Jones and Son

Smart and sophisticated, Jones and Son is Dalston all grown up. Tucked away on Arcola Street, the café-restaurant has taken an airy, industrial space (a former textile factory) and added the luxe furniture (heavy on the mid-century Danish) and design touches to give it both comfort and chic at once; a combination you won’t always find matching in this part of town.

We visit on a Sunday for brunch and find it surprisingly empty on arrival at 11:45 – although maybe that’s to be expected given the hours Dalston will keep you out till. We order Bloody Marys and coffees and while the coffee is a good cup, the lack of Tabasco leaves the Bloody Mary feeling a tad impotent to us (a problem that couldn’t be remedied due to the fact they’d run out of the hot sauce – so probably a one-off thing). No such issues with the food – I’ll say it now, the Jones and Sons full English breakfast is hands down the best I’ve eaten in London. Granted, I’m yet to sample the Hawksmoor spread but until that day the Dalston restaurant is the winner. The price of a full English breakfast these days can be scandalous but at £8.50 here you’re getting a bargain. The huge sausage and premium black pudding stand out on the plate but every ingredient worked. We also sample poached eggs and avocado, which was a large pile of that good, green fattiness with perfectly poached eggs on chunky toast. On this offering the brunch menu is faultless.

Evenings are presumably a lot busier when the lights are dimmer and the menu shifts to main mode. Sticking to a slim line selection, the steak, grilled whole fish of the day and pan-fried polenta and artichokes catch our eye. Desserts include chocolate and blueberries with Earl Grey ice cream and Eton mess. With mains costing around £13.50, a bottle of house wine at £16.50 and cocktails all around £8, Jones and Son adds up to a bit of a bargain. It may not be cheap eating but add together the environment and the quality of the food and the value is well worth taking a trip to Arcola Street.