A Sunday roast is a large midday meal of roast meat, roast potatoes, vegetables, Yorkshire pudding and gravy, traditionally eaten on Sunday. In London, pubs are the best place to try one, but the good ones fill up, so book a table a few days ahead.
For many British families, Sunday lunch is the most important meal of the week: a long, relaxed meal around one table, often after a walk and before an afternoon doze. Pubs took over the tradition as people started eating out more, and today "Sunday roast" is on the board outside pubs all over London.
This guide explains what comes on the plate, which sauce goes with which meat, why booking matters, and how to tell a good pub roast from a tired one. It is one of the classics covered in our guide to traditional British food.
Sunday roast essentials
- When
- Sundays, usually from lunchtime into the afternoon; some pubs serve until the evening or until the kitchen runs out
- Main meats
- Beef, lamb, pork and chicken; often a sharing roast for two or more
- Always on the plate
- Roast potatoes, seasonal vegetables and gravy
- Yorkshire pudding
- Traditionally with beef; many pubs now serve it with every roast
- Vegetarian option
- Nut roast or a vegetable pie or Wellington in most pubs
- Booking
- Strongly recommended for popular pubs, especially between 12:30 and 15:00
What comes on a roast dinner plate
A roast dinner is built around one meat, cooked in the oven and carved into slices. Around it go crisp roast potatoes, two or three vegetables and a jug or generous pour of gravy. Portions are large, and many people skip starters to leave room for pudding.
- Roast potatoes: parboiled, then roasted in hot fat until crisp outside and fluffy inside. They are the part of the plate most people judge a roast by.
- Vegetables: typically carrots, parsnips, green beans, cabbage, broccoli or peas, depending on the season. Red cabbage appears in autumn and winter.
- Cauliflower cheese: cauliflower baked in a cheese sauce. A popular extra, sometimes charged separately.
- Stuffing: a baked mix of breadcrumbs, onion and herbs such as sage, usually with chicken or pork.
- Gravy: a rich brown sauce made from the meat juices. Ask for extra if you like it; most pubs are happy to oblige.
Yorkshire puddings are not a dessert
Despite the name, a Yorkshire pudding is savoury. It is a light, puffy cup of baked batter made from eggs, flour and milk, crisp at the edges and soft in the middle. Traditionally it is served with roast beef, but many London pubs now put one on every plate because diners expect it. It is designed to hold gravy.
A Yorkshire pudding should be hollow and crisp. A good one rises tall around a soft centre and holds a pool of gravy. A flat, pale or chewy Yorkshire is a sign that the kitchen made them hours earlier, and the rest of the roast may have waited just as long.
The meats and their traditional sauces
Each meat has its own traditional sauce or trimmings. You do not have to follow the rules, but knowing them helps you read the menu.
| Meat | Traditional accompaniment | What to expect |
|---|---|---|
| Roast beef | Horseradish sauce, Yorkshire pudding | Often served pink in the middle; say if you prefer it well done, although not every kitchen can change it |
| Roast lamb | Mint sauce (chopped mint in vinegar) or redcurrant jelly | Leg or shoulder; spring lamb is a seasonal highlight |
| Roast pork | Apple sauce and crackling | Crackling is the crisp, salty roasted skin; the best pork comes with a large piece |
| Roast chicken | Stuffing, bread sauce, sometimes small sausages wrapped in bacon | Often half a chicken or a sharing whole bird |
Many pubs also offer a "sharing roast" or "roast for two", a whole joint or bird carved at the table or brought on a board. It can be good value for a couple or a family and makes the meal feel like a proper Sunday lunch at home. Turkey mostly appears at Christmas, when many pubs switch to festive menus; see our guide to Christmas in London for the season.
Why you should book, and when to go
Sunday lunch is the busiest service of the week for many London pubs. A well-reviewed pub may be fully booked for the main lunchtime hours several days in advance, especially in autumn and winter, when roasts are most popular. Walk-ins are sometimes possible at the bar or at outdoor tables, but you may wait or find that the most popular meats have sold out.
Most pubs take bookings online through their own website or by phone. When you book, check how long the table is yours for: some pubs run two or three sittings on Sundays and need the table back after about two hours.
A late-afternoon booking often gets the best table. The rush usually comes around 13:00 to 14:30. Booking later in the afternoon, when families have left, can mean a quieter room and a table by the fire, but check first that the pub keeps serving roasts that late and has not sold out of your meat.
How to spot a good pub roast
London has thousands of pubs, and roasts range from excellent to reheated. There is no single best place, and a good neighbourhood pub near where you are staying is usually a better choice than a famous name across town. A few signs help you choose:
- A short menu. Three or four meats plus a vegetarian option usually means they are cooked fresh. A long list of roasts can mean pre-cooked, reheated meat.
- Where the meat comes from. Good pubs often name their butcher or farm on the menu.
- Busy dining rooms and bookings. If a pub is fully booked on Sundays, locals think it is worth it.
- Recent reviews that mention the roast specifically. A pub can be excellent for drinks and poor at food, or the other way round.
- The hygiene rating. You can look up any pub on the Food Standards Agency's food hygiene ratings website. Ratings run from 5 (very good) to 0 (urgent improvement required).
Some of the most atmospheric places to eat are old pubs with wooden panelling and open fires; our guide to London's historic pubs covers the best-known buildings, although not all of them serve roasts. A carvery, where you choose meat carved in front of you and help yourself to vegetables, is a cheaper, simpler version that you will find in some chain pubs.
Pairing a roast with a Sunday walk
The traditional rhythm of a British Sunday is a walk, then lunch, then another walk if anyone can still move. London makes this easy. Popular combinations include a morning on Hampstead Heath followed by a pub in Hampstead or Highgate, a riverside walk in Richmond, or the park and market in Greenwich.
In the East End, the Sunday-only Columbia Road Flower Market fits well before lunch. Many streets in Islington have pubs with strong reputations for their roasts, and it is a pleasant area to wander afterwards. If you are building a weekend around the city, our two-day London itinerary shows how a Sunday can work.
Remember that Sunday is different in other ways too. Large shops may open for only six hours, between 10:00 and 18:00, and some transport runs a reduced service or has engineering works. Our guide to Sunday and bank holiday opening hours explains what to expect.
Vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free roasts
Almost every pub that serves a roast now has a meat-free option. The most common are a nut roast (a baked loaf of nuts, lentils, vegetables and herbs), a vegetable Wellington in puff pastry, or a pie. Check whether the roast potatoes are cooked in animal fat and whether the gravy is made from meat stock, because many pubs use beef dripping or goose fat. Some offer a separate vegetable gravy. Our guide to vegan and vegetarian London has more.
A roast can be close to naturally gluten-free, but Yorkshire puddings, stuffing and many gravies contain wheat. Ask the pub what can be changed, and mention coeliac disease clearly when booking. Food businesses must be able to tell you if a dish contains any of the 14 regulated allergens, including gluten, milk, eggs, celery and mustard. See our guide to gluten-free eating in London for more.
Gravy is the hidden problem for many diets. It is often thickened with wheat flour, made with meat stock and sometimes flavoured with wine. If you are vegetarian, gluten-free or avoid alcohol, ask about the gravy separately rather than assuming the "vegetarian roast" solves it.
Children, drinks and paying the bill
Sunday lunch is one of the most family-friendly times to visit a pub, and many offer children's portions of the roast. Rules on children in pubs vary from pub to pub, so check when you book. Under-18s may not buy alcohol, but under UK law 16- and 17-year-olds may drink beer, wine or cider with a meal if an adult is with them (the adult has to buy it). Our guide to London with kids has more family advice.
In pubs you often order food and drinks at the bar and pay there; others take orders at the table on busy Sundays. Our guide to pub etiquette explains how it works. A discretionary service charge is sometimes added to food bills, commonly around 12.5% in London, although this is common practice rather than a legal rule. By law, all tips and service charges must be passed to staff in full; see our page on tipping in London.
Prices vary widely, from a simple carvery to a premium gastropub with rare-breed beef, and they change often, so check the menu on the pub's website before you book. For a family, a sharing roast plus a children's portion is often cheaper than four individual plates. Sunday is also a big day for televised football, so if you want a quiet lunch, avoid pubs advertising live matches; if you want to watch, our guide to Premier League football in London explains the season.
Frequently asked questions
What time is Sunday roast served in London?
Most pubs serve Sunday roasts from lunchtime into the afternoon, and some continue into the evening. Times vary from pub to pub, and popular meats can sell out, so check the pub's website and book ahead, especially for a table between about 12:30 and 15:00.
Do I need to book a Sunday roast in London?
For a popular pub, yes. Sunday lunch is the busiest service of the week, and the best-known pubs can be fully booked several days in advance, particularly in autumn and winter. Some keep a few tables for walk-ins, but you may have to wait.
What is a Yorkshire pudding?
A Yorkshire pudding is a savoury baked batter of eggs, flour and milk that puffs up into a crisp, hollow cup. It is traditionally served with roast beef and gravy, although many London pubs now include one with every roast.
Can vegetarians eat a Sunday roast?
Yes. Most pubs offer a vegetarian roast, such as a nut roast or a vegetable Wellington, with roast potatoes and vegetables. Ask whether the potatoes are cooked in animal fat and whether the gravy uses meat stock, because many pubs use beef dripping or goose fat.
Can children eat Sunday lunch in a London pub?
Many pubs welcome families for Sunday lunch and offer children's portions, but the rules on children are set by each pub, so check when you book. Under-18s cannot buy alcohol, and only 16- and 17-year-olds may drink beer, wine or cider with a meal when an adult buys it.
Sources
- GOV.UK - Alcohol and young people (checked September 2026)
- Food Standards Agency - Food allergy and intolerance advice for consumers (checked September 2026)
- Food Standards Agency - Food Hygiene Rating Scheme (checked September 2026)
- legislation.gov.uk - Sunday Trading Act 1994, Schedule 1 (checked September 2026)
- GOV.UK - Distributing tips fairly: statutory code of practice (checked September 2026)