Breakfast Bars
| The FOX & ANCHOR 115 Charterhouse Street, EC1 (020 7253 5075). Mon-Thur 7am-7pm, Fri 7am-8pm. Meat, fish, fruit and veg and flower markets all have historic by-laws that allow their pubs to open at curious hours to service the needs of market workers. After a night’s work in Smithfield market, generations of porters, pitchers and butchers would stream into the Fox & Anchor at the crack of dawn, white coats often streaked with blood, for a pint of porter and a hearty breakfast. There are few white coats among the customers these days, none blood-stained, with most customers in suits and on their way to the office. They come in such numbers that it’s advisable to book in advance. All the fries: sausage, egg, lean bacon rashers, black pudding, fried toast, baked beans and tomatoes. All of this, of course, should be wolfed down with a pint of Guinness. It has been serving breakfasts like this since 1898, and the lunches are pretty hearty too. The pub doesn’t appear to have changed much for hundreds of years. Take a look at the old snugs at the back. They’re a relatively recent addition. |
THE HOPE & SIR LOIN 94 Cowcross Street, EC1 (020 7253 8525). Mon-Fri 7am-10.30am, and noon-2pm. Many of us conceive that a sirloin is a choice cut of beef, but the word’s origins are much more colourful. It is said that James I, when dining at Houghton Tower in 1617, was so enamoured of the beef laid out before him that he knighted it. ‘Arise, Sir Loin’, I hear him call. But there are other accounts of such extemporaneous ceremonies attributed to King Henry VIII and to Charles II. Perhaps it was a joke of the times. Perhaps they were all barking mad. No matter. The word made flesh lives on in excellent form during lunch in the Sir Loin restaurant above this pub in Smithfield. But it’s the breakfasts that will win you over: a colossal plate includes double egg, double sausage, double bacon, kidneys, liver, black pudding, mushrooms, baked beans and fried bread. Such a breakfast might be considered fine if you’re humping carcasses around for several hours afterwards, but if you’re sitting behind a desk fiddling with e-mails, you might want to consider the cholesterol intake. Try the hot beef sandwiches available in the pub at lunchtime – remarkable. Booking is advisable for early morning breakfasts in the restaurant. |
| THE MARKET PORTER 9 Stoney Street, SE1 (020 7407 2495) Mon-Fri 6am-8.30am and 11am-11pm, Sat noon-11pm, Sun noon-10.30pm. True ‘free houses’ are rare beasts in London these days and the Market Porter is one of the better examples of what a free house should be doing; providing an ever-changing range of up to eight real ales. This is a top-quality traditional pub that every borough would be proud to have. |
THE MOON & SIXPENCE 183 Wardour Street, W1 (020 7734 0037) Mon-Sat 10am-11pm, Sun 11am-10.30pm The forward thinking Wetherspoons chain of pubs and bars have been challenging tradition by opening nearly all of their pubs and bars at 10am for the past year or so and they now have alcohol licences to suit. A fried breakfast is as good as it gets – better than many greasy spoons – and then there are all their lovely beers to choose from. There are too many pubs throughout London to list here, but you can find your nearest branch by visiting their website at www.jdwetherspoon.co.uk |
| THE ROYAL OAK 73 Columbia Road, E2 020 7739 8204). Mon-Sat 1pm-11pm, Sun 8am-10.30pm. On Sunday mornings Columbia Road comes into full bloom with the ever-popular flower market, which throngs the streets for miles around. This ordinary-looking local becomes the focus for early risers and those in need of a sharpener to clear their heads following a large Saturday night. |
THE COCK TAVERN East Poultry Avenue, Central Markets, EC1 (020 7248 2918) Mon-Fri 6am-4pm. Deep in the bowels of Smithfield market proper is what the white-coated workers would call their ‘office bar’. They come here after a hard night’s humping and the staggeringly good value English breakfast. |
| THE PAKENHAM ARMS 1 Pakenham Street, WC1 (020 7837 6933). Mon-Fri 9am-1am, Sat 9am-11pm, Sun 9am-10.30pm. Office workers and postmen from the nearby Mount Pleasant sorting office like to pop in to this traditional boozer for breakfast and a pint early in the morning. It opens at 9am every day, and doesn’t close until 1am. Sunday night is early doors for the Pakenham: last orders at 10.30pm. |
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