The symbol of St John is a flying pig. It represents the idea of “nose to tail” eating, which is a mission, or perhaps more an invitation, to return to the roots of honest English cooking. In concrete terms, that means that everything that comes out of the barn (or in this case, out of London’s central meat market Smithfield) will be eaten. At the time of the opening in October 1994 this was an even bolder statement; the restaurant was therefore at first shunned by several neighbours and journalists. But the rise of the Slow Food icon proved unstoppable. Today the former smokehouse is a throbbing trendsetter which hosts celebrities on a daily basis. The unique character of St John and its extremely simple interior (whitewashed walls and all) hasn’t been able to stop the rapid rise in popularity. On the contrary, it seems those who can butcher pigs and sheep on a daily basis also have the nerves to handle the continuous inflow of celebrities, and those who would like to think of themselves as such.
St. John Street 26
EC1M 4AY London- Clerkenwell
phone: +44 20 72510848
cuisine: british
daily 9.00 am - 9.00 pm
