At 39 Queen Victoria Street, in the City, London. The nearest station is Mansion House (District, Circle) or Bank (Central, Northern).

Which museums and sights are near Sweetings?

St Paul's Cathedral is 400 m away, Tate Modern is 700 m away, Tower of London is 1.3 km away. Distances are in a straight line from the restaurant.

What is Sweetings known for?

The counters, The habits, The City. A fish restaurant of the City that has not changed since 1889: high stools at marble counters, lunch only, no bookings. Seven minutes on foot from St Paul's Cathedral.

When did Sweetings open?

In 1889. On this corner since 1889.

Number 12 of 20 in London

Sweetings

Sweetings opens for lunch on weekdays and for nothing else. You sit on a stool at a counter with a waiter standing inside it, eat potted shrimps and grilled sole, and are back at your desk in an hour.

What it is: Fish restaurant
Opened: 1889
Area: City of London
Nearest museum: St Paul's Cathedral, 400 m

London this week

What Sweetings is known for

The counters
The room is divided into bars, each with its own waiter behind a white cloth. Latecomers wait with a drink until a stool is free.
The habits
Black Velvet, stout and champagne mixed, is drunk from silver tankards. Pudding is steamed and comes with custard.
The City
It stands on a corner of Queen Victoria Street, in the heart of the old financial district, a short walk from St Paul's and from the Bank of England.

What to know

On this corner since 1889
Open for weekday lunch only, and takes no reservations
The business began as a fish and oyster merchant in 1830

Where Sweetings is

Address

39 Queen Victoria Street
London EC4N 4SF, United Kingdom

Nearest station

Mansion House (District, Circle) or Bank (Central, Northern)

Museums and sights nearby

Distances are in a straight line from the restaurant.

A City lunch

John Sweeting set up as a fish and oyster merchant in Islington in 1830, and his oyster rooms moved between several addresses in the City before settling here in 1889.

It was built for the clerks and brokers of Victorian London, and it serves their successors in the same way.

Sweetings: common questions

Where is Sweetings?: At 39 Queen Victoria Street, in the City, London. The nearest station is Mansion House (District, Circle) or Bank (Central, Northern).
Which museums and sights are near Sweetings?: St Paul's Cathedral is 400 m away, Tate Modern is 700 m away, Tower of London is 1.3 km away. Distances are in a straight line from the restaurant.
What is Sweetings known for?: The counters, The habits, The City. A fish restaurant of the City that has not changed since 1889: high stools at marble counters, lunch only, no bookings. Seven minutes on foot from St Paul's Cathedral.
When did Sweetings open?: In 1889. On this corner since 1889.

What visitors say about Sweetings

Rating from Google

4.5

331 ratings on Google

Google's figures as read on 8 October 2026.

Read every review on Google

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