Costa Azul

You're walking past the railway arches near Elephant & Castle when you spot Costa Azul—proper neighbourhood joint, nothing flashy about it. Inside, it's warm and lived-in, the kind of place where regulars have their usual tables and the staff actually know what they're doing. The menu's straightforward Spanish: good croquetas, fresh seafood, the sort of dishes that don't need a backstory. It's affordable enough that you can order properly without doing mental maths, and the wine list won't embarrass your bank account either. This is the kind of restaurant that makes sense in SE1—unpretentious, reliable, doing its thing without needing Instagram.