Easter 2017 in London: The Ultimate Brunch GuideBy Alicia Grimshaw
In our books, the Easter weekend only means one thing: more days to eat brunch. Here’s ten places to get your eggs and Bloody Mary kicks this weekend. Happy a good’un, people:
1. For a Scottish Brunch: Mac & Wild
What: Join the Scottish clan at Mac & Wild this Easter weekend for a bottomless brunch full of plenty of booze, Scottish eats and good vibes.
Eat and Drink: Mac & Wild will be celebrating Easter with their Scottish brunch menu featuring their infamous Scottish Breakfast with home-cured bacon, homemade tattie scone, white pudding, mushroom, black pudding and Lorne sausage and scrambled eggs. There’s also smoked haddock potato pancakes, served with caramelised mustard onions and poached hen’s egg, and banana and pecan pancakes served with sweet cream and honey for those with a slightly sweeter tooth. If you’re off the wagon – sign up for Mac & Wild’s bottomless brunch option, where you can enjoy limitless cocktails including, The Bloody Scotsman (with whisky), Bloody Botanists (with gin), Bloody Marys (with vodka), Bucks Fizz and Buckie Royales.
Where: 65 Great Titchfield Street, London W1W 7PS and 9A Devonshire Square, London EC2M 4YN
2. For a Buffet Brunch: The Marylebone
What: The Marylebone is hosting not just a buffet brunch, put plenty of fun activities over the Easter weekend. If you’re just here for the food – get down for their special Easter Sunday brunch. Happy tums guaranteed.
Eat and Drink: The celebrations begin with the Easter brunch buffet, carefully curated by Executive Chef Russell Ford, which will be served from 8.30am until 12.30pm. Enjoy an array of food, such as smoked salmon bagels, avocado on toast, ham and cheese toasties and savoury muffins. For those who need a sweet fix – tuck into a selection of fresh doughnuts, pancakes and waffles. For a lighter bite, an assortment of cereals, granola, and freshly cut fruit will be amongst the buffet dishes. There’s plenty of liquid goodness to wash down the brunch inducing fresh juices, smoothies and milkshakes.
Where: 47 Welbeck St, Marylebone, London W1G 8DN
3. For a German Inspired Brunch: Berlin brünch
What: Spend your Easter Sunday with family and friends over bread, brunch, booze and big Berlin vibes. On Easter Sunday brünch invites you to a four-hour long, ticket only Easter special brünch event.
Eat and Drink: brünch is about bringing people together over long lazy Berlin-style brunches. The Easter feast begins with artisan cheeses and cold meats, smoked mackerel pâté, amaranth and chia granola with German vanilla quark, fresh fruits, avocado, topless eggs with remoulade and their gorgeous eggs in a glass. The beautifully presented food is served on large sharing platters with more food and drink being served as you go. Enjoy unlimited sourdough from Pavilion Bakery on nearby Broadway Market, and German rye with homemade nut butters and jams. Still hungry? Then you’ll need to leave some space for the signature buckwheat waffles as they are not to be missed.
Where: The Taproom, 365-366 Warburton St, London E8 3RR. Tickets here.
4. For a Bottomless Brunch: Firedog
What: Firedog is celebrating the bank holiday break with the launch of their new boozy bottomless brunch with Aegean mezze and unlimited prosecco – The No Limit-Lit Brunch. Bump up your brunch for an extra £25 and sip on bottomless booze.
Eat and Drink: The copious amount of mezze plates are all inspired by Su’dan Alacati and include house chilli eggs; unsalted Young Cheese served with sour cherry compote; freshly made lor with walnuts, thyme and olive oil; lemon curd served with clotted cream and organic honeycomb; and sujuk served with charred spring onions. All of the dishes are served with Firedog’s house special ‘crossimit’ – a cross between a croissant and Aegean simit bread.
Where: Firedog, 92 Newman Street, Fitzrovia, London W1T 3EZ
5. For a Spanish Brunch: Eneko
What: Forgo the boiled egg and experience something truly special – Eneko at One Aldwych will be serving up tempura egg yolks on Easter Sunday.
Eat and Drink: The tempura eggs are served alongside mashed potato and confit vegetables – a perfect dish to represent the three Michelin-starred chef Eneko Atxa’s modern Basque cooking. Moving onto sweeter things, guests of the Sunday brunch will get the chance to experience one of the most typical sweets and most popular recipes for Easter in Spain. Created many centuries ago by nuns, the Torrija is as classic as they come. A comforting and delightfully simple Basque vanilla milk-soaked sponge with caramel crumble ice-cream.
Where: One Aldwych, London WC2B 4BZ
6. For a Nordic Brunch: Aquavit
What: Over the Easter weekend, the stylish St James’s Market restaurant, Aquavit London, will be offering two great bottomless options to be enjoyed alongside the contemporary Nordic brunch and lunch menus. For an extra £15 sip on unlimited wine, or for £20 unlimited Hambledon Classic Cuvée, Brut.
Eat and Drink: Aquavit’s weekend brunch menu is served from 11am-1pm, offering a wide selection of juices and smoothies, classic cinnamon and cardamom buns, and dishes such as raggmunk (potato pancakes) with bacon and lingonberries, and Swedish pancakes with blueberries and cream. Lunch menus, served from 11am-3.30pm, include further Nordic delicacies such as matje herring with potato, sour cream and egg yolk, and Swedish meatballs with lingonberries and pickled cucumber.
Where: St James’s Market 1 Carlton Street, London SW1Y 4QQ
7. For a Sunday Brunch: The Game Bird
What: The Game Bird launched at The Stafford London last month, and has already become renowned for serving knock your socks off British comfort food dishes.
Eat and Drink: This Easter Sunday will be no different, with guests able to enjoy Executive Chef James Durrant’s traditional Sunday roast, served from a trolley with gravy and all the trimmings. And throughout the Easter weekend, The Game Bird will be offering a special afternoon tea, including hot cross buns and Easter themed cakes and pastries alongside the traditional scones and finger sandwiches.
Where: The Stafford London, 16-18 St James’s Place, St. James’s, London SW1A 1NJ
8. For a Sharing Brunch: Rivea London
What: Rivea London, located within Bulgari hotel Knightsbridge, has introduced an convivial Sunday feasting menu for Easter. Executive Chef and protégé of Alain Ducasse, Alexandre Nicolas, has created a menu that invites everyone to indulge in sharing dishes – ideal for enjoying a long lazy afternoon with family and friends.
Eat and Drink: A choice of starter dishes include octopus and confit potato salad; stone bass carpaccio and pine nuts; and Rivea salad wrapped in the restaurant’s signature socca. For main, large sharing style plates are reminiscent of the family feasts of Italy and Provence. Groups can choose from dishes including côte de boeuf, potato fries, choron and basil sauce; roasted corn-fed whole chicken with lemon and thyme, sautéed Camargue rice; or leg of milk-fed lamb, baby vegetables and navarin–style jus. For dessert, pick and choose from a stunning display of sweet treats, such as Piedmont hazelnut choux, and Amalfi lemon and meringue tart.
Where: Bulgari Hotel, London, Bulgari Hotel, 171 Knightsbridge, London SW7 1DW
9. For a Brunch Knees Up: The Cocktail Trading Company
What: The highly creative team behind The Cocktail Trading Company felt left out of the brunch scene. To fix this problem, they’ve rolled out a brand new weekend brunch club, ‘Come Down With Me’, where sore-headed, dry-mouthed party animals can retreat and rejuvenate over a tasty menu of food, fizz and fun. The next brunch club will take place on Easter Sunday (16th April), with plenty of surprises in store.
Eat and Drink: A far cry from the standard poached egg and avocado breakfast offering, this monthly brunch club invites cocktail lovers and foodie fanatics to indulge in everything from CTC breakfast MacMuffins and hash browns, to fresh pastries, all washed down with bubbles and a menu of ‘Morning Glories’ cocktails. Whether it’s to nurse a hangover, or to pave the way for a bank holiday weekend of partying, CTC Brick Lane is the place to be.
Where: 68, Bethnal Green Rd, London E1 6GQ
10. For a Three Course Brunch: Fenchurch at Sky Garden
What: Elevate your Easter Sunday lunch and treat yourself to an unforgettable feast at Fenchurch, Sky Garden’s fine-dining restaurant soaring 37 levels above London.
Eat and Drink: Fenchurch is offering a three-course set menu, with dishes showcasing the very best of the new season. Starters include pickled artichoke salad with heritage courgette, preserved lemon, basil and London air-dried ham, and first of the season English asparagus and a Dorset crab velouté. Mains are Goodwood Estate lamb with ewe’s cheese, charred onions, peas and hispi cabbage, and Peterhead cod with sprouting broccoli, anchovies and red wine jus. And for pudding there’s warm almond cake topped with fresh green almonds, lemon crème fraîche and almond ice cream; Gariguette strawberries served alongside sheep’s yoghurt, lemon verbena and shortbread; and hot and cold Guanaja chocolate with milk ice cream.
Where: 1 Sky Garden Walk, London EC3M 8AF
