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Interior - 51, London, Greater London

51

4.7 (101)
£26 to £40
Wine Bar
51 Exmouth Market, London, Greater London EC1R 4QL

About this restaurant

  • Great for fine wines
  • Neighbourhood gem
  • Charming
Please note we have switched from Opentable to Sevenrooms as our booking provider.

Any reservations can be made at this link - https://www.sevenrooms.com/reservations/51exmouth

Not available on OpenTable

Unfortunately, this restaurant is not on the OpenTable booking network. To check availability, please contact them directly.

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Dining areas

Additional information

  • Dining style
    Casual Dining
  • Price
    £26 to £40
  • Cuisines
    Wine Bar, Contemporary European
  • Hours of Operation
    Dinner Tue–Sat 17:00–23:00
  • Phone number
  • Payment Options
    AMEX, Cash not accepted, Mastercard, Visa
  • Dress Code
    Casual Dress

Reviews

OpenTable reviews from verified diners

Reviews from people who have dined at 51.

4.7

4.7
(101)
  • 4.7Food
  • 4.7Service
  • 4.8Ambience
  • 4.3Value

Noise • Energetic

Review summary

AI-generated from verified diner reviews
51 Cave à Manger in London offers a "consistently excellent" wine-focused dining experience with a "lovely atmosphere." The menu is small but appealing, featuring standout dishes like lamb and tuna. Some service inconsistencies were noted, yet many praise the "friendly" staff and "incredible" wine list. A special occasion spot.
101 Reviews
  1. Jonathan Gold

    Frankfurt9 reviews

    5.0

    Dined on 9 October 2026

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    consistently one of the very best wine-focused restaurants in London!

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  2. Milly

    London1 review

    3.0

    Dined on 2 October 2026

    1. Overall 3
    2. Food 4
    3. Service 1
    4. Ambience 4
    I've loved 51 for drinks on the terrace for a while and thought I'd try dinner. The setting is lovely and the atmosphere warm and candlelit. The menu itself is relatively small, but very appealing. The service however, is pretty lacking. I ordered from the unlabelled 'starter' section and specified that I would like my (fortunately cold) order as my main course (anticipating the trouble that ensued), quite clearly meaning at the same time as my parents' main courses. Mine arrived, then 20 minutes later, my mother's arrived and 10 minutes after that my father's finally came. When we spoke to the staff the first time, they said 'that's a starter', and were defensive even when we said we'd specified that we'd like it at the same time as the mains. When we spoke to the staff a second time, we were told 'we have a small kitchen and the food comes when it's ready' but that our mains were two minutes away. My mother's steak arrived after about 5 minutes, but no sign of my father's pollock. We spoke to the staff again, who once again defensively said 'the food comes when it's ready'. It took a further 10 minutes or so for my father's course to arrive, by which time my mother's food was lukewarm. I understand full well the concept of small plates and sharing but we had said on numerous occasions that we weren't going to be sharing. The menu is separated - unlabelled but intuitively - into small sharing appetisers, starters and two main courses. It is therefore obvious which courses are mains. In any restaurant, if you request your meal as a main course and to come at the same time, that request is honoured. Our waitress was relatively apologetic but clearly a bit put out, but the waiter was defensive and gave no apology. Such a shame when the food is otherwise pretty good, the atmosphere lovely and the prices quite high.

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  3. ellie

    London4 reviews

    5.0

    Dined on 26 September 2026

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    Excellent service, food and wine. Great value for money and I will be returning.

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  4. Claire

    Berkshire13 reviews

    4.0

    Dined on 19 September 2026

    1. Overall 4
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 3
    4. Ambience 4
    Great food and wine. All dishes were delicious. We shared a big selection of plates and all were great. Nice venue too. Music was a bit loud but we’re in our 50s and were sat next to the speakers 😜 Bill was high, but that was due to our drink choices. You can eat and drink here more reasonably. Most staff were lovely and friendly, just one of the staff was a bit off. Maybe she was having a bad day. Overall a lovely evening. Would recommend.

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  5. Anna

    London2 reviews

    5.0

    Dined on 18 September 2026

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    As always, 51 is the place to go for the perfect night.

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  6. Yvonne

    Surrey12 reviews

    5.0

    Dined on 15 September 2026

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    Really loved it. Sat at the bar. Great food and wine and the service was friendly.

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  7. Robert

    San Francisco Bay Area1 review

    4.0

    Dined on 12 September 2026

    1. Overall 4
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 3
    4. Ambience 3
    Fourth visit to 51 and the food remains consistently excellent. The lamb rack was a clear highlight — perfectly cooked with deep umami and a lovely complexity of flavours. The trout’s beurre blanc was delicious, and the pumpkin continues to be a firm favourite. The wine list is as strong as ever: excellent choices and a really extensive cellar. One small note on the plating — there was quite a generous (almost over-generous) use of herb oil across a number of dishes, which felt a little repetitive. Service this time was the one area that didn’t quite match previous visits. The team felt a bit rushed, less attentive and less able to offer the usual depth of knowledge and engagement. While the food was very much on form, the overall atmosphere and interaction weren’t quite at the same high level as before, so I’m not in a rush to return immediately — though the cooking and wine will almost certainly bring me back eventually.

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  8. Paul Gold

    London20 reviews

    5.0

    Dined on 9 September 2026

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    I really enjoyed my evening Great food, engaging staff and fun to speak to Fergus and Jack. Many thanks and I will be back.

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  9. Fenella

    London3 reviews

    4.0

    Dined on 27 August 2026

    1. Overall 4
    2. Food 4
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 4
    Cosy “cave a manger”. Small but interesting menu. Wine list looked impressive but we weren’t drinking a lot. Service was impeccable. Lovely people, flexible when our numbers changed. Food we ordered was really good - would have liked to try more things. Would definitely go back.

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  10. Danielle

    London10 reviews

    5.0

    Dined on 19 August 2026

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    It's pricey (I paid £172 for two), but it's worth it for a special occasion. The wine list is incredible, service attentive, dishes paced perfectly, and portions good. We had 7 dishes between us, from pinxos to larger lamb and tuna dishes. I have to say the lamb and tuna plates were exceptional; possibly the nicest tuna I've ever had. Highly recommend if you want somewhere special.

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Dining areas

Additional information

  • Dining style
    Casual Dining
  • Price
    £26 to £40
  • Cuisines
    Wine Bar, Contemporary European
  • Hours of Operation
    Dinner Tue–Sat 17:00–23:00
  • Phone number
  • Payment Options
    AMEX, Cash not accepted, Mastercard, Visa
  • Dress Code
    Casual Dress

FAQs

Guests have brought dogs to 51 Cave à Manger and found the team welcoming, one guest thanked the staff for letting them bring their little dog, and another said their dog loved it.

At 51 Cave à Manger, Tuesday evenings are a wonderful, relaxed choice, one guest called an impromptu Tuesday dinner “amazing”, and warm summer evenings on the patio are especially lovely.

At 51 Cave à Manger you can dine inside in the main dining room, grab a seat at the bar to watch the chefs, or head outside to the patio, the team keeps bar and outside seats free for walk-ins.

Guests report bringing dogs to 51, several reviews thank the team for letting them bring their dog and say their dog enjoyed the visit.

51 Cave à Manger has a cosy, romantic yet buzzy vibe, an intimate dining room with lively bar seating where you can watch the chefs, a great playlist, and warm, friendly service.

Yes, 51 Cave à Manger keeps outside seats and a patio for walk-ins, and multiple guests describe sitting outside on warm evenings.

Casual dress, comfortable, relaxed clothing is entirely appropriate; nothing formal is expected.

Tuesdays are a lovely choice, one guest booked an impromptu Tuesday dinner and called the experience "amazing."

Yes, 51 Cave à Manger is frequently recommended for romantic evenings, with guests praising its intimate, low‑key ambience and excellent wine service.

How FAQ content is generated

  1. Home
  2. United Kingdom
  3. London
  4. City of London
  5. Clerkenwell

Not available on OpenTable

Unfortunately, this restaurant is not on the OpenTable booking network. To check availability, please contact them directly.

Is this your restaurant?
Claim this listing
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