Brawn

"It only feels right that a Hackney restaurant should hold top spot given that east London was incorrectly branded ground zero for this epidemic of sharing however many years ago. Brawn is the clear standout. Candles, stinky wine, collaborations with The Four Horsemen in New York, and £5 ramekins of nocellara olives. It’s perfect." - jake missing, heidi lauth beasley, sinead cranna

"Every Sunday the world and its dog descends on Columbia Road Flower Market to have “£1 A POT” shouted at them while they shuffle up and down. It’s a worthwhile destination during the week too, to eat at Brawn. The modern European restaurant was one of the first to do small plates, funky wine, and trendy posters—and it’s still one of the best. Come for a lazy lunch with a friend and polish off a carafe alongside oysters, ravioli, and the inevitable tiramisu order, or do the same with a date or your dad." - jake missing, sinead cranna, daisy meager

"There are plenty of low-lit, wine-led, aspirational-feeling restaurants in Hackney, but Brawn was one of the first and is still the standout. It’s on the corner of Columbia Road and the whitewashed room has always got a bit of a buzz about it. The food is of the European-leaning sharing plates variety, and their parmesan panisse is the stuff of candlelit, date night legend." - jake missing, rianne shlebak, sinead cranna, heidi lauth beasley

"Open for: Lunch and dinnerPrice range: $$$Chef Ed Wilson’s hearty French Italian menu is a showcase for his own personal love of food. To eat here is to share that passion, especially now with an increased emphasis on fresh pasta and spectacular comfort food. Wines are predominantly natural and biodynamic. Illustrated wine posters, art, and curios on whitewashed brick walls also make the two relaxed dining rooms on Columbia Road among London’s most handsome and cool. Vibe check: This place has the city’s smallest and most beautiful bathrooms — among the very first to use Aesop, too." - Adam Coghlan

"Cantabrian anchovies & rosemary oil  Like an uncomfortably assured European nudist, the anchovies at Brawn come as is—laying proud, flat, and glistening in oil. They’re best paired with bread to mop up (but not cover) their delicate wonder. For the real anchovy heads, few things are better than a plate of these and a bottle of something funky at this Hackney modern European favourite." - jake missing, heidi lauth beasley