Hicce Hart

Adding to the culinary riches of Islington’s Chapel Market is Hicce Hart, a gastropub that comes from Hicce founder (and Diddly Squat Restaurant chef) Pip Lacey. Lacey’s Hicce - the Hart' older sibling - has been ticking along rather nicely since opening in 2018. How do we know that? Well, Hicce Hart has come entirely from profits made at Hicce, with no outside investment required - sign enough that Lacey and team are doing something right.

Inside Hicce Hart is no simple wood-panelled boozer. For one there are chandeliers hanging from the ceiling, but the vibe is brought back down to earth with exposed brick and natural wood floors. It’s textbook gastropub design, but still slick and sophisticated. Staff hurry about behind a smart subway-tiled bar, which also doubles as an open kitchen further down. Upstairs is a dedicated dining room which is rather more minimal in design, though it gets plenty of light.

As for the menu, there’s a lot to like. Let’s start at the top with the bread - frankly, an obligation if you’re eating at a gastropub. Hicce Hart’s potato bread is cracking, with potato peelings baked into the crust giving it an extra crunch and lashings of whipped butter to spread over the top. A pork chop the size of a hot water bottle arrives swimming in pork juices and olive oil - it’s a beautifully-cooked piece of meat and terrific value at £23. Likewise the chocolate stout cake with cream cheese and caramel - which has become a bit of a signature - is light, creamy and delicately balanced, without a hint of stodge about it. It all goes down very easily alongside a smart wine list and some excellent cocktails (well-priced and available on tap).

It’s small details that are still holding Hicce Hart back perhaps. Crisp little nuggets of breaded, deep-fried braised pork are a tad on the dry side (though the home-made brown sauce is fantastic). Broad beans that accompany the pork chop still have a tough exterior skin on them and in a perfect world they’d be double-podded. These little details don’t detract much from the overall quality of the offering at Hicce Hart but with so many exceptional gastropubs popping up all over London, they do make a difference. Still, Hicce Hart’s ceiling is absolutely up there with the rest and it’s a charming little spot that we’d happily have as our local if we could.

Tucked away in Islington, Hicce Hart is a cosy neighbourhood pub serving classic British pub-grub, made from the best of the best seasonal British produce. 

Acclaimed chef Pip Lacey, who has experience working alongside the likes of Michelin-starred chef Angela Hartnett, already runs successful restaurant hicce in King's Cross, with this seemingly a more casual spin-off. Here she offers up an extensive menu of small-plates, sharing starters, hearty main courses, and of course desserts, ensuring there’s something to satisfy everyone. On Sundays, excitingly, guests can take advantage of Hicce Hart's wonderful roast dinner offerings, sure to please everybody around the table.

When it comes to drinks, Hicce Hart has an impressive range of beverages available for those in need of a refreshment, which continue in line with its ethos of sustainability and community. The pub’s craft beers are sourced exclusively from local independent brewery, The Goodness Brewery, and it also offers up its signature exclusive co-brew Hicce IPA. The wine list, which changes weekly to give guests new and exciting suggestions, is comprised of a range of biodynamic and sustainable wines, so you can sip in peace, knowing your drinking habits are great for the planet (an ideal excuse for a drink, we think).

Not only does the gastropub offer a stellar dining experience, but there’s also a rather exciting social event calendar at work in the venue. Sunday evenings see weekly wine clubs, held upstairs in the pub and open to everyone, and hicce hart also holds supper clubs, for a fun and social experience with fellow Hicce diners.