This Art Deco brasserie is somewhere to arrive before your buddy and absorb the atmosphere, which is buzzing by 8am on weekdays. Staff in waistcoats are warm and welcoming (for those with a booking), armed with a choice of freshly pressed newspapers. And there’s bound to be someone of note peeking out from behind a copy of the FT. Bright, buttery scrambled eggs are wrapped in a twist of smoked salmon and the kedgeree remains a classic. Still the most fabulous place for breakfast in Mayfair.



