The 10 best Sunday roasts in London (not touristy)

Right. Sunday roast in London. The brief: where the locals actually go, not where the coach-trip Borough Market crowd ends up. Ten places, ranked, all of which I've eaten at in the last six months. Hawksmoor isn't on this list, intentionally — it's on every list, you already know. These are the ten you should know next.

The top of the table

The Camberwell Arms is one and it's not really a contest. The kitchen is run properly, the portions are generous in a way that doesn't feel showy, and the Yorkshire pudding is the size of a small frisbee. The pricing has held the line at around £26-30 for the meat-and-trimmings, which in 2026 London is genuinly fair. South London's best Sunday lunch and worth the trip from anywhere in the city.

The Anchor & Hope is two on a different criterion: it doesn't take bookings, you queue from noon, and what you get when you sit down is some of the best pub-roast cooking in the country. The lamb is the order, has been for years, and the Sunday menu turnover means it'll sell out by 4pm. Get there by 12.30 or accept your fate.

The proper-pub picks

The Marksman in Hackney has the upstairs dining room and a sharing roast format that works brilliantly for four. Book a fortnight out for a Sunday — they get full. The Eagle in Farringdon, the original gastropub, still does it the way they always have. No bookings, walk in by 1, you'll be done by 3.

The Drapers Arms in Islington is the locals-locals option — mostly a regulars' pub on a Sunday, the side dishes are where it earns the spot. Always order an extra side to share, the broccoli with anchovy is the dish you'll remember.

The slightly-posher options

The Cadogan Arms in Chelsea is the up-market end of the list, with a carving trolley that comes round mid-meal. Pricier than the rest but worth it for a special-occasion Sunday. St John Bread & Wine in Spitalfields does the whole-shoulder-for-two option which is the order — share between two, drink the proper wine list, come out three hours later not knowing what time it is.

The non-traditional picks

Smokehouse Islington does a BBQ-leaning version: smoked-then-roasted meat, big portions, big sides. The brisket roast is the move if you're bored of beef. Blacklock Soho is, yes, touristy, but the meat is genuinly excellent and they understand portion sizes in a way that the £18-roast pubs don't. Book a 1pm slot.

The west London answer

The Walmer Castle in Notting Hill is the west London answer that hasn't cracked under hype. Smaller dining room, the kitchen takes the brief seriously, the wine list is short and decent. Book a fortnight ahead.

How to actually book

A few practical bits:

• Two weeks ahead for any of the popular bookable ones. Walk-in pubs (Anchor & Hope, Eagle) need you there by 12.30.
• 1pm is the sweet spot. Earlier and the kitchen is finding its feet; later and they're running out of meat.
• Order to share at St John, Marksman, and Smokehouse. The portions are designed for it.
• Side dishes are where the kitchens earn their stars. Always order extra.
• Don't go on a bank holiday weekend. Half these pubs are short-staffed and the Sunday cooking suffers.

For pairing with something low-effort to do after — gallery late opening, a film, a walk along the canal — the London this-week page sorts Sunday events by neighbourhood. Saves the post-roast scramble.

What I've left off

Hawksmoor (already on every list), the Spread Eagle (overpriced for what it is), and a couple of central London "premium pub" operations charging £36 for a roast where the meat's the wrong cut. Skip those. The ten above are where the people who actually live in London eat on a Sunday.

Book a 1pm slot, walk it off, do something quiet after. London Sundays are alot better than the city gives them credit for.