Best restaurants in London Bridge

Take in views of London Bridge from the 31st floor of The Shard at Aqua Shard. If you’re looking for drinks and snacks it’s a great way to see the city without having to spend the entry fee usually charged for the viewing platform (personally, we’d much rather spend that money on a drink). Meals here aren’t cheap, with some mains coming in around £40, but the cooking is good.

Sitting pretty on the 33rd floor of The Shard, this London Bridge restaurant has a seriously impressive position. While the views are stand-out, so is the food, which holds our top rating of a gold award. We love the Northern Chinese cooking available here - pick from classics like spring rolls and Peking duck, or go for something a bit more unusual like fried prawns with salted egg yolk.

Located in a former tea warehouse, this classic French restaurant has an unexpected but welcome industrial edge to it. This is another spot in London Bridge with a great view, thanks to its position down on the river, overlooking Tower Bridge. The main menu can lean towards the pricier end of things, while there’s usually a reasonable set menu to choose from.

Champor Champor's eclectic dining room functions as a precursor to the vibrant, exciting and, at times, unusual fare on its Thai-Malay menu, with the interiors and decor inspired by a variety of global influences. Fusion cuisine is high on the list of priorities here, with dishes including king river prawns’ green curry infused with asparagus, butternut squash, and pan fried red snapper with squid ink linguini.

Another hit from the Borough Market renaissance, Kolae is a Thai concept from the founders of Som Saa in Spitalfields, named for the 'kolae' technique involving a coconut curry marinade and open flames. This technique is applied to a wide-ranging menu of skewers, including chicken, kabocha squasha and soy-braised pork belly. Continue the coconut theme with dessert - a coconut sorbet with salted thai tea caramel and peanuts.

Set above Borough Market, Roast deals in proper British fare – with an emphasis on (as you might have guessed) roasts. Outside of Sunday dinners though the menu offers up other delicious dishes, like Saddleback pork belly with apple sauce and gravy, and there are veggie options too, like a cauliflower steak with mushroom crumble and onion puree, cauliflower and cashew nut sauce, and pickles.

The debut restaurant by British-Sri Lankan chef Cynthia Shanmugalingam, Rambutan is an ode to Sri Lankan diaspora cooking - think hoppers, rotis, dosas, and a range of authentic curries. For a lighter bite, there's also an extensive and ever-changing street food menu inspired by the northern Sri Lankan city of Jaffna, and using local suppliers from Borough Market itself.

If you want a view of London Bridge itself you might want to take yourself off up The Shard, to Oblix. Mains here are cooked on a Josper grill, on a rotisserie or in a wood-fire oven – so expect big, bold flavours. Choose between classics like steak or Iberico pork ribs with sides of truffle and parmesan fries. Brace yourself to pay for the view, as dishes do come with a hefty price tag, but with one of our gold awards you can also anticipate good, solid cooking from the kitchen.

After success with its Fitzrovia and Soho sites, the infamous BAO chain opened up a third spot in London Bridge. Decorated in its signature simple style, with an almost canteen-like feel, this Taiwanese eatery serves up the expected bao buns, as well as dishes from the grill and larger plates of noodles. Over the weekend there’s also a takeaway hatch, to allow for quick grab-and-go lunches.

Celebrity chef José Pizarro’s tapas bar in London Bridge dishes out small plates with big flavours. All the ingredients are expertly sourced, ensuring taste is at the forefront of everything the kitchen does. There are the classics, like patatas bravas and tortilla, and also some twists on traditional dishes like cured tuna with almonds or baby chicken with potatoes and romesco sauce, on a menu that changes daily.

Come for the views at the highest bar in Western Europe, as well as the sky pool, but stay for the luxurious sushi rolls and vibrant cocktail menu. Some standouts include the Japanese-influenced Onibasu Martini and the 'Decade of Moments' special menu, with one themed drink for every year of the decade since the bar's opening.

Taking its name from the Greek word for 'market', AGORA is suitably buzzy, with queues often lining the proverbial block for a taste of OMA's rowdier younger sister restaurant. It's worth the wait, though - come for the flatbreads with lashings of tahini, but stay for the juicy rotisserie pork belly that comes in at only £15.

One of London’s real underrated gems, both the Hackney and Borough Market locations are fantastic, with oft-changing, seasonal menus packed full of dishes you just want to eat. The Borough site is often busy - such is the nature of being next to the market - but grab a table and you won’t be disappointed by the generous cooking and knowledgeable wine selection.

Next door to sister-site Parrillan, Barrafina arrives in Borough Yards with another buzzy space that focuses around pacey counter dining (though also has tables if you feel so inclined). Grab a spot at the counter and peruse the specials with a glass of cool sherry and some almonds to nibble on.

Silka is easy to miss on the main London Bridge drag - once upon a time it was regularly obscured by queues for Padella. Do yourself a favour and find the doorway - the basement restaurant below is full of delicious morsels like homemade chilli paneer, a bold, charry tandoor selection and hearty mains. The duck masala is a delight.

If you love piri piri chicken, but know you deserve something more than Nando’s can offer then we think you might just find heaven at Casa do Frango. Chicken is cooked over open flames for that delicious charred flavour, and you’re given the choice between homemade piri piri, oregano, or lemon and garlic sauces. Sides are given a good weighting with chips, rice and salads all on offer.

This Mexican restaurant started out life in Shoreditch. When rent prices forced it to close (it has since reopened on Great Eastern Street), its speedily-gathered fan base crowdfunded to get it back up and running in its current London Bridge site. If you’re looking for a casual bite to eat with friends, and maybe a few beers, this is the perfect spot.

Run by an ex-Trullo chef and an ex-Barrafina front of house manager, this neighbourhood Italian is a slick operation. Expect plates of pasta and simple ingredient-led sharing dishes as well as a stellar wine list; at the time of writing, menu highlights included ox cheek ravioli and fig leaf panna cotta for dessert.

If you can get a table at Restaurant Story you’ll be well-rewarded. You might well have heard of chef Tom Sellers' beef dripping candle that comes lit to the table, along with bread to dip in the melting liquid. And there are other such playful things on the menu too, like the Storeo which looks like an Oreo biscuit but is actually a savoury course filled with cheese.

David Carter's take on Greek island dining sits above fellow mainstay AGORA has a sophisticated aesthetic, with eucalyptus-toned walls and a sleek counter overlooking the kitchen. Make no mistake, though, the food is still hearty, traditional fare - think indulgent flatbreads with salt cod labneh, babaghanoush, or taramasalata, followed by their signature oxtail giouvetsi (orzo simmered in beef fat).

Set on the edge of a park, this casual French bistro combines a cosy interior with a bright and breezy summer terrace, which makes it an ideal spot whatever the weather. If you’re after something quick you can pick up a takeaway rotisserie chicken that is rich and perfectly roasted, or if you have time there’s a short but sweet a la carte menu. Choose from dishes like sea bream ceviche or saddle of lamb with smoked hummus and dukkah.

Started by an alumni of Jamie Oliver’s Fifteen restaurant, this humble pasta spot regularly sees people queue for hours to try the plates on offer, and having awarded it our gold rosette we’re inclined to think it may just be worth the wait. Small plates allow you to try a few different dishes between your table, but the ultimate crowd-pleaser ‘pici cacio et pepe’ is a lesson in the impact of sticking to simple flavours.

Husband and wife team Woongchul Park and Bomee Ki run this understated, minimalist tasting menu restaurant, which combines Korean and European flavours. Wondering what that translates to exactly? Think braised beef short rib with cured cucumber, black truffle and butter rice, or perilla ice cream with Granny Smith granita. The pair received a Michelin star in 2022 as well.

Big things were expected when Jonny Lake and Isa Bal left The Fat Duck, where they were head chef and head sommelier respectively. The pair opened Trivet in Bermondsey and, after weathering the COVID pandemic, have gone from strength to strength, sweeping up awards for their gutsy cooking and smart wine selection. Bal’s wine lists are remarkably wide in scope, and his choices are second to none, making this is an ideal dinner location for wine connoisseurs.

After a slightly rocky start, Angel Zapata Martin’s open-grill ode to Spain has really found its groove at King’s Cross and Borough Market. You’ll find it in a neat space in the new Borough Yards development, where chefs dish up plates of grilled squid, milk fed lamb, hulking veal shanks and a showstopping pina catalana served in a hollowed-out pineapple.

Hawksmoor’s London Bridge branch serves up everything you’d expect from this British mini-chain. With its steak focus you can expect top-quality cuts and carefully-sourced meat as well as indulgent extras such as half a native lobster, grilled bone marrow or thick cut bacon, all backed up by quality sides and an outstanding cocktail programme.

At this charming French bistro you’ll be transported to the Paris of your imagination. There are checked tablecloths, bentwood chairs and the menu features just three choices, all written in French. On our visit we tried a solid selection of charcuterie, a light mackerel dish in white wine and a plum tart to die for. You never know what you’ll get, though, as the menu changes daily – but it’s always robustly flavoured French classical cookery.

This high-end grill restaurant began in Brighton, before opening a London Bridge outpost (if a restaurant in the capital can be called such a thing) in the One Tower Bridge development. For starters expect well-cooked seafood like wood-fired sea trout or yellowfin tuna tartare. When it comes to mains there’s an emphasis on the restaurant’s steak offering – with individual and sharing sizes both on offer.