chaos like a bartender dropping glasses the whole time ambiance: really cool lighting and interior, gets very busy though

Between a 3 and 4, but going with four because the food was above average pub grub and the drinks…read morewere good even if they were better looking than tasting. Came here for pre-theater anniversary dinner with my wife. The ambiance was somewhere between that of a trendy club and nice bar. There was a mad scientist vibe with the lights being industrial vibe and some metal decor. The music was thumpy and loud enough to remind you it was there. It made me feel a bit out-of-place as somebody well past my 20s, but also a bit cool or being there. You really come here for the drinks. We got the pipe dream, smokey old fashioned, honeypot picante, and one other I can't remember the name of, but which came in a flower pot. The pipe dream and smokey old fashioned were likely the best. Overall the drinks were more visually appealing than traditionally good and the visually appealing ones tended to have ingredients that weren't as top shelf and/or they were just too sweet. Not bad, but disappointing for what we'd hope. The food was the opposite. I had low expectations and the food wasn't amazing, but was better than average. We got the bao buns, crispy duck pancakes, panko halloumi, katsu curry, and hot honey pork tacos. They arranged for it all to come out in time for us to make our theater show, which was nice. The bao buns and pork tacos were probably the best. Neither blew me away, but both were solid. The katsu curry and halloumi were standard of what you might expect. The crispy duck pancakes was maybe as advertised, but it would have been nice to have some moistness or substance to the dug vs. it basically being crunchy salty bits of something. Overall, this wasn't a bad meal, but it wasn't quite what I was hoping for either. We may be back, but we'll probably try other things first.

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The Alchemist
The Alchemist - Cookie dessert

Cookie dessert

The Alchemist - Presentation drink

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Presentation drink

Carlsberg Sports Bar

Carlsberg Sports Bar

3.5(6 reviews)
1.4 miLeicester Square
££

My bf and I have come here a few times now whenever we are in the area and need to pop by to watch…read morefootball or rugby. Whilst it's not the most posh place I've been, it usually gets the job done well. Drinks are how you would find at most pubs, and service is decent too, given how a waitress came to ask us what we wanted and served us amidst a busy rugby game (at other times, we had gone to the bar to order ourselves). There are quite a few tv screens as well as a big home theatre-like one too, which always adds to your sports watching experience. I've never had food here before but would like to try sometime. I hear that their wings are good. Be sure to bring an ID -- as its part of a casino facility, they check your ID even if you're here only for the bar and not for gambling.

Fun sports bar inside a casino. One of the ONLY places in London where they show American…read moreFootball! Oddly, to open a tab, you have to give them both your credit/debit card AND your driver's license/passport/ID card. They give you a "badge" which you then show every time you order, apparently so they know which tab to bill it to. A bit weird to me, but maybe that's the norm in London, or at least in high-tourist bars in London. Also, they won't let men inside if you are wearing a hat-- you must remove the hat to enter. Fortunately, once inside, I put my hat back on and didn't have a problem with anyone saying anything. Glad my hat hair didn't have to be on display!

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Carlsberg Sports Bar
Carlsberg Sports Bar

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Waxy O'Connor's - Fish and chips with fries and mushy peas

Waxy O'Connor's

3.8(205 reviews)
1.5 miLeicester Square
££

The lead lady on the bottom bar treated my family with discrimination because of her political…read moreaffiliation. Completely in poor taste, and should not have happened. We were respectful and nonpolitical, she assumed from our ethnic backgrounds and treated us accordingly. She verbatim said she will not serve our kind. Then proceeded to tell all her bar tenders to no longer serve us. Regrettably we had to get our drinks upstairs. She went out of her way to stare at us from the top, making my mother uncomfortable. If you want a pub without employees making every thing political, this is not the spot. We do not even entertain politics, she just put us in a basket. This is the first time in my life I had to exit the pub because of the brainwashed ultra lefty employee. I love all people and people on the left, it sucks that this extremist ruined the night after spending our hard earned money. Honestly the pours were weak, the lighting was poor, and the drinks were heavily overpriced. It's some fake Irish bar.

Loved my visit to Waxy O'Connor's. I had one glass of Strawberry Lime cider, and I've been craving…read moreit ever since. (See picture below.) It was the second pub I visited on my visit to London, and again, I can't wait to go back. First, the prices: in America, two drinks would have cost at least $20; here, two drinks were only £11. I would've spent the whole night there if I could, but when you're traveling and have places to be early the next day, it's hard. Second, the service and ambiance were great. They serve the drinks very quickly, and of course, they know how to pour a pint of Guinness.

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Waxy O'Connor's - Left bar near the fireplace

Left bar near the fireplace

Waxy O'Connor's - Yummy and frothy Guinness

Yummy and frothy Guinness

Waxy O'Connor's - Landing

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Landing

St John Bar and Restaurant - british - Updated May 2026

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