The Runner at Cornhill

The days of Empire live on in architectural form at the soaring & sumptuously appointed banking hall of the former Lloyds Bank HQ, now occupied by Green’s restaurant & bar. These days, it’s Laurent-Perrier Champagne & cocktails that are dispensed beneath the soaring columns & coffered ceiling, which once provided a backdrop for more straightforward financial transactions. Spread over the ground floor, The Runner Bar keeps jogging along from breakfast until late offering food & drink to crowds with time & cash to spare. The extensive, high-value wine list panders to the prosperous rather than the impecunious, but there’s draught Pilsner Urquell & Timothy Taylor Landlord for those with only beer money to spare. Grazing on Scotch eggs or plaice goujons won’t break the bank, although West Mersea rock oysters, club sandwiches & a pie of the day can be procured in return for more substantial investment.