Best Brunch in Islington and Nearby: My Favourite Spots Right Now
If you are looking for the best brunch in Islington, I would not keep the list too narrow. Some of my favourite brunch spots are in Islington itself, especially around Barnsbury, Angel and Highbury, but some of the best weekend options nearby stretch into Finsbury Park, Archway, Holloway, Clerkenwell, Farringdon, Old Street, Haggerston, Shoreditch, Dalston and Hackney too.
For me, the best brunch is never just about whether somewhere serves eggs and coffee. It is about whether it actually feels worth your weekend. I want somewhere with atmosphere, somewhere I would genuinely recommend to a friend, somewhere that feels like part of a proper morning out rather than just a place to sit down because you are hungry. That is what this list is about.
These are the brunch spots I would personally recommend most right now if you want somewhere that feels stylish, reliable, and genuinely worth knowing about.
My quick picks
Best all-round brunch in Islington: Sunday, Barnsbury
One of my favourite neighbourhood brunch spots in the area.
Best brunch in Angel: Brother Marcus
A polished brunch in Camden Passage that always feels like a good idea.
Best for Highbury / Finsbury Park: Beam
One of my strongest recommendations on this side of north London.
Best neighbourhood brunch: Frank’s Canteen, Highbury
Relaxed, local and consistently good.
Best for Clerkenwell / Farringdon: Caravan, Exmouth Market
Stylish, dependable and very easy to recommend.
Best coffee-first brunch: Ozone, Shoreditch
One of my go-to east London picks when coffee matters as much as the food.
Best canal-side brunch: Towpath, Haggerston
Worth it for the setting alone.
Best destination brunch: Café Cecilia, Hackney
A brunch I would recommend when you want somewhere that feels a bit more special.
My favourite brunch spots in Islington and nearby
Sunday, Barnsbury
If someone asked me where I would send them for a really good brunch in Islington, Sunday would be one of the first names I would mention. It has that rare quality of feeling like a proper neighbourhood favourite while still being good enough to build a weekend plan around.
What I like about it is that it never feels overdone. It is relaxed, warm and quietly confident. It is the kind of place that gets the balance right: good coffee, a room with character, and food that feels thoughtful without trying too hard. For Barnsbury, this is one of my safest and strongest recommendations.
Brother Marcus, Angel
For Angel, Brother Marcus is one of the brunch spots I would recommend most often. It feels a little more polished than your average brunch place, and the Camden Passage setting makes it feel like more of a proper outing than just a stop on the way somewhere else.
I like it when I want something that feels a bit more elevated than the usual London brunch formula. The flavours are brighter, the menu has more personality, and it works really well for a brunch date or a catch-up where you actually want the place to feel special.
Beam, Highbury / Finsbury Park
Beam absolutely deserves to be on this list, and it is one of the brunch spots I would most happily recommend around the Highbury / Finsbury Park side of my coverage area.
What I like about Beam is that it feels modern and stylish without losing warmth. The Middle Eastern influence gives it more character than a lot of standard brunch cafés, and it is exactly the kind of place I would include if I wanted the article to feel genuinely useful rather than repetitive. If you are around Highbury, Arsenal or the wider Finsbury Park side of north London, this is one of the clearest brunch picks for me.
Frank’s Canteen, Highbury
Frank’s Canteen is another place I would absolutely recommend in Highbury. It feels local in the best way: seasonal, welcoming and not overly polished. It has that neighbourhood-brunch energy that a lot of places try to fake but rarely get right.
For me, Frank’s works because it feels like somewhere people genuinely love having on their doorstep. It is the sort of brunch place I would recommend when someone wants somewhere good without it feeling too scene-y.
Fink’s, Finsbury Park side
If I wanted to include a slightly lower-key brunch recommendation around the Finsbury Park / Highbury edge, I would definitely mention Fink’s.
This is less of a big sit-down brunch destination and more of a very good neighbourhood café and bakery-style stop, but that is also why I like it. Sometimes the best brunch is not the loudest or the most obvious. Sometimes it is coffee, pastries, great bread and a slower kind of morning, and Fink’s does that really well.
Archies, Archway
For Archway, Archies is one of the most useful brunch recommendations I can make. Archway is not always the first place people think of when they think about brunch, which is exactly why it is worth pulling out the stronger spots here properly.
Archies feels brunch-led rather than just breakfast-capable. It suits people who want a more modern, all-day brunch kind of place without having to travel further into central or east London.
Holloway brunch picks
Holloway is not the part of north London I would lead with for destination brunch, but I still think it belongs in the wider conversation because it sits so naturally within the same orbit.
For me, if someone is in Holloway and wants the very best option nearby, I would probably still steer them toward Beam, Frank’s or Sunday depending on what kind of brunch they want. But Holloway still works well as part of the wider north London brunch map, especially if you are putting together a weekend plan that moves between areas.
Caravan, Exmouth Market
For Clerkenwell and Farringdon, Caravan is one of the easiest recommendations I can make. It is stylish, dependable, and broad enough to work for almost any brunch mood.
What I like here is that it feels polished without being stiff. It is a very useful choice when you want somewhere central enough to be convenient, but still good enough that it feels like you picked it for a reason.
Half Cup, Clerkenwell
Half Cup is another brunch spot I would include for the Clerkenwell / Farringdon side of this piece. It feels smart, comfortable and easy to recommend when you want a good brunch without anything too over-the-top.
For me, this is a good pick when the brief is simple: somewhere nice, somewhere reliable, somewhere that still feels considered.
Shoreditch Grind, Old Street
For the Old Street side, I would include Shoreditch Grind because it gives you a more energetic kind of brunch. This is less cosy neighbourhood brunch and more weekend-starts-here brunch.
It works when you want the vibe to matter too. If your brunch is really the beginning of a Shoreditch or Old Street day out, this makes sense.
Ozone, Shoreditch
Ozone is still one of my strongest Shoreditch brunch recommendations, especially for people who care about coffee as much as the food.
That is really the point here. Yes, the brunch is good, but this is one of those places where the coffee is part of why I would recommend it. If I wanted a strong east London brunch pick that still feels consistently worth it, Ozone would stay on the list.
Lantana, Shoreditch
I would also include Lantana in Shoreditch because it offers a slightly sunnier, more social kind of brunch. It is good for groups, catch-ups and those more energetic weekend mornings where you want somewhere with more buzz.
It is not my most neighbourhood-feeling pick, but it is still a very solid recommendation.
Dishoom Shoreditch
Dishoom Shoreditch is not a hidden gem, but I would still recommend it. Sometimes a place is popular for a reason. If you want a brunch that feels a bit different from the standard London format, Dishoom still works.
I think it is especially good when you want a stronger flavour-led breakfast or brunch and somewhere with a bit of atmosphere from the start.
Towpath, Haggerston
For Haggerston, Towpath is one of the most distinctive brunch recommendations I can make. This is as much about the setting as it is about the food, and that is not a criticism. It is part of why I would send people there.
If I wanted a brunch that could shape the whole day, Towpath is the kind of place I would choose. Canal-side, slow-paced, and very easy to turn into a longer east London wander afterwards.
Café Cecilia, Hackney
Café Cecilia is one of the strongest brunch recommendations in the wider Hackney area if you want somewhere that feels a little more special. It leans more restaurant than café, and that is exactly why it stands out.
I would recommend this one when brunch is the main event rather than just a casual stop.
The Dusty Knuckle, Dalston
For Dalston, The Dusty Knuckle is one of the best bakery-led brunch recommendations I would make. This is the pick for people who care about bread, pastries and flavour more than the typical “big brunch plate” experience.
It feels very natural in this list because it offers something different. Not every brunch needs to be formal or full-service. Sometimes you want somewhere that feels more relaxed but still genuinely excellent, and this does that well.
The ones I would prioritise most
If I were narrowing this down to the brunch spots I would recommend first, I would go with:
Sunday for Barnsbury
Brother Marcus for Angel
Beam for Highbury / Finsbury Park
Frank’s Canteen for Highbury
Caravan for Clerkenwell / Farringdon
Ozone for Shoreditch
Towpath for Haggerston
Café Cecilia for Hackney
The Dusty Knuckle for Dalston
Final word – Best Brunch in Islington 2026
If I had to sum it up simply, my favourite brunch picks in this wider north and east London orbit are the ones that feel like they have a clear identity. Sunday feels effortlessly local. Brother Marcus feels polished and plan-worthy. Beam gives the Highbury and Finsbury Park side of this guide a genuinely strong recommendation. Frank’s has real neighbourhood appeal. Ozone, Towpath and Café Cecilia are the sort of places I would include because they make the article stronger, not just longer.
The best brunch list should feel like a set of recommendations you would actually trust, and these are the places I would most happily put my name to.
Written and edited by Islington Local Guide
Islington Local Guide is a discovery-led local editorial platform covering Islington and nearby North and East London. We publish curated guides to what’s on, restaurants, bars, brunch, culture, hidden gems, neighbourhood spots and notable new openings, with a focus on helping readers find what is genuinely worth doing, booking and knowing about.
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