Few London restaurants demonstrate longevity like J. Sheekey, which this year marks 130 years in operation. Founded in 1896 by fishmonger Josef Sheekey, it began as a modest oyster bar serving the emerging theatre trade in Covent Garden and has since evolved into a seafood institution.
The growth of J. Sheekey has been incremental rather than transformational - shaped by its proximity to the West End, consistent demand from theatre audiences, and a loyal multi-generational customer base. As the wider London dining scene has continuously evolved, J. Sheekey has kept a stable identity centred on classic seafood and a place to gather both before the curtain rises and after it falls. That continuity is reflected in the physical space itself, which still incorporates elements of its layered history, including the original oyster bar.
This year’s 130th anniversary coincides with a milestone for operations manager Joel Groves, who marks 15 years with the business. Groves’ progression through front-of-house and senior management roles – including bar tender, maitre’d, reception manager and general manager - reflects a wider internal culture that prioritises long-term development and continuity in leadership - a theme that appears throughout the entire restaurant model.
Together, the anniversary and Groves’ tenure frame a wider question facing legacy hospitality businesses in London: how do institutions maintain relevance, consistency and commercial resilience across decades of change in the industry?
The anniversary year
The 130th anniversary marks the beginning of a structured year-long programme rather than a single commemorative moment. At its centre is a limited anniversary menu developed by executive Chef Andy McLay, alongside a series of collaborations and cultural events designed to reinforce the restaurant’s long-standing relationship with theatreland.
For Groves, the anniversary is as much about continuity as celebration. “It’s about identifying the dishes people already come back for,” he says. “The ones that feel inherently connected to Sheekey’s history.”
The menu draws on historically anchored dishes that reflect the restaurant’s evolution. For starters, the potted shrimp references Victorian preservation methods and seafood trade patterns in London when the restaurant first opened. Smoked eel, which has appeared on the menu in various forms over the decades, acknowledges the city’s historic relationship with its waterways. Moving onto mains, the Cornish fish stew reflects the restaurant’s long-standing ties to British fishing communities, while lobster thermidor continues the restaurant’s association with occasion-led dining.
A huge part of what makes this place special is the familiarity between staff and guests.
The final dish, peach melba pavlova - originally created to honour the soprano Nellie Melba - connects directly to the theatrical heritage that defines the restaurant’s customer base, referencing late-Victorian dining culture.
Alongside the menu, the restaurant is continuing initiatives such as Sheekey’s Secrets, an event series bringing theatre and film figures into structured guest-facing conversations. “We’ve had people like Judi Dench and Ian McKellen take part,” Groves notes. “It’s about creating access to conversations you wouldn’t normally see in a traditional media format.”
What is J. Sheekey?
Despite its landmark status, J. Sheekey has remained remarkably consistent in what it offers: premium seafood in the heart of theatreland, delivered with a sense of familiarity rather than formality. Since opening in 1896, the restaurant has occupied the same spot in Covent Garden’s St Martin’s Court – although it has expanded into neighbouring sites - its signature red frontage acting as a beacon for theatre-goers, actors and audiences moving through the West End.
The restaurant came into being when then Prime Minister Robert Arthur Talbot Gascoyne-Cecil, the third Marquess of Salisbury, granted Sheekey the site to serve fish and seafood on the proviso that he also supplied meals to his after-theatre dinner parties. The restaurant was then run by Sheekey’s granddaughter in the 1950s and ‘60s, whose portrait is still on the walls of the restaurant, until it was bought by Corbin & King in 1998 and relaunched by the pair. The restaurant is now part of Caprice Holdings, having been bought by Richard Caring in 2005.
As long as people want to feel looked after there will always be a place for restaurants like this.
Inside, the offer remains rooted in classic seafood cookery, with a menu built around recognisable seafood dishes rather than trend-led cooking, and polished but relaxed hospitality. A central crustacean bar and walls lined with photographs of the famous faces who have visited the restaurant all contribute to an atmosphere that feels steeped in London theatre history. “London restaurants come and go constantly,” says Groves. “They become fashionable, flashy, and disappear. Sheekey survives because it stays true to itself.”
During its years, it has also managed not to let fame go to is head in terms of its pricing, with a more expensive à la carte menu balanced with more accessible set-menu options at £34 for two courses and £39.50 for three. “It’s a shellfish-led restaurant, so it’s not for everybody’s pocket,” adds Groves. “But the set menu has been really important in making sure there’s still variation and accessibility for people.”
Equally important is the style of service, which Groves says remains central to why people continue to return. “A huge part of what makes this place special is the familiarity between staff and guests,” he says. “Team members are encouraged to interact with guests. People come back because they feel looked after.”
Survival of the fittest
One hundred and thirty years on and J. Sheekey is showing no signs of fatigue. On a Wednesday night in the capital the restaurant’s deep green leather banquettes are heaving with the same kind of clientele that has sustained it for more than a century. Groves attributes this longevity to a combination of consistency, identity, and adaptability while staying true to its core offer.
Its identity as a celebrity hangout has no doubt helped, but while high-profile guests are not uncommon, Groves says the restaurant has deliberately avoided positioning itself as a celebrity-driven venue. “It’s never really been a celebrity hangout,” he says. “People come because they know they can relax here.”
London restaurants come and go constantly, they become fashionable, flashy, and disappear.
This discretion has helped build long-term relationships across theatre and media, evident through initiatives like Sheekey’s Secrets. The focus is on open conversation rather than performance, making the restaurant a place for genuine exchange rather than staged content.
That’s not to say it doesn’t occasionally lean into its starry status. As part of its 130-year celebrations the restaurant has just opened its J. Sheekey x Vivienne Westwood Terrace, which it describes as a defining moment in its anniversary year.
Having weathered the blitz, economic crashes, Brexit, and the Covid 19 pandemic, there seems little to suggest that J. Sheekey won’t see its 200th anniversary, yet its survival has not been without a fight. Groves reflects on how difficult the recent operating environment has been, particularly after Brexit and Covid, which he says brought staffing shortages and a loss of experienced hospitality workers. He describes rebuilding the team after prolonged closures as one of the most challenging periods during his time at the restaurant, with many new employees entering the industry with little or no experience.
“We were suddenly faced with a complete lack of experience within the team. Trying to rebuild the standards and confidence of the restaurant while guests were returning with huge expectations after lockdown was incredibly difficult.
“It probably took two years before we felt like we were climbing out of the storm.”
Against a current backdrop of rising operating costs, labour pressures and declining independent restaurant survival rates, legacy businesses such as J. Sheekey are increasingly rare within the London market. For Groves, the future is less about expansion or reinvention and more about sustaining J. Sheekey for what it is. “I don’t think it needs to become something different,” he says. You have to protect what makes it work.”
He argues that the fundamental demand for hospitality - particularly in experience-led environments - remains structurally stable. “As long as people want to feel looked after,” he says, “there will always be a place for restaurants like this.”
The company J. Sheekey keeps
When J. Sheekey opened in Covent Garden in 1896, Queen Victoria was still on the throne, horse-drawn carriages rattled through London's smog-filled streets, and the West End theatre district was entering its golden age. More than 130 years later, the seafood institution remains one of London's most enduring restaurants – but it is far from the capital's oldest dining establishment.
That distinction is often claimed by Rules, founded by Thomas Rule in 1798. The Covent Garden restaurant has survived the reigns of nine monarchs, two world wars and more than two centuries of social change. Literary giants, including Charles Dickens and H.G. Wells, dined there, while its walls remain packed with artwork chronicling its colourful past.
Yet even Rules is trumped by Wiltons, which traces its origins to 1742 when George William Wilton began selling oysters and shellfish near Haymarket. The business passed through several generations of the Wilton family, and after the death of William Nichol Wilton in 1824, his wife Frances Wilton relocated the restaurant several times (it is now based in St James’s). Her son, Robert Thomas Wilton, took over the operation and in 1840 secured a licence to sell wine and beer, transforming the venue into a fully-fledged restaurant. Wiltons' reputation continued to grow and by 1868, it received a Royal Warrant as a supplier of oysters to Queen Victoria. More than 280 years later, oysters remain at the heart of its identity.
The theatre district's history is also embodied by Simpson's in the Strand, which began life in 1828 as a cigar and coffee house before becoming a celebrated chess venue, hosting some of the earliest international tournaments, and dining institution. Its famous premises at 100 Strand date from 1904, while political heavyweights from Benjamin Disraeli to Winston Churchill were among its regulars.
Despite its heritage J. Sheekey can’t even lay claim to being London's oldest seafood restaurant. That distinction goes to Rock & Sole Plaice, which was established in Covent Garden in 1871, and which predates Sheekey by 25 years. The fish and chip shop continues to serve customers using a traditional recipe that dates back more than 150 years.
While London's restaurant history stretches back centuries, the global benchmark lies elsewhere. According to Guinness World Records, Madrid's Restaurante Botín, founded in 1725, is the world's oldest continuously operating restaurant. Legend has it that in more than 300 years, its wood-fired oven has never once gone cold.