Lantana Cafe in Islington

Lovely brunch with a decent coffee

14% discretionary service is day light robbery!Feels like you are in USA and it’s the highest we have seen, even for London standards. The brunch and coffee were decent, not extraordinary. Style over substance. Would not recommend based on their outrageous tips and mediocre food.

Great food and quick service. (Cold inside)

Great good, I had one of the salads which was so tasty and full of so many different things. The brownie was very lovely too. Lots of tasty gluten free options.

I had probably my worst brunch experience ever here today. The service was extremely chaotic. It was ridiculous that they failed to put in our order twice. What's even more frustrating was they forgot the poached eggs in my Pork Adobo Benedict... when the restaurant was only 30% full at the time! The manager took off the charges for our coffees that we had to order three times, and the missing poached eggs in the end. But she surely didn't forget to charge us a 14% service fee. Everyone makes mistakes so I would not blame the staff if they’re new. But Lantana as an established hospitality business that runs three locations in London - why should your customer pay for your mismanagement and incompetence?

Me impresionó mucho el tazón de coliflor bang bang, todo parecía muy fresco y limpio, tanta elección y genial para verduras y veganos, básicamente se podía intercambiar la mayoría de las cosas en un tazón para hacerlo propio, el café era hermoso tenía una leche de avena plana blanca que era exuberante. Nuestra camarera era encantador seguía comprobando que estábamos bien! Sin duda volvería!

Location food and atmosphere were great, went with friends and had an excellent time. Upbeat feel and food was reasonable for location too.

Had a delicious breakfast here on New Years Day. The staff was lovely and the food just as lovely :) They have a few different options rather than the normal breakfasts in town.

Brunch - the chicken French toast was not what I expected - it’s got an Asian sauce with chilli, and chicken was on bite sizes instead of a full piece.

Super delicious brunch food with amazing vegan options. I would absolutely return!

Great service, very tasty creative menu. Well done

A wonderful surprise. Had a delicious lunch and was very happy. Nice environment and good service.

An all round awful experience. Me and a friend decided to try it as she wanted the bottomless brunch. What an ordeal that was! First of all the service is absolutely abysmal, I felt like we were trying to hold onto sand as we tried to get the waiters attention. Second of all, the food was very underwhelming, there was no love in any of the meals. Lastly, to cap it all off! they charged me and my friend double! and that was after requesting for them to take off the service charge!! I will be going back to the restaurant to get a refund but it was an all round terrible experience and I wont be going back.

Veggie breakfast was delicious - everything was good quality, well cooked, and delicious flavour!

Disappointed with the food. Then irate at the bill. Firstly, I was asked if I wanted still or sparkling water. I asked for tap water - which appeared on my bill for £1 - not ok. Then on my bill there’s a £1 donation to charity. And by the way the service charge is 14%(?!) so I’ve been charged nearly £2.50 before I’ve even seen the menu. We opted for small plates. We were seriously disappointed in the quality of the food given the promising menu and reviews. 1. Padron peppers - covered in far too much paprika and not salted. Very bland. Served in a bed of ‘stracciatella’ which had the consistency of cottage cheese. 2. Croquettes - very tasty. 3. Salmon squares. Tasty enough but a rip off at £8 for the portion size 4. Chicken bites - tasty enough, though not enough dip. 5. Truffle flatbread. No taste of truffle at all. More of the cottage cheese. Very few mushrooms. Flavour was dominated by some green herb they had added. Not disgusting but not what we ordered. Was our main event at £18 and we were just so underwhelmed. Restaurant was quite cold, and service was average. We asked for the 14% tip to be removed and the waiter didn’t blink - doesn’t that say it all. We went round the corner to Officina 00 for dessert (which was packed to the rafters by the way!) Would not recommend Lantana.

Food is really good and it's a nice spot. Service is a bit slow

Yummy and lovely - staff are great, food always spot on and coffee next level. Perfect for a fancy brunch spot 🙌✨

Decent food, we came as a 3 and ordered the different french toasts. Coffee is average. Our waiter was very friendly, which is always a plus. Disappointed by the atmosphere and seating arrangement. We had booked in advance and were seated at a small and very low round table in the centre of the room- we kept getting hit by passersby since it was squished between all of the other tables. Very cramped and uncomfortable. Extremely loud. Not a pleasant experience at all.

Went for brunch on a Sunday, because it was the only place in the area where we couls find a table. The service was pretty fast. Coffee was good, avocado toast was good, french toast was so and so. But the real surprises came when we paid: * 14% service charge!!! I’ve never seen this anywhere in the UK other than at very fancy restaurants * charged £1 for tap water!! Never been charged for tap water anywhere * the card machine has a step for adding a tip to your total, so if you’re not careful you could be paying even more on top of the default 14% Not nice. Will not come back.

Food was average, very expensive for what we got

Great brunch items and cocktail. The corn fritters are one of the house specialties and totally worth it!

Amazing smashed toast avocado, one of the best I ve ever had travelling around. Highly recommend

Food was delicious!! would definitely come again!!!

Lovely food, super coffee, in a relaxed atmosphere

Absolute trash, it smelled like burned diesel + paint. The steak was extremely dry and well done. Avoid

19 of us came to Lantana for a brunch on a hen party weekend - super impressed with quality of food, service and atmosphere. Would definitely recommend!

Very good food, cocktails, and coffee. Definitely worth a visit.

We had breakfast here, and were blown away with the quality and tastes of the breakfast dishes. Highly recommended!

Really overpriced for average food. Think it must be a touristy spot? The corn fritters were quite bland, small portion and lukewarm. The person who served us was moody and we had to keep flagging staff down to take orders/ more water etc. Of course a 14% service charge was added.. I am never a fan of places that add on a charity donation for tap water without asking your consent first. Overall, poor experience wouldn’t return. *meant to post a 1* but can’t edit rating.

The food and service were excellent! While the ambiance isn’t particularly cozy or modern, that didn’t take away from our experience. We thoroughly enjoyed our meal and would definitely recommend it for the quality of the food alone.

Great Au restaurant,friendly employees tables service and high teach cooking skill, Brunch that’s great!

Australian dining restaurant in London,nature and heathy foods ,brunch and breakfast do nice!2024/10/20

Pork Adobo Benedict was amazing

The food is ok. The place is covered in rat shit. There were droppings all over the bench we were sat on. When mentioned to the manager, she was not surprised.

Super cold, I dont think they have heaters! They charge 14% service fee and a fee to pay on card online???

Service is a little bit slow, but food is really amazing. Cool brunch spot, we came as walk ins and they had place for us to sit. Highly recommended if you are in shoreditch

Sunday brunch 😋 Great atmosphere, friendly, helpful staff! Great choice of fabulous food! Highly recommended!

Great tasting brunch, service was good. A nice little treat

Sorry folks, a bit disappointed. I used to be a Lantana regular as I lived in the area. It was always a treat. It's still a ok place to eat but from my last visit I'd say it's pretty average at this stage in it's lifecycle. Our food was fine but nothing particularly exciting about the dishes we ate. I was served a side of dry toast without butter initially and the corn fritters were generally a little lacking in something. Vegan/Veggie options are good. Ambiance is still nice enough although the back room was a little dark. Service was a bit chaotic but friendly. They've switched to the Sunday app since I was last there. I HATE the dark charging patterns of this app. 14% Service charge? (Cool!), Add an additional tip? (I'm sorry what?), Pay a platform fee? (Come on now!) I never understand why the customer is charged an extra platform fee just so we can scan a QR code and save your staff the hassle of a PDQ? I'm actually curious about that one. I'd suggest to the manager "Don't be a cheap and cover your own damn platform fees" Overall it's all...FINE but we're just not particularly fussed about coming back and I never thought I'd say that a few years ago.

Shame about the drilling! It’s my company doing it so sorry :(

Not coming back - takes AGESSSS to get served even though the cafe was at modest capacity!!

Nice service and staff. Decent enough coffee. Not so sure on the food. Warm French toast topped with cold pears and cream is a new one on me.

Delicious, fresh and healthy food. Great selection of breakfast options on the menu.

Tasty brunch with a great menu selection

Great coffees and cakes. Really enjoy lunch here there’s a good variety on the menu

Delicious brunch, the best coffee I've had for a long time and friendly, efficient service >£55 for two dishes and two drinks (including the 14% 'discretionary' service charge which couldn't be amended, a second page asking for an additional tip, plus a fee for paying the bill)

Good food. Coffee wasn’t fantastic. The end of the meal left a sour taste in our mouths. Asked for the bill and the server pointed at the QR code. Logged on and not only does the app charge you 80p per transaction (x4 for a party of 4) for doing something to make it easier for the restaurant but we were charged a 14% service charge (you can’t remove it unless you speak to a server which wasn’t possible on a busy Saturday) AND it asked for a tip on top of this 3 times before allowing you to pay via Apple Pay (the tip screen kept popping up every time you declined). 14% service charge, asking for a tip multiple times despite the inflated service charge AND an app charge. Felt like a real grift when service wasn’t fantastic. It’s a shame because the food was good, despite the high prices.

Fresh food, good atmosphere. I enjoyed the shiitake teriyaki poké bowl!

Lovely food, great service and brilliant atmosphere. Greta for those staying at Premier Inn old street as it’s a nice 5 minutes walk

The most delicious breakfast! Will be back!! Salmon avo toast was 10/10

Disappointing. Food was average. Poached eggs over cooked. Was looking forward to an Aussie forward breakfast with great coffee. Expensive.

Excellent service and good food. Visited Thursday night. Have a good menu selection. Lots of veggie items as well. I particularly liked the customization of main dishes where you can add things like egg or Halluoumi or chicken. Loved their Mezze board and fries as well. The not so good - don’t have beer on tap. But only cans. - tad expensive compared to what is available around them and the quality. Still worth visiting and trying out Australian food if you fancy.

Easy-going place for a late lunch.

Best breakfast I’ve had in a long time! Definitely recommend the bbq brisket hash.

Good spot for good coffee and lunch. Service a bit slow, but the food made up for it.

Love it! My favourite place. Good vibe, good food, friendly staff, amazing amazing amazing!

Delish! Came back for more - smashed Avo with bacon - yum!!

Delicious breakfast and great coffee. Highly reccomend.

Great food! Beautiful open restaurant!

Amazing food, great chilled atmosphere and delicious coffee!

Get the French toast (on the desert menu when it’s lunch time) and the crispy potatoes and you’ll see god - your welcome

Lovely breakfast here. Delicious flavours. Can recommend the smashing avo.

Service was good and quick. Nice waiter took care of us and atmosphere was chill. Only thing to let this place down a bit was some of the food. Bang bang Cauliflower starter was delicious. The chorizo bites were not too bad but would not rush to order again. The prawn dumpling smash tacos were not great at all. Flavourless (unlike a prawn dumpling which usually has lots of flavour) and covered in so much crushed peanuts it’s mostly what you could taste. Would not recommend that main option.

Great brunch / lunch spot. Delicious food and health juices

This review is mainly based around the attitude of the Barista who served me my take away coffee...the food at Lantana when I've eaten there in the past has been really good. Just before 10am today (17/6) I went in to buy a takeaway coffee at Lantana Shoreditch, the barista was just miserable, after she finished serving the lady on front of me she just stared at mebwith a blank unsmiling face there wasn't even a basic "Hello or how can I help you?" she maintained this look for the entire time she made the order then just put my coffee down and there wasn't even the basic "Goodbye or have a good day". I'm a hospitality worker myself, I have been for over twenty years and I get people have bad days or they're dealing with issues outside of work but the second you step into work you have to put on a smile and do the basics of your job at least. To top it off I really don't understand the cup/lid choice as it just spills coffee out of the top hole when you're walking and always dribbles after you take a drink.... unfortunately the coffee was at best average as well.

The sweet french toast was delicious (those poached peaches!!!) and the coffee was good. Friendly service!

Amazing food and superb service. We will return!!

Friendly service, nice venue and good food. The impossible vegan burger was great.

Very nice lunch. Quick service and helpful staff.

Surprising accidental find. Great lunch.

Amazing place! Highly recommend

Came here for a birthday bottomless brunch and it was 5-star. Niamh, particularly, made my party of ten feel welcome and went above and beyond with the food and service. Loved my Chicken French Toast and I heard others love the BBQ Brisket. Will definitely think of this place again for any future celebration.

Such a lovely time here having our lunch. We had the best server and her name was JB. She was so attentive to us and has a beautiful ora about her. Her smile could brighten anyone’s day!

Great food and service, came with a large group and they were very accommodating

Se topó con el café australiano como australianos en busca de un buen café. Es un lugar lindo y tenía un encanto Menú. Teníamos la mantequilla de maní Bircher Museli. Era muy agradable pero no muy mantequilla de maní, realmente no podía saborear mucho de ella. El café era decepcionante, ya que era amargo y fuerte y pedimos que extra caliente y llegó caliente, así que tenía que enviar de vuelta. La comida que vimos salir para otras mesas se veía deliciosa. Usted paga la factura en la mesa escaneando un código QR y tiene la opción de dividir la factura que se tiene y. Aunque hay un pequeño cargo por pagar de esta manera.

Nice food and good service. Try to avoid sitting at the round table by the side entrance, it's a bit of a drafty location when the door is open. Also a very noisy restaurant when busy.

This place is a decent option for breakfast. Not sure I would rush back. It had decent breakfast options, but not high end. There are better options around for that.

The Turkish Eggs at Lantana is one of those meals where you just have to slow down, and take the time to appreciate & enjoy the explosion of different flavours in every mouthful. It was an utter delight. If going here during the weekend, be prepared for a boisterous crowd as there are plenty of people partaking in the Bottomless Brunch. If you’re wanting a quiet venue, this is not the place to go - but the food is worth the noise. I just sat back, enjoyed my food and took pleasure in watching the others having fun. The Discretionary Service is 14%. Maybe Lantana has always charged 14% or maybe this is an inflation-related uplift from the standard 12.5% but given inflation impacts the base price charged…. Well, it’s not as if you’re going to argue about it when it’s on a £17 meal and you had good service but…

Wonderful Aussie brekky in the UK thanks

Quite loud so difficult to hold a conversation even on a Thursday lunchtime. Food was very good and service prompt and friendly

Very tasty breakfast and cakes options. I had the Turkish eggs.

Really lovely food. Coffee on point. Food OK, everyone raves about the corn fritters but didn't see what the big deal was. Think I chose the wrong dish. Will try again.

Lantana is good brunch stop and definitely worth the visit. The food and coffee are really good, but service when I went was slow. It’s much more expensive than other brunch options in the broader 0.5 mile vicinity though and with how slow the service was on a bank holiday Monday the food didn’t quite make up for it. 4 stars because it’s worth a visit and the Nasi Gorang was decent.

Breakfast was absolutely stunning. Streaky, crispy bacon was my highlight, and I loved that the toast was a pitta bread essentially

Lovely place ... I suggest booking the table in advance. Easy access to the restaurant via metro (station near by) there was no parking spaces or vallet. The food was brilliant ... i shared a Pork belly benedit and BBQ beef Brisket and for drink a classic Berry smoothie which was ok.

Always a great experience! Couldn't recommend enough, especially for breakfast / brunch!

Amazing flavors and sweetest staff, highly recommend :)

Corn fritters were ok but on the exxy side for the portion. The halloumi accompanying the fritters was absolutely perfect though. Service was efficient but not particularly warm.

The menu didn’t have many options I would eat. A friend wanted to go there. I thought we were going for brunch but they didn’t have brunch at the time. The server suggested the French toast on the dessert menu and it was good!

Great light meal, dog friendly, great staff!! Thank you 🙏🏽

Major complain is the 14% service charge on top of already quite expensive food. Food itself was tasy, however there was much chicken with the French toast and alot of it was just the crispy batter. Service was good though and nice seating.

Wonderful atmosphere and great food 👌

Food was tasty just a bit expensive for the amount of food you get. The pork bowl I ordered as well as the salmon poke was quite small in portion size. Service was good. No complaints there. The atmosphere isn’t anything very special just standard for a restaurant of that variety.

If you want one of the best breakfasts in East London, come here, the grilled banana bread is delicious (I mean it’s really delicious) both my daughter and I had the smashed avocado, incredible! Service was excellent, can’t fault. Highly recommend, and I will be back!!

Wonderful experience, delicious food and let us keep our table an extra hour. Defo coming back!!

We had an excellent brunch with coffee on Sunday (24 March). All was delicious. Dishes are clearly made by a well trained team. I complemented the staff on my way out and was told that the 3 Lantana restaurants are still under the wing of the same family. Lovely.

The food is high quality and a great range of options. I enjoyed seeing chicken salt on the potato gems. It was a nice atmosphere but unfortunately the service was a little cold which was more egregious due to the 14% service charge.

Great spot for breakfast & bottomless brunch ☕️🥂 Plenty of veggie options too The (optional) suggested 14% service charge seems excessive when most other places are around 12.5%

Excellent restaurant with perfect service. We came on Mother’s Day 2024 and we had a perfect experience. Bottomless brunch with desert. Excellent choice for us!

It's worth noting that if one person on your table gets a bottomless brunch option, everyone must get one. I can't find this listed on the website or displayed in the restaurant, and it means the difference between 1 meal + 1 drink and the alcohol free bottomless is about £20 extra for what is already expensive, bang average food. I wouldn't say it's worth the money at all.