You’ll be spoilt for choice at this Hackney hangout, thanks to
its multiple dining spaces and varied menu. Located just a short
stroll from London Fields and Broadway Market, Mare Street Market
has a quirky attitude and welcoming vibe. We suggest booking a
table in the Market Dining Room, where a loft-style set-up is
decked out with sparkling chandeliers, overgrown potted plants and
crumbling statues evocative of ancient Greek ruins – a room Holly
Golighty would be only too willing to start the day in. Make it an
all-day dining experience, grazing between the deli, pizza house
and beer garden.

At some stage, we’ve all been served a bowl of gloopy, lumpy,
bland porridge. Which is why we’re so grateful to 26 Grains founder
Alex Hely-Hutchinson. Having honed her craft in Copenhagen, where she immersed herself in the
complicated process of pre-soaking grains, Hely-Hutchinson brought
her secrets back to London, to her Old Street pop-up, before
opening in Neal’s Yard. At 26 Grains, you’ll find layers of
berries, seeds and oats served up amid cool, Scandi-style
interiors. Start your day right with a bowl of the famous
five-grain porridge, with spiced apple, butter, sesame and almond
granola. Not quite on board with porridge yet? There are plenty of
savoury sensations on offer, too, including a smoked salmon plate.
You’ll find a similar winning formula at Hely-Hutchinson’s second
restaurant, Stoney Street, in Borough Market.

Brought to us by Melanie Arnold and Margot Henderson, Rochelle
Canteen has been serving the tastiest runny eggs and generously
buttered sourdough toast in a former school courtyard since 2004.
Housed in what was once the bike shed, the airy space acts as a hub
for edgy creatives. Enjoy your grilled delights solo or round up
the troops and enjoy an early-morning feast with the gang.

Proof that Marylebone has a strong brunch offering beyond ritzy
Chiltern Street, Paddington Street’s Opso is on hand for good vibes
and great Greek grub. Work your way through the basket of freshly
baked breads and pastries while waiting for your main squeeze – the
dreamy apple-crumble French toast. Gorgeous, wood-finished
interiors are the cherry on the top of our very berry pancakes.

Although there are now multiple outposts across town, Farm
Girl’s firstborn in Notting Hill remains our firm favourite. Weave
your way through hanging plants, neon signs and faux-fur chairs to
grab a table, before ordering a rose matcha tea and plate of the
buckwheat berry pancakes. Bookings aren’t taken, so you’ll have to
join the snaking queue of discerning foodies and yoga enthusiasts
to taste the rewards. It’s worth every minute, in our opinion.

At Chiswick’s most photogenic breakfast spot, sofas come
finished in pink-and-cherry velvet, cacti crowd every corner and
aromatic coffee is served piping hot. Plonk yourself in a cosy
booth and keep the breakfast brioche in your immediate eyeline.
Party people should save their visit for the weekend, to make use
of the secret garden sun terrace. Reminiscent of a beach club, it’s
the place to come for experiential mixology and banging
burgers.

A menu that fuses East Africa and the Middle East with Asia?
Sign us up, pronto. With its blush-pink facade, Jikoni could easily
pass as an arts boutique: think glass-fronted windows framed by
wicker chairs and patterned cushions. Inside, you’ll find dark-wood
chairs, vibrant tablecloths and walls clad in hand-painted
illustrations. The menu speaks for itself, but if the
pineapple-glazed bacon and sweetcorn pancakes are on, order at
least three. Keen cook? The Jikoni cookbook is available to buy,
presenting authentic recipes and stories from an immigrant
kitchen.

Staying true to its Aussie roots, Milk Beach serves a sunny
all-day brunch. We’d like to tell you to try something other than
Granny Elly’s banana bread (with espresso cream and a side of
cheese), but truthfully there’s no point deviating from something
that never fails to hit the sweet spot. The decor? Architectural
Digest fans are in for a treat: picture exposed floorboards,
walnut-wood wishbone chairs, whitewashed walls and rattan pendant
lights.

With its cutting-edge architecture, you’d be forgiven for
assuming that this place is some sort of art installation, but step
inside and you’ll find a brilliant brunch menu. Crispin is the
brainchild of friends Dom Hamdy and Oliver Hiam – better known as
the guys behind Borough Market’s Scotchtails stall and Aldywch’s
Lundenwic coffee shop. Swing by for plates of smoked salmon and
burrata, perfectly poached eggs and a heavenly cinnamon panna
cotta.

Looking for a new breakfast spot in the capital? We’ve got you
covered.⁠ ⁠Tucked away in Neal’s Yard, The Barbary Next Door takes
its cues from Moorish Spain and North African cooking (and
interiors), serving up a menu of spice-imbued morning dishes in a
rustic, rosy-hued dining room. Start off with ras-el-hanout pumpkin
bread slathered in a pumpkin and sunflower seed clotted cream, then
dive straight into the unmissable four cheese bourekas and bus
station eggs. Switch your classic cortado for a fresh mint tea –
trust us, you won’t miss the caffeine.

A weekend canalside ramble should always end at Towpath. Open
from 9am, it’s one of the capital’s best-loved al fresco food
spots. Check out the chalkboard specials, then tuck into the likes
of fried eggs on toast and granola with yoghurt, fruit and maple
syrup. Sip your coffee while watching the swans swim in concentric
circles, then grab some flapjacks to-go for an afternoon treat.

Everyone knows that no breakfast banquet is complete without a
good cup of joe, and we can think of no better place to grab ours
than WatchHouse. Starting out in a 19th-century townhouse on
Bermondsey Street, the coffee connoisseurs have since expanded
across the capital, with 12 individually designed outposts spanning
Covent Garden to Holborn. We’re heading to the flagship outpost in
Tower Bridge, partly for its soft industrial design, but largely so
we can enjoy our breakfast on the river’s edge.

Ask any New Yorker where to go for breakfast and they’ll march
you straight to the doors of Sunday in Brooklyn. Sitting pretty in
the heart of Notting Hill, this is the first UK offshoot of one of
America’s best-loved foodie joints. That weekend date you’ve been
planning? Sorted. Head down mid-morning and choose between one of
the sun-soaked outdoor tables or a cosier indoor spot. Menu
highlights include the cauliflower patty melt, grilled asparagus,
maple-drizzled pancakes and jam brioche. If the honey bear on
holiday cocktail is on the menu, order it – it’s 5pm somewhere.