21 best restaurants in East London, according to our hungry editors

Sune, Broadway Market

Dish to order: Rockefeller toasties with a parmesan, bacon, pecorino and spinach filling

Renowned sommelier Honey Spencer and partner Charlie Sims (formerly of Copenhagen’s Noma) are a food-and-wine pairing in human form. The power duo – who between them have 35 years of experience via Sydney, Mexico, and London’s Michelin-starred Lyle’s – have joined forces to launch Broadway Market’s latest eatery. Sune (derived from the Old Norse word for ‘son’), serves up British fare with international accents. The starters are a joy, from the Carlingford oysters in a koji mignonette, to the grilled flatbread slathered with trout roe and a horseradish cream that clears the sinuses without immolating them. It takes some self-discipline not to linger permanently at this stage of the meal, but the mains maintain the high standard; highlights include strozzapreti pasta and tangy, wild mushrooms and Rockefeller toasties with a parmesan, bacon, pecorino and spinach filling. The grilled pork chop comes in a jus, whose prawn, lemongrass and miso notes give strong, pan-Asian vibes. Spencer, a wine director at Studio Paskin, has curated a sure-footed selection of natural wines, including the Yo El Rey Grenache and Syrah from Stellenbosch in South Africa, their quietly charismatic flavours pairing well with everything. The brown rice sake, however, evokes Marmite and proved equally divisive on our table. It’s all enjoyed amid warm and woody, candlelit interiors, with windows overlooking the Regent’s Canal. And with plans to build a balcony at the back, we can look forward to glorious sunsets over the water in the summer. Yet another reason, if more were needed, for a return visit. Noo Saro-Wiwa

Address: Sune, 129A Pritchard’s Road, London E2 9AP
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Lardo, Hackney

Dish to order: the Lardo pizza

Some people are good at sports, others can play musical instruments; the skill I possess is a little less impressive but a skill nonetheless – I have a knack for being able to pick just the right restaurant for just the right occasion. Case in point: Lardo, in Hackney, where I arrive one Sunday lunchtime with a group consisting of adults and children – some hungover (not the children); some with a list of intolerances as long as my arm; all hungry. We don’t waste a minute before ordering olives and focaccia for the table, quickly followed by local beers and some very good negronis. The restaurant is industrial-chic (this is East London after all) – all exposed brick and pipes – although the disco ball pizza oven, churning out sizzling pizzas with perfectly charred edges at a dizzying rate, is the centrepiece. We tuck into fluffy, chewy focaccia and enormous nocellara olives, before it’s time for the main event. Antonio Bringa (Hart Bros, Padella, Yasmin) heads up the food here, so we know we’re in for a treat. Pizzas are inventive without being overly fussy – the tenderstem and chilli on my ‘Lardo’ work perfectly with satisfyingly salty strips of pork and ricotta salata, while I’m assured that the gluten-free base is genuinely good. Don’t leave without ordering the tiramisu – I’m not over-exaggerating when I say it might just be the best I’ve had outside of Italy. Sarah Allard

Address: Unit 3, 201 Richmond Rd, London E8 3NJ
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