Planning where to eat Sunday roast in London is not something we take lightly. Although the meal is served at countless pubs and restaurants throughout the city, the best spots book up months in advance. Thus, we often make a Sunday roast reservation before we book our flights. Yes, we’re that obsessed and we make no apologies for our obsession. Note that you may be able to make reservations at the last minute since cancellations do happen.
Sunday roasts in London are special meals that are more than just meat. Starters matter as do desserts, not to mention cider and beer. But, let’s face it, this weekly event is mostly about the meat.
These are our favorite places to eat Sunday Roast in London:
1. Harwood Arms – London’s Only Michelin Starred Pub
Scoring a Sunday afternoon table at London’s only Michelin starred pub requires advance reservations and a healthy budget. Yet, despite those limitations, there wasn’t an empty table at the Harwood Arms during our Sunday lunch. Like many, we planned ahead and ventured to Fulham to eat what may be the best Sunday roast that’s served in a classic yet cozy London dining room.
The gastropub offers a seasonal, game-focused menu which was priced at £64 for two courses or £79 for three courses at the time of our meal. Yes, those prices skew higher than typical Sunday roasts even in London. However, this elevated pricing contemplates atypical roast options like Belted Galloway sirloin, slow cooked deer shoulder, Iberian pork and chalk stream trout.
We didn’t choose any of those aforementioned proteins. Instead, we dug into purebred Hereford côte de boeuf plated with all the trimmings – Yorkshire pudding, roast potatoes, baked carrots, cauliflower cheese and cabbage. However, we did choose a venison Scotch egg snack, a game pâté en croûte starter and fig leaf ice ceam with cinnamon donuts and caramelized goat’s milk for dessert.
To call this Sunday roast a feast isn’t hyperbole. We were pleased with our food choices as was our dining companion who opted for Iberian pork and a root vegetable salad. That being said, the meal highlights had to be the venison Scotch egg and Yorkshire pudding artfully filled with minced meat. Kudos to Brett Graham and Mike Robinson for creating the concept and current head chef John Cutress for the meal’s execution.
Pro Tip
There are two ways to score a reservation for the Harwood Arms’ Sunday Roast. The first is to jump online excactly 3 months before your desired dining date. The other is to check for canceled reservations a day or two before your chosen Sunday.
Harwood Arms is located at Walham Grove, London SW6 1QJ, United Kingdom.
2. Blacklock – Trendy Chophouse with Multiple Locations
The original Blacklock isn’t an uptight restaurant. Rather, the subterrean dining room has opaque white brick walls, t-shirted servers and black chalkboard menus that make diners want to hang out, eat their weight in meat and drink crafted cocktails (preferably a Beefy Mary or Breakfast Martini) on a leisurely Sunday afternoon. The same casual vibe is found at Blacklock’s newer London locations in Canary Wharf, the City, Covent Garden and Shoreditch.
We’ve eaten Sunday roasts at two of these locations – Shoreditch and Soho. Both meals were notable for excellent meat that’s locally produced in Cornwall. Cooked to a luscious pink hue and piled as high as the Cliffs of Dover, that meat was served with duck fat potatoes, heritage carrots, green beans, special bone marrow gravy and gargantuan Yorshire pudding.
Dining with friends is the way to go at Blacklock if you plan to plow through the chophouse’s ‘all in’ platter with roasted beef, roasted lamb and roasted pork plus trimmings. Of course, you could go smaller by ordering one protein or a barbecued cauliflower chop. Either way, this Sunday roast is relatively affordable – currently less than £30 per person.
Pro Tip
Complete your Blacklock Sunday roast with starters like pig’s head on toast, sides like cauilflower cheese and puddings like white chocolate cheesecake.
Blacklock has mulitple London locations plus one in Manchester. The original Blacklock is located at 24 Great Windmill Street, London W1D 7LG, United Kingdom.
