Darwin Brasserie in City of London, Westminster

⭐ Overall Rating: 3.5/5 Taste (Rating 3.5/5): I got the lobster roll with chips and I was very disappointed with the lobster roll as it tasted quite bland, the chips were at least well seasoned which saved the dish. Experience (Rating 4.5/5): Overall experience is great since staff are very nice but at times it was hard to get a hold of the staff members since it was quite busy, but overall was a good experience. Got a great view/seat as well which is a bonus. Cost/Value (Rating 3.5/5): Price was way too expensive (understandably) since you're paying for the view rather than the food. If the dish I got tasted great, I would've put the cost/value rating much higher but unfortunately I didn't feel like the lobster roll was seasoned well enough to my liking.

Telmo is the most amazing server. We had a fantastic time. Excellent food and service

Sky Garden is a place that can be entered for free, but there is not always a free ticket. If you want to go here, I recommend you to come to Darwin Brasserie for breakfast. If you come before 9 am, it will be an enjoyable event. Breakfast taste is average. The price is normally a little higher.

Book well in advance and you won't regret it. Restaurant on the top of the sky garden, the location alone would be worth going there even just for a cocktail, if we add to this the impeccable service and the excellent food with vegetarian and vegan options I can only recommend it.

Great views, obviously. Food was high quality but expensive £200 for two courses for two people + 1 glass of wine each). The "voluntary service fee" of 15% added to the bill is a bit cheeky. How many people feel comfortable asking for it to be removed.

The location of the restaurant is wonderful, the taste of the food is delicious, and the service is wonderful. The seating is comfortable. I recommend it, but I have a note that whenever I ask for a table next to the glass, they say it is reserved, and sometimes they say that there is an extra charge. This is annoying in the restaurant.

Brilliant for a business lunch, location and food top notch.

2nd time in this magnificent place

Place where you can eat with impressive views of the city. Idyllic place where we saw it is in the background. Very expensive for what it is, you pay more for the place than for the food.

Excellent place. Would highly recommend.

Great food and service from Telmo who surprised us with a dessert! :)

I’d like to especially commend and recommend Karina, the server, for her warm and attentive service. However, the food was disappointing—the burger was barely edible, the coffee deserves only two stars as it was over-roasted, and the environment was unclean, with even the windows left dirty.

I had an amazing experience at Darwin Brasserie! Even though we arrived about 10 minutes late, the staff was incredibly accommodating, which made us feel so welcome. The Sky Garden itself was stunning, and the views from the restaurant were absolutely breathtaking. The atmosphere was vibrant and energetic, with a happy, lively vibe, especially with the DJ playing in the Sky Garden area.I also appreciated the thoughtful touch of having individual washrooms which added a sense of comfort and convenience.Overall, it was such a memorable experience. The prices felt just right for the incredible location, views, and ambiance. I’d absolutely recommend it to anyone visiting London—it’s definitely worth it!

Very good time spent at Darwin brasserie where we had reserved a window table. Excellent food and attentive service, with a lovely view. I recommend!

The service was impeccable, thank you again for the attention provided, but then the food and its price… Despite the exceptional view, the prices are much too expensive compared to the quality of the dishes: overcooked, little balance in flavors, and a menu that goes in all directions. A bill at £170 for 2 which is not justified.

We had a magical experience at Darwin Brasserie! We were given an excellent table with a fab view over the Thames and the Tower Bridge, food was great, ambience perfect and service outstanding - overall we are very pleased, we will be back!

Here what matters is the view! Magnificent view of the London skyline. The cuisine is classic, nothing more. The price of a table with a view is £15 per person in addition to dishes.

Very good dinner, great ambiance and super view over the city. And the best service we ever had. Thanks Telmo!!!

"This was our first time and my birthday. The staff was very attentive and caring, and I had a surprise Bday message with my desert! Thank you so much! Will return definitely."

The Darwin is magnificent with a breathtaking view, Telmo Berges is an incredible server, I thank you for the surprise for my birthday at the end of the meal. An experience that I highly recommend!!

We were served by Richard, he was very friendly and polite.

We were recommended this restaurant as a great place to eat and to have an alternate view to London. Sadly, very disappointing. We were rushed through our meal, we were in and out in an hour, the staff were very gruff and not friendly. We paid for a window seat thinking we would have an amazing view, instead we were looking onto another viewing platform inside the building. To top it off we then had to queue to get out of the building. I would not even bother. The food wasn’t even that great either.

Exceptional place. The prices are extremely high compared to the quality of the food the dishes are very simple. It's very noisy. A big thank you to John the waiter, very kind. This brasserie is a tourist trap, come only for a drink but not to eat. 30 pounds to be against the window is excessive, for 2 we got €270. Prepare your wallets.

Great food and even better service from Telmo Borges!

Absolutely apalled by the service we had this morning. Booked for 11am hoping for a nice breakfast only to be told they don't serve breakfast after 11. This is stated nowhere on the website so already feeling disappointed. Next, we are told that they only do a set menu for lunch which is 3 courses for £80 per person!! I asked the manager if we could just leave since we only really wanted breakfast, only to be rudely told that the company cancellation policy is to pay the full price of the menu. The only thing she could "offer" was that we could order just one set menu for the both of us, instead of paying for 2. So, we ordered a soup for starters, the roast sirloin for mains and a stick toffee pudding for dessert. My partner is dairy free so we made sure the staff were aware these were all non dairy choices. The soup arrived, it was fine but nothing really special. The main was the biggest disappointment. The neat was ok, a little fatty for my liking. They only served 3 roast potatoes. And to accommodate the dairy free option, they removed the Yorkshire pudding and the carrots (presumably roasted in butter?) with no offer of substitution or extra potatoes or anything like that. The servers were rude and made little effort to be polite and welcoming, the manager was on her phone the whole time we were eating and all the other staff were standing around chatting amongst themselves. Honestly it was difficult to get anyones attention. The fact that we paid £80 for this level of service and frankly food not even worth £20 is atrocious and I would not recommend this place to anyone. To top it all off they automatically add the service charge which is 12.5%. I can see from other reviewers this isn't an uncommon experience. I hope management see these and take note for improvements. I certainly will not be coming back, and I'll make sure to recommend my friends avoid this place too.

Hella expensive place, for a hella bad service. We booked a table for breakfast, but on arrival we were given the brunch menu. When asked about the breakfast menu, they said that we couldn't order from that menu anymore. The brunch menu was a 3 course menu, to which you HAD TO order the 3 courses, no other option. When we said that we didn't wanted that, because it was a lot a food and we had an appointment right after, they said that the cancellation fee was the menu price: 80 pounds per person. Nowhere during the booking process its clear that you have to spent a minimum on food, or that you are forced to eat that amount of food. We felt uncomfortable throughout the whole meal, besides having to eat running so we could go to our appointment. The manager is really rude and ignorante. The rest of the staff look completely miserable. Highly not recommended. Never coming back.

Fabulous evening at Darwin's and outstanding service from our waiter Telmo. Friendly, efficient and helpful.

Beautiful space with great ambiance. Hearty dinner with impeccable service. Nice view over all of London

Perfect place to go with your partner. Food is perfect, the only “bad” thing is that there are not many beers .

The food was good and the view superb, but that was all. I had pre-paid for champagne on arrival but it was all forgotten, spoiling the surprise for my partner. The whole meal was rushed: we were rushed from the moment we chose the menus, and the service was timed from start to finish so we didn't even have time to look at all the choices. Added to this was a blatant lack of professionalism: the waiter asked the neighbours to leave quickly, refusing them a coffee on the pretext of a reservation that never took place. Finally, when we paid in cash, no change was given. A disappointing experience and far from what we had hoped for. I strongly advise against this, unless you want to have a magnificent view.

To state the obvious: Amazing views all around, the extra charge for a window seat is worth it (£10). We were very pleasantly surprised by the quality of the food. Sometimes restaurants with unique selling points like amazing views offer only mediocre dining, however, this is not the case at all! The vegan and regular full English were great in taste and good value for money. Overall, it was a fantastic experience and we would recommend it and also come back as well. There are only two minor things that could be improved to make the experience perfect: Have a larger tea pot option or unlimited black tea and not charge extra for milk alternatives.

TO RUN AWAY. Very poor execution of the dishes and for a completely irrational and unreasonable price you can find much better in London at that price. The dishes, in addition to not being very good, are served in minimal quantities, the fries are too salty. Disastrous experience. The only positive point to all this is the view from the table next to the window but of course you have to pay.

Excellent food. Excellent service. Highly recommend to visit this place as part of your London trip.

My partner surprised me by taking me there for dinner to celebrate our 10 years of relationship, I was amazed by the view the restaurant offers over London, especially in the evening with the illuminations. We had a great time, the dishes were delicious and the service impeccable. Thanks to Richard for his attention and kindness towards us! This is an ideal restaurant for such an occasion!

Our server Olexander was awesome. He was very kind, professional, caring and most importantly always smiling. The food was delicious, the ambiance was incredible along with amazing views. Our hostess Titania (I hope I spelled her name correctly) was very helpful and professional.

We booked a brunch table for two at 11:00 AM, looking forward to a relaxing breakfast. Upon arrival, we were given the so-called "Brunch" menu, which required us to choose between a 2- or 3-course meal, both of which were quite expensive. However, the dishes had little to do with a traditional brunch. Instead of classic breakfast options like Eggs Benedict or pancakes, the menu offered heavier lunch-like dishes such as steak or gnocchi. When we asked if we could order something more typical for breakfast, we were told that we had to choose from one of the menus since that was what we had booked. This response felt completely unreasonable, and I couldn’t shake the feeling of being taken advantage of. We came for brunch, expecting a relaxing meal with breakfast favorites, but were forced to order heavy lunch dishes instead, which didn’t sit well with us. After expressing our dissatisfaction, we were still required to pay the full price for the menu and left the restaurant feeling disappointed. The communication was poor, and we didn’t feel valued as customers. This was, unfortunately, a very unpleasant experience.

Had a great time at Darwins Brasserie. Telmo was our waiter. Very polite and efficient. Made good conversation too. Would highly recommend.

Best service and lovely view - we thought the food was just OK

The food was perfect and the views were unbeatable, but what we fell in love with was the service they had with us. Richard, who introduced himself at the beginning of the service, was the one who assisted us at all times (a plus that he spoke English and Spanish), helped us with all our questions and doubts about the site and even gave us good recommendations. We will repeat, thank you very much!!

Tourist-catching place. The food is good, but the prices are outrageous considering the quality and service. You won't get away with less than 100 euros each for brunch. Be careful: the water that is served in abundance, the bread and olives that you find available on the table without any request, will be invoiced in addition to the price of the brunch. The waitress had to be constantly asked for the service which, given the prices, was completely inadequate. The only positive note is the possibility of going up to the Sky Garden and enjoying the beautiful view of London.

For the price you pay for a set menu I was very disappointed. I booked a champagne welcome, and got "please sit at the bar and wait to be seated" Once seated the wait for my drink was 10 minute and I had to then ask for my champagne. Service was slow and lacking until the 4th waiter during ourmeal. It's a shame as the staff were lovely and polite, but the experience was really let down on all counts. I would put the food standard at the same level as a gourmet pub but priced at London upmarket restaurant prices. I certainly won't be coming back unfortunatly, as the cost is just too high and the standards to mediocre to rely on the views alone.

nice place with stunning view to London. I visited this place many times

Thanks to Halim for the service and the smile. Great experience for a breakfast ;)

watch out, if you reserve a table for four persons, and you paid an advance payment for reserving the table, and you don’t like to order for whatever reason, their policy is that they will charge you fully for the food for 4 persons. even if you don’t want to

Burger overcooked (no questions from the servers as to the cooking of the meat) and cake overcooked (burnt taste) EXCESSIVE price in relation to the quality of service and culinary delivery. To flee

Food was bleh. Management was extremely rude and should be fired. The overall atmosphere and view of the city was amazing. Only reason for one additional star.

We wanted to have a special lunch with my girlfriend, and since we couldn’t get the free tickets to the Sky Garden, we booked a table at Darwin. The restaurant and the view were amazing; I believe I’ve never been in a place with such a view before. However, the two main courses were incredibly overpriced. You won’t find anything super fancy or particularly delicious on the menu. I’m not saying the food is bad, but you could easily get better pork chops or chicken for a fraction of the price they charge. The desserts were also disappointing. I would also add that the service wasn’t great. The waitress seemed to be constantly hovering, asking every couple of minutes if we wanted drinks or anything else. And she wasn't particulaly kind when we asked question about the menu. Additionally, they charged a fixed tip of around 20%, which I didn’t feel was justified given the service. In summary, I recommend getting Sky Garden tickets in advance and avoiding the restaurant. It’s very overpriced for average food and service.

Not transparent, food not of excellent quality unlike the price and the obligatory menu. This brasserie is a disappointment, unlike the wonderful view

Told us 20 minute wait, made us wait 50 minutes. Overpriced, mediocre food.

A fine restaurant when we entered. Low budget, you might think. People in sweatsuits and screaming children. Unfortunately, the price could not be linked to this at all. My friend said in advance that we need to pay at least €75 to eat there. Well, fine, even though I think that's a lot of money for a restaurant that doesn't really look good, despite the view. Spent €215 for 2 soups and 2 hamburgers, plus 1 champagne that was 11 pounds and 1 Heineken beer. We really don't recommend it. What an amount. Be prepared.

Located on the 36th floor of the tower. From here you can also visit the sky garden for free. Exceptional food and equally exceptional staff

Very disappointed with this experience. Prices are extremely high for poor quality food and pretty bad service. The waiter was very insistent in taking our order even though we had not chosen, he came back three times putting pressure on us. Likewise for the wine service, we wanted to drink quietly but he came back almost every time we took a sip for us to finish the bottle and have another one. For dessert, he made a mistake in taking the order and almost forced us to have a dessert that we had not chosen, we had to insist on having the dessert that we had originally chosen. In short, bad. I absolutely do not recommend this restaurant. In Paris, you eat in famous restaurants for much less. Apart from the view, there is nothing to see in this restaurant, from starter to dessert, there was no taste on the plates and the quantities were minimal.

Top place, great food. Unbelievable atmosphere. Ashwin was our best waiter ever.

An excellent restaurant with unparalleled service from Richard, who provided us with exceptional treatment.

Everything perfect. Very good restaurant in a location privileged and with phenomenal service from Richard

Richard was lovely!! The spectacular space

A unique place and Richard's exceptional service!

First trip to Sky Garden Darwin Restaurant. Had the salmon starter which was oddly tasteless. Chose the Burger for mains and found it to be over salty along with the chips. The service was good and our server was attentive but found the experience to be overpriced and very disappointing; I felt like I was sitting in an airport lounge.

Very welcoming and very good food

The Darwin Brasserie is located on the 36th floor with a view of London. Before or after your meal, you can stroll through the sky garden on the 35th floor with a 360-degree view of the city of London. Absolutely splendid and remarkable! When it comes to cuisine, it is refined and very popular. The price is certainly not cheap but considering the situation, it seems to be justified compared to other restaurants in London. For families, children can benefit from a specific menu which softens the bill. Recommended!

Price to food quality ratio is a robbery.

It’s a good place for family gatherings! We came here during the Christmas and NYE period. The food is great and the service is good too. The staff, especially Telmo, are extra friendly and helpful! :)

Great food and atmosphere, great way to get access into the sky garden early

Choice menu (brunch). Add a glass of bubbles. Atmosphere is busy and factory-like. Food is very mediocre and extremely expensive. Dry aged rib eye returned with an extra price tag on the menu of £17.50. Was cold inside. On the bill. Drink even worse. After the bubble a glass of white wine...24 pounds😪 Ridiculous... I understand that the location can make things expensive, but this is out of all proportion. Quality versus price is completely lost... Staff running around, cramped and way too expensive.

Nice view, but way over priced for mediocre food. Cost us over £400 for 4 adults and 2 kids (excluding drinks). Very poor service for a family with young children (3 and 5). Not given children’s menus when seated; took 5 minutes to get attention to request kids menus; kids drinks were not offered upon order; requested kids mains to come out with adult starters but they came with other mains; and kids desert portion was way too big for a child. Way over priced for quality of food. Would not recommend.

Plenty of staff and nobody attended us for 10+ mins. Staff was passing by and not even looking at us. It wasn’t busy, staff was standing looking around without paying attention. We left without ordering anything. Expressed how dissappointed we were to a staff at the entrance. Highly doubt this concerns would be communicated even.

Food was of excellent quality, and the price felt reasonable given the location. However, I wish the service had been quicker, especially since I visited during an off-peak time.

Always a bit apprehensive about set menus around Christmas. This was the best one I have ever had a good choice. Even the Christmas turkey dinner was the best I have had and would highly recommend it. We had the ribeye steak. Smoke salmon and roasted beetroot for starters. And desert chocolate mouse and sticky toffee pudding. Service was friendly and attentive. We lovely the walk through with the lift it felt like we walked out if one place into another time.

No interest. Free access is better. This morning we come for breakfast and not even hot chocolate. In the free access section with the best view. Calmer and hot chocolate... Tourist catch

It was a great evening with a unique view and good food. Unfortunately it was a bit loud and it was difficult to understand the service. You should reserve in advance, especially if you want a window seat.

The staff was incredibly enthusiastic, and Andrea made us feel right at home—who wouldn’t want an Andrea at home? The experience was magical, as my son even started believing in Santa again after a delightful conversation with the waitress. The food was expertly prepared, with the beef Bourguignon standing out as exceptionally tender and absolutely delicious. A truly memorable dining experience!

Food, drinks and service was excellent! Had a great night. Thanks

Amazing location! We booked a table at the window & it was SO worth it! Great service & food!

Great food, amazing views and service by Telmo Berges was top notch!

A real "plus" would be that... this (incredible) nice place (Darwin Brasserie) be a little "less noisy"... We struggled quite a lot to understand each other, my wife and me, alongside our (nevertheless) wonderful dinner...

Absolutely horrible experience! We booked this restaurant for our anniversary and even paid £30 extra for a “special view,” but it was a complete waste of money. From the start, the service was terrible. The (short) Italian manager was incredibly rude, unprofessional, and had zero sense of hospitality. The server who attended us wasn’t any better—both made us feel unwelcome the entire time. It’s beyond me how this place has not shut down already—it was completely empty when we arrived, and I now understand why so many negative reviews exist. Avoid this place at all costs. Spend your hard-earned money somewhere else!

Very nice service from Telmo Borges!

The staff go above and beyond. Facilities are clean Food amazing Door staff attentive

We had dinner at Darwin Brasserie on a weeknight. The setting is exceptional, the view is superb and the restaurant is very pretty. Unfortunately, as is often the case in these kinds of places, you pay for the setting. The place is very busy and therefore very noisy. The cocktails are overpriced (£18), served in a glass of champagne 3/4 full, and are not particularly good. The dishes are not bad, but again, much too expensive for what it is. For example, we had a pear crumble for dessert which cost £11. Some pieces of pears were not cooked and the crumble was just a powder. We were charged £3 for tap water and £6 for standard bread. Finally, added to an already hefty bill are the service charges of 13% of the bill, which the waiter asks us to pay in cash... Bad luck for him, we didn't have any . Concerning the waiters, they are very nice... even too nice (he asked us every 10 minutes how we were). At the end of the meal, he gave us a card to rate it, explaining that there was a competition between waiters for the scores (this explains it...). In conclusion, I recommend this restaurant for dining in an exceptional setting. However, you should not expect great cuisine or a quiet place. Still, it's a fun experience, except for your wallet.

I have booked the venue at Darwin's brasserie to celebrate Christmas with my son's family who were visiting me from Netherlands. What a disappointment... Huge money but no service for it. We felt very unwelcomed there. The waitress was passively aggressive, the food was made yesterday... It looked like they didn't care about customers - they were just a cash point for them. Even though that the view through the windows was good - it spoiled all the experience... Never again.

In the entire world few views match this wonderful restaurant, Super attentive and exquisite food, Thanks to Ashwin and Richard for their advice We will return

Starting with the views, the place is already enchanting, but the entire experience was wonderful, the food was exquisite and the service unbeatable, especially that of Ashwin and Richard who were our waiters!!!

The location is beautiful, wide view. The pan cakes aren't that great... not very good in my opinion, I've eaten better.

Lovely place, great food and greater views

Great food and views but initial greeting from staff had a ‘couldn’t be bothered’ attitude

Excellent service by Telmo. He was very nice and funny and although I was full, he made me want to order more.

Easily up there for one of the coolest places I've dined in. The Sky Garden itself is beautiful and you can see all of London from up there. Service was absolutely stellar. Sruthi was a saint in directing us on the menu and providing exceptional service. 3 Stars is really because aside from the Atmosphere and Service, I didn't think the food was very great. The Goat Cheese tart was pre-prepared and would've done well to be heated up (the crust was brittle and cold). My entree, the turkey, wasn't anything special and underseasoned as far as I'm concerned. The only real redemption was the sticky Toffee pudding which was incredible. It really made the meal and was clearly the best item I ate. If I came to visit, got a dessert, looked out the edge, and enjoyed company, this is a 4 or 5 star, but the food is expensive and not anything special.

Very nice restaurant with a very warm welcome. Surprising and very fine dishes. A delight!!!

My dear culinary fans, I will start with positive notes before focusing on my specialty which are the pastries/confectionery and desserts which were not up to par (of the tower) this evening. We opted for the tartare and the Darwin burger, which were simply divine accompanied by an overpriced Burgundy but which revived our taste buds. Now for the not-fun part…dessert. We all chose the chocolate mousse and I can tell you that we were big on the potato. From the first bite, we immediately wanted to hurt ourselves. The chef should be ashamed of offering such a mousse to chocolate experts like us, yes we are Swiss so what! We are demanding and there is no need for that. Shocked disappointed but hey we stay standing with a lump in our stomach. Natoo waitress at the top!

Delicious lunch to celebrate a big birthday with my family. Telmo served us and was an excellent host, full of smiles, incredibly helpful and made the whole event a lovely experience for us all

We had a wonderfull time in Darwin Brasserie. The waiter ‘Telmo’ did a fantastic job

Great place, great food and great services. Waiter alin made my night

What a fantastic evening my wife and I had at the Darwin Brasserie sky Garden. It was my wife's birthday who was buzzing from the whole experience, made even more special by our waiter Telmo who was absolutely brilliant and a credit to the restaurant.

Overpriced and manager was rude. 3 course meal costs £80 for adults and £22-£23 for kids. Plus service charge on top. We were 2 adults and two kids. I wasn’t hungry and wanted to order something small but was required to order 3 course meal. Also they didn’t accept cash at the end. Food was nice though. Just they are very inflexible.

Very nice atmosphere. The food was good but didn't really justify the price. Still worth a visit.

It was absolutely fantastic ! Fantastic food and fantastic view ! I advise to book a table close to the window !

Recommended! Beautiful views (as long as you avoid the fog) and good food, which of course you have to pay well for. We had breakfast here and then there were fewer people inside, so we escaped the queue downstairs. Set aside time to see beyond London's skyline in 360 degrees!

Excellent service, good food, pleasant atmosphere!

An amazing location and we felt totally at ease bringing our two children here. Not at all stuffy or pretentious. Dealt with my youngest child’s allergies brilliantly. Thank you to Telmo for his service!

We had breakfast in the Darwin Brasserie and reserved a window seat for £20. Our waiter Telmo Berges said it was the best table in the place and we couldn't agree more. We had a corner table and therefore had a great view of London. Unfortunately it was a bit foggy. However, the tables could be a little larger. We chose the breakfast menu and the food was pretty tasty. We had the Full English Breakfast and Eggs Benedict. The eggs were really perfectly cooked. The only drawback would be the baked goods, which weren't really anything special. The hot chocolate was the best in London so far! Our service was really wonderful, Telmo went to a lot of trouble and even took photos of us. We had a very great experience with him! The prices were okay for London and the location, since you are also in Skygarden. The extra cost for the window reservation was expensive, but since it's London that shouldn't ruin our trip.