Cornerstone by Chef Tom Brown

Modern European restaurant · Hackney Wick

Cornerstone by Chef Tom Brown

Modern European restaurant · Hackney Wick

5

3 Prince Edward Rd, London E9 5NP, United Kingdom

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Cornerstone by Chef Tom Brown by null
Cornerstone by Chef Tom Brown by @TheInfatuation
Cornerstone by Chef Tom Brown by Infatuation - Reviews
Cornerstone by Chef Tom Brown by null
Cornerstone by Chef Tom Brown by null
Cornerstone by Chef Tom Brown by null
Cornerstone by Chef Tom Brown by null
Cornerstone by Chef Tom Brown by null
Cornerstone by Chef Tom Brown by null
Cornerstone by Chef Tom Brown by null
Cornerstone by Chef Tom Brown by null
Cornerstone by Chef Tom Brown by null
Cornerstone by Chef Tom Brown by null
Cornerstone by Chef Tom Brown by null
Cornerstone by Chef Tom Brown by null
Cornerstone by Chef Tom Brown by null
Cornerstone by Chef Tom Brown by null
Cornerstone by Chef Tom Brown by null
Cornerstone by Chef Tom Brown by null
Cornerstone by Chef Tom Brown by null
Cornerstone by Chef Tom Brown by null
Cornerstone by Chef Tom Brown by null

Highlights

This bright, laid-back spot serves up inventive, produce-driven dishes with an emphasis on seafood, making it a must-visit for flavor enthusiasts.  

Featured in The Infatuation
Featured on Michelin
Featured in Eater

3 Prince Edward Rd, London E9 5NP, United Kingdom Get directions

cornerstonehackney.com
@cornerstonehackney

$$$$$

Information

Static Map

3 Prince Edward Rd, London E9 5NP, United Kingdom Get directions

+44 20 8986 3922
cornerstonehackney.com
@cornerstonehackney

$$$$$

Features

dine in
delivery
wifi
Tap to pay
reservations
reservations required

Last updated

Jul 10, 2025

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@infatuation

"Cornerstone is in Hackney Wick. An area that’s an advert for regeneration in the same way that John Travolta is an advert for plastic surgery. And although this part of London continues to feel as strained and awkward as a tweenager at a family dinner party, this restaurant does not. The space is large and airy with a central open kitchen and Conran-ish tables of varying sizes either side. It’s simple and it’s calm. All of which adds up to a great restaurant. Albeit one that you’ll probably only visit once. The first thing you need to know is that Cornerstone is an expensive restaurant, though the atmosphere might not give this away. You’ve got couples who have booked months in advance to share the magnificent £16 crab crumpet on their anniversary. And you’ve got trendy sorts who booked last night just because they fancied drinking wine and eating £5 pickled oysters. You’re just as likely to see Skechers walk in here as you are Supergas, and it’s as friendly as your dentist and as relaxed as your father-in-law. All of which is to say, yes, there’s an underlying formality here. photo credit: Giulia Verdinelli As is the norm in this borough, the menu is made for sharing, despite some of the portions suggesting otherwise. That said, little will disappoint you here once you quit staring and start eating. The smallest section of the menu - the nibbles - has a couple of essentials. Grilled sourdough is a must order - for filling up and mopping, and the oysters too - for flavour. The pickled oyster has a dollop of horseradish cream on it and is particularly delightful if you’re the kind of person who snacks on gherkins. The raw one comes with a seafood hot sauce and has just the right amount of tingle-factor. Once you have one you’ll want the other, and that’s the approach you should take at Cornerstone. Why stop at oysters when the tartare is right there as well? This is also the approach you should take when it comes to the mains, because it’s here where you’ll find the crab and rarebit crumpet. If humans are 60% water then this crumpet is at least 90% butter. Which is obviously a very good thing. At £16 it’s one of the most extortionately delicious bits of bread you can eat in London. It’s also, laughably, made for sharing. This is a single palm-sized breakfast item loaded with butter, crab, and cheese. You’ll just as eagerly share it as you would a seat during rush hour. To a lesser extent, the same goes for the expertly flakey hake in curry sauce: a £17 main you would easily see to, anaconda-like, alone. Cornerstone’s problem, or rather your problem, is that to leave satisfied, you need to go all in. Bread, oysters, tartare, crumpet, hake, plaice, banoffee tart, kind of in. This restaurant rewards greedy decisiveness, not polite floundering, and a have-the-lot attitude is going to cost you a minimum of £60 a head before you even factor in an aperitif or a bottle of wine. That means you’re probably looking at three figures each, but that’s okay, because this is a one time, why not, occasion place. One where some of the food is excellent, even if you won’t find yourself wanting to run back there again and again. Food Rundown Grilled Sourdough Crusty bread doused in oil is never not a good thing, and seeing as a couple of the mains here are saucy numbers, you’ll want this to dunk and soak later on. Raw Oyster With Seaweed Hot Sauce You may think an oyster is an oyster, but this one has a seaweed hot sauce that makes you feel like a pin is tap dancing on your tongue. photo credit: Giulia Verdinelli Pickled Oyster With Celery, Horseradish, Dill The idea of sitting alone in a room all night, just eating oysters, and drinking gin, sounds a little sad, doesn’t it? Well, we thought that until we ate this oyster. And now you know what we did last weekend. Bream Tartare, Egg Yolk, Seaweed, Soy This is fresh, smooth, and a little bit salty. It’s like a Rihanna album in tartare form. The must order dish from the cold section of the menu. Mackerel Pate With Treacle Bread Pretty as a picture, but one of the few dishes you’ll more than happily share with one or two others. Tip top bread though. photo credit: Giulia Verdinelli Crab Crumpet, Rarebit, Worcestershire Sauce A dangerous bit of food. Not choking hazard dangerous. More overdraft-extending, order and eat ten, start sweating clarified butter, dangerous. Get two. Sod it. Get three. photo credit: Giulia Verdinelli Plaice, Roast Chicken Butter Sauce Just like when you buy a pack of Walkers roast chicken flavour crisps, when you order this you’ll imagine a juicy, glistening, majestic roast chicken. Just like when you eat a pack of Walkers roast chicken flavour crisps, you will be let down. This dish is nice, the plaice is perfectly cooked, and the goujon is fun, but sometimes your imagination does you dirty. Hake, Curry Sauce, Crispy Potatoes Anything lying in a pool of katsu curry sauce gets our vote. Flakey hake with curry sauce for Prime Minister! Fish in curry with salty potato strings on top for President! Make sure you’ve got some bread to mop it all up. photo credit: Giulia Verdinelli Strawberry Pavlova An extremely Nigella dessert. Your mum’s watched Saturday Kitchen, has friends coming round, and ‘wants to make something summer-y, you know?’. Perfectly tasty but perfectly forgettable. Banoffee Tart, Lime Ice Cream Put it this way: there could be a deadly epidemic known as the banoffee virus, and we’d say we’re actually quite down with it." - Jake Missing

Cornerstone Review - Hackney - London - The Infatuation
View Postcard for Cornerstone by Chef Tom Brown
@michelinguide

"Tom Brown is an alumnus of Nathan Outlaw and it shows in his skilful cooking, which is dictated by the daily catch. Assured, understated dishes are packed with bold, clearly defined flavours and plenty of originality, and there’s often more to combinations than first meets the eye. Raw dishes compete with those that are cooked; ensure you start with some snacks – such as the chalk stream trout pastrami – before moving on to plates which burst with complementary flavours. The room has a pared-down, faux-industrial style and the open kitchen creates a lively, buzzy vibe." - Michelin Inspector

Cornerstone
View Postcard for Cornerstone by Chef Tom Brown
@eater

"Tom Brown’s restaurant in Hackney Wick has one star." - Eater Staff

Every Michelin-Starred Restaurant in London
View Postcard for Cornerstone by Chef Tom Brown
@eater

"Chefs Tom Brown and James Toth picked one up for seafood sharing plates spot Cornerstone in Hackney Wick." - Adam Coghlan

Michelin Stars for 2021 Go to London Restaurants in Michelin Guide U.K. - Eater London
View Postcard for Cornerstone by Chef Tom Brown
@infatuation

"What It Is: A Hackney Wick, seafood-focused, sharing/small plates spot. Perfect For: Corporate Cards, Small Plates Cornerstone is in a bright room that feels modern and fresh. Unfortunately, besides a decent but tiny potted shrimp crumpet, and an £18 plate containing three scallops in green sauce, the food was unmemorable. A sickly sweet pork belly dish was downright unpleasant. Friendly service and an oddly generous crumble for dessert wasn’t enough to salvage a meal that we were still hungry at the end of. The Verdict: We’ll come back here for dinner as the menu changes regularly, but at the moment it feels like a nice place that’s being let down by the food." - Sam Collins, Oliver Feldman, Heidi Lauth Beasley, Jake Oliver, Eileen Twum

The Ride-Along Report: First Takes From Last Night’s Dinner - London - The Infatuation
View Postcard for Cornerstone by Chef Tom Brown

Stephanie Hoang

Google
A place for seafood lovers looking for a twist on traditional dishes. We went for the tasting menu (£80pp). It was the perfect amount of food to fill me up, but I felt like the portion sizes for each dish felt a bit small for the price. I really liked the buns and the pickled oysters. Both were flavors and textures I haven't had before. Overall, it was a nice meal, but I wasn't enamoured.

Lulu Meng

Google
Exceptional! It’s hard to say when I am positively surprised when people already raved about this place for a long time. There’s a big hint of Asian flavours and seafood heavy lush ingredients with a big punch but well balanced flavours. For a Michelin starred place the portions are very generous. Great wine pairings and vibrant atmosphere. Highly recommend and will go back soon.

V MK

Google
Honestly one of the best meals I’ve had this year. I was genuinely sad while eating this as I had left it to closing week to go and will never get to experience this again. I really wanted to try the tasting menu but they advised it would be too much so picked a few items off the menu. Was delighted when they brought me snacks and bread. The little choux snack was outstanding. So rich and savoury. I’m not a fan of rosemary but the Rosemary Collins was unexpectedly florally and so delicious. Went for the raw oyster with the play on xo sauce and I have no words for how delicious this was. Perfect to mop up with the bread. The cuttlefish cacio e pepe was so delicate and rich. Then the star of the show was the Kyiv, which I’ve been waiting years to try and it didn’t disappoint. Rich and decadent. I was sobbing on the inside that this might be my only opportunity to have this. Stuffed at this point, I decided to have the chocolate peanut dessert which was everything I’d hope it would be. Sweet, salty and the perfect way to end the meal. I loved that this whole experience felt accessible and casual but the food and service was everything you’d want from a Michelin star restaurant. So slick and the attention to detail made it worth the journey to hackney wick. Can’t wait to see what he does next 🙌🏽

Katie Horsfield

Google
Exceptional seafood experience! 5 Stars! We have wanted to visit this restaurant for ages and it didn't disappoint. We sat at the counter and watched the chefs who were incredibly professional and great to watch. We opted for the chefs selection which is £80 per head and lots of food. Stand out dishes were the Pickled Oysters, Cured Gurnard XO Crab Bun and Hake Kiev with Lobster Butter. We were also served delicious bread with crab butter and fantastic cocktails. Great cocktails and wine selection. Great service and a cool vibe. Highly recommend.

Ada

Google
Tried the chef special menu (aka tasting menu) and it was incredible. Each dish has its own character, flavour profile and very nice presentation. The crab infused butter and crab oil with balsamic vinegar tip for the bread was so good, probably didn't need that trout to go with the bread. The highlight for me was the tuna tartar with egg yolk and yuzu dressing, and the crab bun was very nice too, but I think the Hoisin sauce is not needed. The Hake Kiev was a very nice surprise, tasted exactly like a chicken Kiev but with fish. The cocktails were great too, who'd have thought adding a bit of olive oil would make such a nice difference!

J G

Google
Food here is exceptionally good. The tasting menu is inventive, packed with variety, and some of the best seafood I’ve had in London. Gurnard and crab bun were definitely standouts. If I’m nitpicking, our service was a little cold and impersonal but perhaps she was having an off day. The dessert also looked better than it tasted - still nice but not on the same level as the rest. This is well worth a visit

Michael Kelley

Google
Cornerstone presented the most inventive and delicious seafood I’ve ever had! What a wonderful, creative take on cuisine. Our server was immensely knowledgeable and walked us through what could be considered a bit intimidating menu. Once we were educated, the real fun began. We loved the vibe, the intense flavor combinations and general energy of the restaurant. Unfortunately, as the evening wore on, our server suddenly disappeared, and was replaced with someone else, the attention to detail was lost, and as the staff began to close down for the evening, we found ourselves nestled in one side of the restaurant, while the other was stacked with chairs on tables as the staff huddled in the center of the restaurant, ready to go home.

Ash Mo

Google
My friend and I are big seafood lovers so when we saw the menu we made a reservation right away. I like how the kitchen is located at the centre of the restaurant and is open so we can see how the food is prepared. We didn't go for the tasting menu so picked out a few dishes we wanted to try. In general the food is really nice but I think the seasoning / sauce is a bit on the salty side. Our favourite fish is definitely the hake kyiv and I would recommend that definitely.