The little black book

Quiet pubs, bars and cafés in London to talk

Filtered for ££ + Fireside & Cosy + Historic, then ranked by journey fairness for your group.

Central London

Chapter 1 · 3 pubs, bars and cafés

The Lamb is a Grade II listed Young's pub on Lamb's Conduit Street in Bloomsbury, dating back to the 1720s. It keeps its hinged snob screens around the bar,...

Russell Square 5 min · Walk-in

Walk-in

The Queen's Larder is a small pub on the corner of Queen Square in Bloomsbury. You can book a table in the upstairs lounge, or the whole room, by calling 020...

Russell Square 6 min · Walk-in

Walk-in

The Sekforde opened as a pub on Sekforde Street in Clerkenwell in 1829 and traded without a break for 176 years. It closed in 2015 for restoration and reopened...

Farringdon 3 min · Walk-in

Walk-in

East London

Chapter 2 · 1 place

The Grapes is a narrow riverside pub on Narrow Street in Limehouse, and its history goes back more than 500 years. Charles Dickens drank here and wrote it into...

Limehouse 2 min · Walk-in

Walk-in

South London

Chapter 3 · 1 place

The Rosendale is a big food-led pub on Rosendale Road in West Dulwich, with plenty of garden space. It serves a weekday lunch menu from noon to 3.30pm, Monday...

West Dulwich 4 min · Bookable

Frequently asked questions

What does the “££ + Fireside & Cosy + Historic” filter show on Quiet pubs, bars and cafés in London to talk?

This view narrows Quiet pubs, bars and cafés in London to talk to venues tagged for ££ + Fireside & Cosy + Historic. FairWhere can still rank that filtered shortlist by journey fairness when you start a plan, so the activity fit and the commute both work for the group.

When are these places quietest?

Earlier in the day, almost everywhere. Weekday mornings and early afternoons are the calmest at most of these quiet pubs, bars and cafés in London, and evenings get louder, with after-work crowds at places like Gordon's Wine Bar and The Wigmore. Several are daytime only. Each venue note says when it's calmest, and where a place is livelier than quiet, we say so. For a livelier after-work pint, see After-Work Drinks. For a louder City dinner when quiet isn't the point, see Square Mile Weeknights.

Can I work on a laptop in any of them?

In some. Store Street Espresso and Prufrock Coffee are the easy ones, and Age Exchange Cafe, Ink@84, Petitou, St John's Bakery and The Gallery Cafe also carry a laptop-friendly tag. Monocle Café is the exception: laptops are discouraged there. Most of these are daytime venues, so check hours before you plan a long session.

How does FairWhere pick a fair place?

Here, fair means the journey. Add where everyone is starting from and FairWhere ranks these quiet pubs, bars and cafés in London by how evenly the travel is shared across your group, using the FairWhere Score. The shortlist is picked for quiet. The ranking is not about popularity, sponsorship or who suggested it first.

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