Why choose a pub or restaurant for your London wedding?
London is blessed with a plethora of wedding venues, there really is something for everyone’s taste! Whether you want opulent luxury like The Nomad hotel, to get married in London nature or a bombed out deconsecrated church like The Asylum in Peckham, engaged couples in London have plenty of options. However nowadays one of the most popular London wedding venues are pubs and restaurants. Modern couples are choosing pubs and restaurants as a wedding venue for several reasons.
Firstly, they tend to be cost effective. This is because they operate on the rest of the weekdays as a non wedding venue and therefore can balance their fees. They also have all the kitchen equipment, dinner utensils, staff and alcohol license in house and ready, so this also helps keep the drink and catering costs down.
Secondly, there are plenty of pub and restaurant venues with quirky and interesting decor, lending themselves to interesting wedding photos. This is ideal for couples who want wedding venues that don’t need too much decoration.
Thirdly, they will often have beer gardens or some form of outdoor courtyard space, which is great for a full wedding day where guests often feel comfortable catching some fresh air. If you’re having a winter wedding the pub is often lovely and warm compared to a larger high ceiling type venue.
Documentary wedding photography at London pub weddings
Personally, I love shooting in pub and restaurant wedding venues because they often have great natural light and lots of frames and angles. They are perfect for my documentary approach to wedding photography that focuses on artistic and interesting candids.
For this guide, I have split the list of the best pub and restaurant wedding venues into North, South, East and West London. To keep it methodical I will categorise them based on their N, S E and W postcodes, but as you can imagine there’s some that are technically South East, North West London etc.! I’ve then put their nearest tube stations. If you’d like to check out the venues in proximity to your specific ceremony location, then articles like my guide to walkable venues from Islington Town Hall would be a great read.
A list of North London pub and restaurant wedding venues
The Depot // N7 // Caledonian Road Station
The Depot is an industrial style open plan style wedding reception venue with a horse shoe shaped bar. It has three levels to the space so it’s possible to divide it up for whatever style of dinner and party you’d like. It’s available for both exclusive and non-exclusive hire. With exclusive hire you can hold 100 guests, or for non exclusive hire you can hold a wedding lunch for 20 people.
Never For ever // NW5 // Kentish Town Station
Never for Ever is a gorgeous restaurant and bar with two levels. The main floor has gorgeous light and can seat several long trestle tables. It also has a smaller back room. The basement has a large bar area that is ideal for a dance floor. They close the whole restaurant for your wedding so it can hold a lot.
Bald faced stag // N2 // East Finchley Station
The Bald Faced Stag is a large gastropub with gorgeous unique decor of a live tree growing right through the middle of the pub! It’s very cool and has plenty of spaces including an outdoor courtyard and side snug rooms and lounges. Ideal if you need to have a side area for children or the elderly.
Victoria Stakes // N10 // Highgate Station
Victoria Stakes is great as a venue but admittedly one of the hardest to get to. It’s in Muswell Hill right at the foot of Alexandra Palace- if you grew up in North London as I did, you’ll know there’s not really any stations close by, you have to catch buses from the tube stations. The flip side of this location is that you get the rare opportunity with a London pub venue to take photos in unlimited and enclosed greenspace- Alexandra Park itself. Another thing that is special about this space is that you have your meal in a roofed courtyard, so it’s got quite a cool outdoor/indoor feel. It can also hold ceremonies.
Fredericks // N1 // Angel Station
I’ve shot many weddings at Fredericks and had my own wedding there. I can highly recommend it for the food, which is a classic sit down European fine dining style. It’s more of a classic restaurant than a pub, the main space is like a light glasshouse. It also has an outdoor courtyard with a a large balcony, and a side lounge. It is one of the largest capacity London restaurant wedding venues as they close it for full exclusivity.
The Londesborough // N16 // Stoke Newington Station
The Londesborough is a pub wedding venue in Stoke Newington that I have photographed at a lot. It offers a relaxed atmosphere with a choice of excellent served buffet or sit down three course menu style dining. The interior is a gorgeous dark green with quirky retro and taxidermy themed decor. It’s capable of holding larger guest numbers which is rare for a London pub venue.
Jones & Sons // N16 // Dalston Kingsland Station
Jones and Sons is the restaurant attached to the Studio Jones photography studio and event space. The latter is up a floor so perhaps not super accessibility friendly, but the restaurant is a one level venue where the dance floor section and the main restaurant are all on one floor. It’s a rectangular shaped long main dining space and has a simple industrial vibe with great food.
The Bellanger // N1 // Angel Station
The Bellanger is an upmarket restaurant where you can that you can hire a private dining area. The main restaurant remains open to the public so if you want to go out for a breath of fresh air you do have to pass through the restaurant.
The Pig and Butcher // N1 // Angel Station
The Pig and Butcher is a pub and gastro restaurant with a small private dining room upstairs. It’s beautiful and decorated like a rustic home complete with Aga. The limitation is that it can only hold about 25 people so it’s a wedding venue only suitable for small wedding dinners.
Hemingford Arms // N1 // Kings Cross Station
I’ve only shot a short coverage at the Hemingford Arms, it’s a dark space with a private dining upstairs that includes a collection of small tables and a piano! It was suitable for an intimate casual gathering- they allow external caterers which is less common for a London pub or restaurant venue.
Hoxley & Porter // N1 // Highbury and Islington Station
Hoxley & Porter is an evening pub/bar that is on the high street right opposite Islington Town Hall. It has sections in a long narrow rectangular shape.
East London pub and restaurant wedding venues
I grew up in North London, then spent my 20s in South London but since starting a family have moved to East London/Essex border. So this is why you’ll see I have more experience in North and South London wedding venues, but I am slowly but surely growing my East London content. I have actually shot a lot of East London weddings but most of them were not pubs or restaurants so they haven’t made the cut for this guide.
Coin Laundry // EC1R // Angel or Farringdon Station (it’s right in the middle of multiple options!)
Coin Laundry is similar to Never For Ever but an East London option. It has a light natural light filled main floor with an open kitchen. The basement is used for receptions drinks and the party time. It’s decorated with shelves of vinyl records and quirky art and retro furniture. It’s one of the more light East London restaurant venues as it has a full wall of clear window.
Singer Tavern // EC2A // Old Street Station
The Singer Tavern I believe used to be an old sewing machine shop, it’s now a two level restaurant venue. It has art deco lighting and Victorian style tiles. It’s the perfect restaurant for a cosy relaxed wedding with a little style. It reminds me very much of Coin Laundry. The team are super friendly and lovely to work with.
Balfour St Barts // EC1A // Farringdon Station
Balfour St Barts is a gorgeous restaurant and bar that spans across two floors and has a warm brown brick and wood aesthetic. You can hold your whole day here and it’s so easy to access being right next to Farringdon Station. When you hire it on the weekends as it’s in the financial district the outdoor streets are nice and quiet, so you can have a lot of outdoor space as well. If you’re having a ceremony and wedding dinner here the top floor balcony bar allows you to move the guests whilst the room gets turned around.
Harrild & Sons // EC4A // Farringdon Station
I’ve shot at Harrild & Sons several times and both were for London winter weddings. It is a restaurant on the main floor with a basement cocktail bar.
Yi Ban // E16 // Royal Albert DLR Station
Something a little different from most of the pub and restaurant venues, Yi Ban allow you to hire private dining rooms to hold wedding dinners. Yi Ban is a super popular East London restaurant that has authentic Chinese food. Real Asians flock to this restaurant and the dim sum is LUSH. It’s niche, but it’s available so it’s worth knowing about! You can hold a Chinese tea ceremony here too so they do specifically accommodate wedding parties even if the main restaurant remains open. It’s also right next to the London City airport runway, so there’s unique opportunities for couple shots.
The Royal Inn on the Park // E9 // Hackney Central
The Royal Inn on the Park is right next to Victoria Park in Hackney, so it’s an ideal wedding reception pub venue following an East London registry office wedding if you want to also have access to green space for couple and group photos.
The Banker- TBA
South London pub and restaurant wedding venues
This used to be my old haunt where I lived before moving the kids and dog to the countryside! South London is full of great gastro pub and restaurant style wedding venues!
East Dulwich Tavern // SE22 // East Dulwich Station
East Dulwich Tavern is a great little pub with a private hire of the top floor that spans across the whole pub, so for a non exclusive private hire space it’s a pretty decent size. It also has its own direct access from the street so even though the main pub remains open downstairs it does feel properly separated. The upside of hiring a venue like this vs. one that needs to close to the public is that the costs can be kept lower, as they are not reliant on your wedding fee to meet their earnings for the day. East Dulwich has lots of quirky antiques and wall pictures that mean it’s a London venue that doesn’t need too much decorating.
Balham Bowls Club // SW12 // Balham Station
The Balham Bowls club is an iconic pub famous for its….. sausage rolls! Its private hire space is one large open plan room, so there’s slightly less versatility than the likes of East Dulwich Tavern, in terms of separate break out/rest spaces. When you’re having drinks you kind of have to linger right around all the long trestle tables and all the guests need to go to one end to allow for the tables to be moved for the dance floor. But the team are pretty brilliant and used to it so they’re very efficient. They also let you take photos in their public space downstairs so even if your wedding space is quite full of guests there is an opportunity to shoot further away.
The Bedford // SW12 // Balham Station
If you need more space than the Balham Bowls Club but still want to keep around that part of South London, then hiring The Bedford might be for you. There are multiple rooms you can choose to hire, in various sizes and decor. The Bedford is an infamous comedy venue and event space, so you get to be a part of South London history. The room where you can hold the dinner is large, spacious and light, with a more opulent cocktail aesthetic for the drinks reception area.
Pedro’s Wine Bar // SE1 // London Bridge Station
Pedro’s Wine Bar is a venue option that is basically a bar and restaurant under a railway arch. It is across two open plan levels, with the top floor being a large balcony with an arched ceiling that is large enough to hold the entire dinner. It also has an enclosed small front area so there’s a little outdoor space but not tons- it goes right onto a quiet back street. Nearby there are plenty of quirky options for couple photos- all with an urban industrial vibe.
Brown and Green Life // SE20 // Crystal Palace Station
Brown and Green Life is technically more of a cafe than a pub or restaurant, but it’s a similarly relaxed venue and I felt it deserved a spot on the list! This is a great relaxed venue if you’re after a lot of outdoor space where your guests can loiter, as it’s smack in the middle of Crystal Palace Park in South London. They have an upstairs floor that can hold ceremonies and the main cafe area downstairs. You can use Crystal Palace park to take your group and couple photos. It’s near the lake where the iconic dinosaur statues are. There’s also the laptop stage and maze, but those are a little further away in the park so be prepared to walk for a few minutes.
Westow House // SE20 // Crystal Palace Station
I have two relaxed pub style wedding venues in Crystal Palace because I used to live here so these are both local haunts. I’ve spent many a sunny weekend here with my family so I can vouch for the food. Westow House is a boutique pub at the top of Crystal Palace hill with excellent food. You hire the upper floor and the main floor remains open to the public. It is a boutique hotel so you can also book accommodation on site and get ready for your Crystal Palace wedding there or have friends and family stay.
Trafalgar Tavern // SE10 // North Greenwich Station
The Trafalgar Tavern is The Banker of South London- gorgeous pub vibes right next to the river. The outside of Trafalgar Tavern is decorated with stunning fairy lights, so if you’re after a pub space that is also beautiful at night in South London, then this is the ideal spot for you. The venue is very large, you get a huge open plan floor space with walls of portraits and elegant chandeliers. There’s also a totally separate bar so you can have a grand reveal of your main wedding dinner room. They’ve got the capability to hold the ceremonies here too, which they do in front of the large bay window with red curtains.
Jolly Gardeners // SE11 // Vauxhall Station
There are several Jolly Gardeners pubs in London so this refers to the South London pub near Vauxhall. It’s a white walled pub filled with natural light. It’s mostly open plan with a large bar creating a slight division between the entrance and the dining table space.
Brunswick House // SW8 // Vauxhall Station
Brunswick House is a large Georgian town house that has both private hire and a public restaurant. It is a venue that spans across several floors and has a staircase to enter the front. Therefore it might not be the easiest for weddings that need accessibility. It is absolutely gorgeous and has a refined up market restaurant feel. It can hold both wedding ceremonies and the evening reception. The dance floor takes place in the crypt basement!
West London wedding pub and restaurant venues
Heist Bank // W2 // Paddington Station
I absolutely love Heist Bank firstly because it’s so stylish. Secondly because it’s on the Elizabeth Line which is my line. This means I can get to it as easily as venues like Balfour St Barts weddings in Farringdon. Thirdly, it’s situated pretty much on Paddington Basin. This means you have a unique cool spot for couple photos!
Bingham Riverhouse // TW10 // Richmond Station
Bingham Riverhouse is technically a hotel and restaurant. It overlooks the river and has a lovely expansive garden that your guests can enjoy. It is licensed to hold wedding ceremonies in the Garden Room. They can then turn it around into your dining space whilst your guests have drinks outside. It’s ideal for a Spring/Summer West London restaurant wedding.
Wild Honey St James // SW1Y // Piccadilly Circus Station
Wild Honey is a Michelin Star restaurant that allows you to hire large table spaces for your wedding reception. The food is exceptionally good as you can imagine, but it might not be the ideal wedding dinner venue if you’d like to be private or rowdy! Although you can have your own section, you’re right in the main restaurant still really.
Beaufort House // SW3 // South Kensington Station
Beaufort House is technically a brasserie more so than a restaurant but it has the same relaxed modern art deco bar vibes as many of the other venues I’ve listed.
Lahpet // WC2E // Leicester Square Station
Lahpet is Burmese two floor central London restaurant. They have their own balcony, but it’s overlooking a busy part of London. The furniture and layout is fairly set and can’t be moved around. They have a collection of bar tables and booths so your seating plan has to be pretty set. It’s ideal for a really casual post ceremony celebration with friends.
The Fox and Pheasant // SW10 // Fulham Broadway
The Fox and Pheasant is a lovely little pub in Chelsea. It’s tucked away in a residential area next to some classic houses and cobbled streets. It has a small private dining area that can cater for an intimate wedding dinner. It’s quite similar to the Pig and Butcher in terms of space and style, but a South London version to the North placed restaurant/gastropub!
And that concludes my ultimate guide to London pub wedding venues and London restaurant wedding venues. As you can see there’s plenty of options all over London, and they range from casual to high end. These pub and restaurant wedding venues can cater for wedding dinners ranging from 20 to 100+ guests. If you’re looking for a relaxed documentary wedding photographer for your pub wedding then get in touch! Marianne Chua is an expert wedding photographer with lots of experience in London pub weddings. My colourful bold wedding photography style brings out the best in the rich cozy colours that often come with restaurant and pub weddings.
