Guide Review: Anchor & Hope

Seasonal, quality British food in a comfortable pub atmosphere.

Quick hit: Solid, classic gastro-pub in Southwark.

Details: Booking essential. Southwark. ££.
Restaurant website. More on Instagram and Michelin Guide.
Find it on Google Maps. 36 The Cut, SE1 8LP.

When I first started working in the Sea Containers building in 2018 during my time at Ogilvy, it was very hard to find a decent lunch nearby. The restaurant in the then-Mondrian hotel was pretty good. And there were a few things down near Waterloo and Royal Festival Hall or up towards Borough Market. But Gabriel’s wharf was a disaster and the Oxo Tower was a tourist trap. So hosting a client nearby was a challenge.

I vividly remember my friend and then-colleague Leo Ryan suggesting the Anchor & Hope. We took a potential client there for lunch on a sunny day and wound up spending the afternoon. The food as I remember it was proper refined British gastro-pub at its finest. The wine list was interesting, and the beer selection was an array of interesting things that I don’t know very well. Always a good sign.

These days, finding lunch in Southwark is much easier. The Hoxton Hotel on Blackfriars Road offers two good choices, especially Seabird on the rooftop. Art Yard Kitchen in the Bankside Hotel is also good. And there is Lower Wine Bar near Waterloo station.

But the Anchor & Hope is still my top choice.

I revisited it recently, and was surprised to realise that I hadn’t included it in the first edition of the Guide. That oversight is corrected as of today.

The Anchor & Hope focused on seasonal British food. Its founders were involved in the Eagle, the original gastro-pub in Farringdon, and St. John, where British cooking found new life.

Since it got started in 2003, it has won all sorts of awards, and spawned a family of similarly-minded places from Oxford to Stoke Newington.

The interior is classic and comfortable, full of dark wood and creaky chairs, as any great pub should be. It would be easy to spend an afternoon or a night working through a few pints or bottles and setting the world to rights.

On my recent visit, I started with a chicken liver pâté that was served with excellent brioche. The pâté was rich, smooth, creamy, and delicious.

For main, I had partridge breast with confit leg. It was served with fantastic sauerkraut that provided a hit of acid to complement the creamy sauce. It was a full German or Alsatian treatment, and on a winter day, it was warming to the depths of my soul.

The Anchor & Hope changes its menu with the seasons. Checking today, a few weeks after my visit, I seen pheasant and venison, among other appealing choices.

I left feeling glad that I had returned to the Anchor & Hope after a few years to find it still going strong, and I am very happy to recommend it for a professional lunch. It is certainly the best place on the Cut and among the very best choices anywhere in Southwark.

Thanks for reading Professional Lunch. What are your top choices around Waterloo and Southwark? Let me know in the comments. And please do subscribe if you haven’t already.