Dockland Diner

The only proper café in Docklands has about 50 seats and serves the entire Canary Wharf estate of 80,000+ people. It gets busy! The quality of food is no better and no worse than any other decent café and prices/​portion sizes are good considering the postcode. Peak times are insanely busy and getting a table can be difficult but having to make new friends on the larger tables can be fun. Expect to wait up to 25 minutes for food at busiest times (Friday lunch, mostly). There are no worries about cooked food being ‘sat’ under heat lamps for extended periods of time as the turnover here really is constant. 4 stars may seem generous but the unflappable and smiley staff let you know the waiting time before you order. The lesson of Docklands Diner? Canary Wharf desperately needs another greasy spoon or two to cope with demand. In the meantime, allow an hour for lunch.

The only proper greasy spoon café anywhere near Canary Wharf… and it seems everyone else knows about it too.
Decent grub, decently priced. It’s not pretending to be anything but a good old-​fashioned café and that’s what makes it great :)