Restaurants, Bars and Hotels Near the London Coliseum

St Martin's Lane puts you between Trafalgar Square, Leicester Square and Covent Garden, so almost every restaurant, pub and hotel below is under five minutes from the London Coliseum. These are some of the same picks we make at the Garrick and Wyndham's, because it's the same few streets.

Restaurants

Bancone (1 minute). The nearest proper meal to the door, and the one to pick when time is short: fresh pasta, quick service, and a bill that won't frighten anyone. The kitchen shuts earlier than you'd expect on Monday to Wednesday, so eat first.

Barrafina, Adelaide Street (1 minute). Counter-only Spanish, no bookings, so put your name down on the way past and have a drink while you wait.

J Sheekey (2 minutes). Fish, since 1896, in panelled rooms on St Martin's Court. The Oyster Bar next door is the same kitchen for less money.

Rules (4 minutes). Maiden Lane. London's oldest restaurant, open since 1798, and the one to pick when the evening is an occasion.

Clos Maggiore (4 minutes). King Street. The candlelit conservatory is the reason to go and it books weeks ahead, so ask for it by name.

Ivy Market Grill (4 minutes). Covent Garden piazza. Cheaper and easier than the original Ivy, and it'll seat a group.

Joe Allen (8 minutes). Burleigh Street, a theatreland institution since 1977, and one of the few nearby that's properly set up for after the show.

Ole & Steen (8 minutes). The Strand. A Danish bakery open from 6:30am, and the cheapest thing on this list by a distance. Right for a matinee day when you want something quick beforehand rather than a meal.

Bars and pubs

The Harp (1 minute). Chandos Place. A small award-winning cask ale pub that spills onto the pavement, and the pick if you care what's in the glass.

The Salisbury (2 minutes). St Martin's Lane. An ornate Victorian pub close enough to see the theatre from, engraved glass and brass throughout.

Mr Fogg's Tavern (2 minutes). St Martin's Lane, Victorian-explorer theming laid on thick. Good fun with a group, less so if you want a quiet one.

Lamb and Flag (3 minutes). Rose Street, down an alley, the oldest pub in Covent Garden at 1772 and entirely uninterested in impressing you.

Gordon's Wine Bar (5 minutes). Villiers Street. A cellar bar from 1890 lit almost entirely by candles, and unlike anywhere else within walking distance. You can't reserve the cellar, so allow time or sit outside on Watergate Walk.

Hotels

Page8 (2 minutes). St Martin's Place. The closest of our picks, 138 rooms and a rooftop restaurant, near enough to go back for a coat at the interval.

The Resident Covent Garden (3 minutes). Bedford Street, 57 rooms. The sensible middle: you're paying for the postcode and the rooms are straightforward, which for a night either side of a show is the right trade.

Premier Inn Leicester Square (5 minutes). The budget answer, in a period building, and closer to the theatre than the price suggests.

The Londoner (5 minutes). Leicester Square. Opened in 2021, six restaurants and bars, built downwards rather than up.

The Z Hotel Piccadilly (6 minutes). Orange Street, 132 rooms. Small rooms, no pretence otherwise, and the location is what you're paying for.

Corinthia (6 minutes). Whitehall Place. Five-star with a very large spa, for when the hotel is part of the trip rather than somewhere to sleep.