The best restaurants in Camden
A Greek taverna open since 1967, a Primrose Hill institution since 1979, roast duck over the canal for £15.50 and a Kentish Town pub cooking over fire. Where we would book in NW1, NW3 and NW5.
By Only Camden Editorial
Camden eats better than its reputation. Skip the high street touts and you have a Greek taverna that has been open since 1967, a Primrose Hill institution since 1979, Cantonese roast duck over the canal for £15.50 and a Kentish Town pub cooking over fire. These are the places we would book, with what to order and what it costs.
Andy’s Taverna, Pratt Street
Daily, 12:00 to 22:30. Andy’s at 23 Pratt Street, NW1, has been feeding Camden since 1967, and it still feels like a family dining room that happens to take bookings. Hot Dinners rates it for souvlaki, dolmades, moussaka and grilled fish, with plenty for vegetarians. It is five minutes from the station and a world away from the market queues. Go on a weeknight, order too many dips, and do not rush.
Lemonia, Regent’s Park Road
Three-course set dinner £29.75, Monday to Thursday. Lemonia at 89 Regent’s Park Road, NW1, has been in Primrose Hill since 1979, and on a Friday night it is still the room the whole neighbourhood wants to be in. The set dinner on its own site runs from 17:30 to 22:00, Monday to Thursday, and there is a lunch special that changes daily. Last orders are 22:00 Monday to Thursday, 22:30 on Friday and Saturday, and 16:00 on Sunday, when it does lunch only. Book for Friday; walk in on a Tuesday.
Three Uncles, Hawley Wharf
Daily, 12:00 to 20:45. Rice plates from £12.95. The best plate of food in Camden Market is up on the second floor of the Hawley Wharf food hall, NW1, with communal seats looking over the Regent’s Canal. Three Uncles does Hong Kong roast meats on jasmine rice with pak choi: char siu for £12.95, crispy pork belly for £13.50 and roast duck for £15.50, or any three meats for £16.50, per its Camden menu. The roast duck and char siu lo mein at £15.95 is the order if you want noodles. It closes earlier than you think, so do lunch here, not dinner.
The Parakeet, Kentish Town Road
Monday to Saturday 12:00 to midnight, Sunday 12:00 to 22:30. The Parakeet at 256 Kentish Town Road, NW5, is a pub at the front and a proper dining room behind, with a menu that changes and, as Hot Dinners puts it, cooking over fire from chef Ben Allen. It is the place in NW5 we send people for a birthday dinner that still has a pint in it. Dining room bookings open 30 days ahead on theparakeetpub.com, and weekend tables go fast.
Greenberry Cafe, Primrose Hill
Dinner Tuesday to Saturday, until 22:00. Most people know Greenberry at 101 Regent’s Park Road for brunch, but it does a serious evening menu from Tuesday to Saturday. The seasonal list on its site includes butternut squash soup, seared hand-dived king scallops with garlic butter and a bacon pangrattato, and game terrine with spiced pear chutney. Sunday and Monday it closes at 15:00. It is a two-minute walk from Lemonia, so if one is full, try the other.
Namaaste Kitchen, Parkway
Between Camden Town and Primrose Hill at 64 Parkway, NW1, Namaaste Kitchen is a contemporary Indian restaurant led by Sabbir Karim, who the restaurant says was Chef of the Year in 2014 and 2015. The Infatuation recommends the yoghurt and pomegranate tokri chaat and the family-style biryanis, and that is how we would order: chaat to start, a biryani in the middle of the table, and everyone sharing.
Ma Petite Jamaica, Inverness Street
For Caribbean on the market side of the high street, Ma Petite Jamaica on Inverness Street, NW1, is the long-runner. Hot Dinners lists jerk pork, jerk chicken, jerk red bream, curried goat, ackee and saltfish and dumplings, with rum cocktails to match. It is loud, it is busy, and it is a better use of a Camden Saturday night than anything with a laminated menu outside.
Babuji, Kentish Town Road
If you are heading north, Babuji at 343 Kentish Town Road, NW5, is the South Asian street food place that fills the gap between a takeaway and a night out. Every chaat on its menu is £6.95, from aloo tikki chaat to papdi chaat, and Hot Dinners rates the Bengali prawn curry. Cheap enough for a Tuesday, good enough for a Saturday.
Where to go when
- Before a gig at the Roundhouse or KOKO: Three Uncles for speed, Andy’s if you have time.
- Date night: Lemonia on a weeknight, or The Parakeet’s dining room.
- Groups: Namaaste Kitchen for sharing, Andy’s for a long table.
- Cheap and quick: Three Uncles, or Babuji for chaat in Kentish Town.
Our sources for menus and prices are the restaurants’ own sites and the 2025 Camden and Kentish Town guide from Hot Dinners. Prices change; check before you book.
