Italian restaurant near Tavistock SquareFiena on Judd Street, Bloomsbury

Tavistock Square was built shortly after 1806 by the developer James Burton and the master builder Thomas Cubitt for Francis Russell, 5th Duke of Bedford, as part of the Bedford Estate. It takes its name from the Marquess of Tavistock, the courtesy title given to the Dukes of Bedford's eldest sons. Charles Dickens lived at Tavistock House on the east side of the square, and a blue plaque on BMA House, the headquarters of the British Medical Association designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens, now marks the spot. Virginia Woolf lived at 52 Tavistock Square from 1924 to 1939, where she and Leonard Woolf ran the Hogarth Press, publishing T.S. Eliot, E.M. Forster and Katherine Mansfield.

At the centre of the gardens is a statue of Mahatma Gandhi by Fredda Brilliant, installed in 1968. Its hollow pedestal was designed for people to leave flowers, and they still do. Nearby are a cherry tree planted in 1967 in memory of the victims of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and the Conscientious Objectors Commemorative Stone, unveiled in 1994. Together they've led some people to call the square a peace garden, and annual ceremonies are held at each memorial.

Look out, too, for the bust of Virginia Woolf in the south-west corner, unveiled in 2004, and the memorial to the surgeon Dame Louisa Aldrich-Blake. In September 2018 a memorial was unveiled in the gardens to the 13 passengers who were killed when a bomb exploded on a number 30 bus outside BMA House on 7 July 2005, and to those who came to help. It's a place for a quiet moment. Background from Wikipedia's Tavistock Square page.

From the square, head north-east to Leigh Street, which runs straight to Judd Street and brings you out a few steps from our door at 4 Medway Court. It's about 500 metres, around 7 minutes on foot (route from OpenStreetMap). As Tina put it after walking to us from nearby Euston: Interesting walk from Euston station as well via the back streets. (Tina, Google review)

We open at 08:00 every day, and our breakfast menu runs until 14:00: the Fiena English breakfast, a Classic Benedict with ham, Florentine or Royale, a Granola bowl with Greek yoghurt and seasonal fruit, or the Tiramisu French toast, with a cappuccino or a fresh orange juice. From midday, the main menu takes over with pasta such as the Spaghetti carbonara and Ravioli ricotta & spinach, pizzas such as the Margherita and Capricciosa, and the Goat cheese salad for something lighter. See our posts on breakfast until 2pm, Italian coffee and salads and light lunches.

Maria described the room as spacious, music not too loud, decor is not over the top (Maria, Google review). And Nick, who dined on his own during a business trip, wrote that the level of service and the quality of the food was really good. (Nick, Google review)

Tavistock Square is one of a chain of Bloomsbury squares, so it's easy to make a day of it. Our guides to Russell Square, the British Museum, the Charles Dickens Museum, The Place on Duke's Road and Euston all start from our door. Eating alone? See solo dining at Fiena.

“Would highly recommend coming here to try out food and hot drinks”

Mohamed, Google review, 2026