Private Dining Rooms in the City of London
The City of London has one of the capital’s strongest selections of private dining rooms for business lunches, client dinners, corporate entertaining and company events.
Known as the Square Mile, the City is home to many of the world’s leading financial, insurance, legal and professional services businesses. Its concentration of restaurants, hotels, historic pubs and contemporary bars provides private dining options ranging from discreet rooms for a small business meeting to larger spaces for corporate dinners and drinks receptions.
Private Dining Rooms (PDR) brings together private dining venues across the City of London, making it easier to compare restaurants and private rooms according to guest numbers, cuisine, style, occasion and budget.
The Best Venues in the City of London with Private Dining Rooms
Private dining in the City ranges from restaurants in and around some of London’s best-known modern office developments to historic dining rooms, hotels, traditional pubs and venues within landmark buildings.
Bank, Liverpool Street, Moorgate, Bishopsgate, Fenchurch Street and the areas around St Paul’s and Cannon Street all provide good choices for private dining and corporate entertaining.
Private rooms range from intimate spaces for a handful of guests to larger dining rooms and event spaces suitable for company dinners, celebrations and standing receptions.
Corporate Private Dining and Business Entertaining
The City is particularly well suited to corporate private dining.
A private room provides a discreet setting for an important client lunch or dinner, while larger spaces can accommodate company celebrations, networking events, presentations and corporate receptions.
For businesses based within the Square Mile, choosing a venue close to the office can also make it considerably easier to organise an event around the working day.
Many City venues cater specifically for corporate groups, with private dining menus, drinks packages and room layouts designed for business entertaining.
Private Dining for Business Lunches and Dinners
Business lunches and client dinners remain an important part of the City’s restaurant scene.
Smaller private dining rooms can provide a quieter setting for conversations that would be difficult in a busy main restaurant, while larger rooms work well for team lunches, company dinners and entertaining groups of clients.
When choosing a venue, consider the location of your guests as well as capacity, menu, budget, privacy and any minimum-spend requirement.
With several major railway and Underground stations across the Square Mile, it is often possible to find a private dining room within a short walk of both offices and transport connections.
Private Dining for Corporate Events and Celebrations
Although particularly associated with business entertaining, the City also offers private rooms for birthdays, celebrations, Christmas parties and other group events.
Historic pubs and traditional dining rooms sit alongside contemporary restaurants, rooftop venues, hotels and modern event spaces, giving organisers a broad choice of atmosphere and style.
Some venues can accommodate both seated dining and standing drinks receptions, making them particularly useful for events combining dinner with networking or drinks.
Finding the Right City of London Private Dining Room
The best City private dining room will depend on your guest numbers, budget, preferred location and the type of event you are organising.
For an important business lunch, privacy, service and proximity to the office may be the priorities. A company dinner or reception may instead require a larger room, presentation facilities, flexible menus or space for pre-dinner drinks.
Minimum spends, room hire charges and menu options vary considerably between venues, so comparing several suitable rooms can save time and help identify the best match.
Browse the City of London private dining venues listed below or use PDR’s free Venue Finding Service if you would like help finding suitable venues for your event.
Private Dining Around Bank, Liverpool Street and St Paul’s
Bank and the streets around the Royal Exchange sit at the historic and financial heart of the City and provide a particularly strong concentration of restaurants and venues for corporate entertaining.
Liverpool Street and Bishopsgate offer another major dining area, particularly convenient for guests travelling into the City by rail or using the Elizabeth line. The restaurants and private dining venues of nearby Spitalfields and Shoreditch considerably extend the choice available around Liverpool Street, particularly for business dinners, company events and drinks receptions.
Around St Paul’s, Cannon Street and the western part of the Square Mile there is a further selection of restaurants, hotels, pubs and private dining spaces. Nearby Farringdon provides additional choices for private dining and corporate events, particularly for businesses and guests based towards the western edge of the City.
Getting to the City of London
The City is exceptionally well connected by public transport.
Liverpool Street, Cannon Street, Fenchurch Street, City Thameslink and Blackfriars provide mainline rail connections, while Underground stations including Bank, Monument, Liverpool Street, Moorgate, Cannon Street, St Paul’s and Tower Hill serve different parts of the Square Mile.
Farringdon, immediately to the west of the City, provides additional National Rail, Underground and Elizabeth line connections, while the Elizabeth line at Liverpool Street provides direct connections across London and to Heathrow Airport.
Find Private Dining Rooms Near the City of London
If you are considering nearby areas as well, explore private dining rooms in Spitalfields, Shoreditch, Clerkenwell and Holborn.
Ekte Nordic Kitchen in Bloomberg Arcade – close to the Bank area of the City of London – serves authentic Scandinavian-influenced cuisine. The private dining room accommodates 10 – 26 seated (30 standing) guests. Exclusive venue hire is also available for up to 80 seated (130 standing) guests.
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Yauatcha City is a Chinese restaurant specialising in Cantonese cuisine located in the heart of the City of London in Broadgate Circle, close to Liverpool Street station. The private dining room seats up to 30 guests and outdoor terrace space seats up to 60 guests for alfresco private dining events.
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Piazza Italiana Italian restaurant is located on Threadneedle Street in the heart of the City of London. This popular City restaurant has three private event spaces accommodating 10 – 40 seated guests.
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Serving South East Asian cuisine, the three private dining rooms at Straits Kitchen at Pan Pacific London – within five minutes walking distance of Liverpool Street station in The City Of London – can respectively seat 12, 14 and 50 guests.
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The upstairs private dining room at The Princess of Shoreditch gastropub on Paul Street – in the northern part of Shoreditch, close to Old Street & The City – seats up to 26 guests. Ground floor exclusive hire is also available for up to 40 seated (50 standing) guests.
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Gordon Ramsay’s Bread Street Kitchen in the St. Paul’s area of The City has private dining space for up to 42 guests or 35 – 80 guests for standing drinks receptions.
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With breathtaking views of the London skyline, the private dining rooms at Searcys at The Gherkin can accommodate 16 – 50 guests or 25 – 60 guests for standing receptions.
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Merchant Taylors’ Hall in The City of London is an ancient livery company hall with private dining rooms available to hire from smaller group dining events of up to 20 guests to banquet dinners of up to 200 guests as well as drinks receptions of 50 – 400 standing guests.
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The private dining rooms at The Mercer can accommodate 6 to 48 seated guests and are also available for drinks receptions of 20 – 80 standing guests. Restaurant exclusive hire available for up to 120 seated (180 standing) guests.
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M Threadneedle Street – located close to Bank station in the centre of The City of London – specialises in serving sustainable fusion steak cuisine and has four private dining rooms accommodating 10 – 36 seated (up to 40 standing) guests for group events. Restaurant exclusive hire is also available for large City events of up to 260 seated (400 standing) guests.
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Private dining rooms at Founders’ Hall – home to The Worshipful Company of Founders, close to Barbican tube station in the City of London – can accommodate 20 – 75 seated guests or up to 60 – 120 guests for standing drinks receptions.
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