Reviews with a point of view.

A.Wong

Andrew Wong’s regional Chinese cooking is ambitious, scholarly and deeply pleasurable, with tradition and technique held in unusually productive tension.

Albert's Table

A personable local table with sturdy cooking and an unforced sense of welcome.

Amazonico – London

A lavish, high-volume room where the atmosphere is designed to do the heavy lifting.

Anglo

A small, cosy smart restaurant where precise British cooking and kind, chatty service make a hidden gem feel entirely worth finding.

Archipelago

A boldly exploratory tasting menu that prizes curiosity, conversation and an open mind.

Arros QD

Quique Dacosta’s Fitzrovia restaurant makes paella a piece of theatre, with a six-metre woodfire stove and serious Mediterranean intent.

BAO Fitz

Small, precise and full of flavour, with the kind of energy that suits Fitzrovia.

Barbecoa

A stylish City steakhouse with a remarkable setting, some excellent dishes and enough misses to disappoint.

Barrafina

Fast, counter-side Spanish dining where charismatic people, excellent small plates and a good wine rhythm make the queue worthwhile.

Visited 17 September 2026

Berenjak – Soho

Berenjak brings the charcoal grill and the bakery to Soho: smoky kababs, generous bread and a buzzy little room, scored 40/50 by the club.

Blacklock

A loud, cram-packed Soho basement where exceptional chops, dripping flatbread and a generous sense of fun make the chaos worthwhile.

Bob Bob Cité

A modern take on the traditional French brasserie, staged inside a City landmark with old-fashioned indulgence and a wink.

Bob Bob Ricard

1920s Orient Express glamour, a brilliant Press for Champagne button and warm professional service wrapped around properly indulgent cooking.

Bombaylicious

Colourful, accessible Indian cooking with a straightforward sense of generosity.

Branded – Sevenoaks

A relaxed modern brasserie with a broad menu, lively room and genuinely attentive team that makes mixed-group dining easy.

Butlers Wharf Chop House

A handsome riverside room serving robust British comfort with dependable charm.

Casa Zilli

A well-intentioned Italian table whose ambitions are not yet matched by the execution.

Visited 27 March 2025

Cattle & Cocktail

Part modern steakhouse, part lively cocktail bar, Cattle & Cocktail balances serious beef with a relaxed, sociable atmosphere made for settling in.

Caxton Grill

A return to a Central London favourite, with fond memories, friendly service and an unexpectedly good-value tasting menu.

Chamberlain's Restaurant

A thoughtful City fish and steak restaurant in a remarkable market setting, giving good produce space to speak clearly.

Chez Bruce

A packed Wandsworth Common neighbourhood restaurant where thoughtful French cooking, warmth and humour make a Michelin star feel entirely natural.

Chez Vous

A friendly French-leaning table with comfort, charm and a relaxed pace.

Visited 24 July 2025

Core by Clare Smyth

A masterpiece of modern British fine dining, where precision never becomes cold. Core turns exceptional ingredients into a quietly emotional, deeply memorable experience.

Visited 24 September 2026

Corenucopia

Clare Smyth’s Chelsea bistro sets a 47.5/50 standard for the club: a warm room, unhurried service and cooking that lets good ingredients speak.

Coya

A vivid modern Peruvian restaurant, pisco bar and lounge where ceviche, charcoal, music and cocktails turn dinner into a full evening.

Cut @ 45 Park Lane

A finely tuned Wolfgang Puck steakhouse opposite The Dorchester, where Mayfair polish, serious sides and easy hospitality carry the night.

Dishoom – Kensington

Beautifully staged, deeply generous and still very good at making a crowd feel welcome.

Duck & Waffle

A high-rise London classic with dramatic views, a strong supporting cast and just enough playful excess to make the evening memorable.

Ekstedt at the Yard

A beautifully controlled wood-fire restaurant where Scandinavian technique gives seasonal British ingredients both drama and clarity.

El Pastor – Soho

A lively Soho taquería with properly made tortillas, bright salsas and the sort of mezcal-fuelled energy that makes a quick meal stretch out.

Visited 24 April 2025

Fallow

Fallow’s ingredient-first cooking is inventive without becoming precious. It is a room with a point of view, generous portions and a genuine sense of fun.

Fazenda – Bishopsgate

A polished City dining room where the theatre of the rodizio is matched by a serious approach to fire, meat and hospitality.

Firepit @ Cave

A dark, confident room where live-fire cooking gives a broad menu of global influences a convincing centre of gravity.

Friends Restaurant

A 500-year-old Tudor setting with a modern culinary heart, balancing British and French cooking with the standards of a serious local restaurant.

Galvin La Chapelle

A spectacular room and serious wine list surround a tasting menu with some strong highs and costly lows.

Gravetye Manor

Gravetye makes the grand-country-house experience feel natural. The cooking is exacting, the service quietly assured, and every course feels tied to the landscape.

Visited 14 November 2025

Gravetye Manor (2025)

An exceptional fine-dining experience where a centuries-old manor, estate-grown ingredients and gracious service create complete escapism.

Hawksmoor – Spitalfields

A British steakhouse institution with serious produce, generous sides and the confident warmth of a well-run London room.

Heddon Street Kitchen

A relaxed West End room whose greatest strengths are its original cocktails, friendly service and easy generosity.

Hide Above

A light-filled dining room above Green Park where Ollie Dabbous’s cooking turns attention to detail into a genuinely tranquil experience.

Inamo @ Covent Garden

Interactive tables, good sharing plates and a playful family energy make Inamo memorable, if not especially calm.

Kanishka

Modern Indian cooking with fragrant depth, attractive presentation and a generous spirit.

Kinjo

A polished Japanese restaurant, bar and grill where a broad menu and lively room make it an easy choice for an informal London evening.

Kitchen Table @ Bubbledogs

A brilliant, intimate counter where British seasonality, technical confidence and a properly human team turn dinner into a shared performance.

le Bab

Playful, modern Middle Eastern cooking with generous fillings and a bright sense of fun.

Le Petit Beefbar – London

A glamorous Chelsea steakhouse that softens its luxury with a cosy multi-level room and a menu built for indulgent occasions.

Le Petit Nantais

A charming French address whose unfussy cooking and warm sense of return give the room its appeal.

Levant

A very fun Marylebone night built around generous sharing plates, belly dancing and a complimentary shisha.

Lobos – Soho

A busy Soho room with good char, bright flavours and plenty of sharing-table appeal.

Lurra

A persuasive Basque grill where exceptional produce, old-cow beef and a serious fire make simplicity feel like a luxury.

Visited 2 October 2025

Lutyens Grill – The Ned Hotel

Tucked inside The Ned, Lutyens Grill pairs an opulent setting with confident classics. Refined technique and warm hospitality make the room feel indulgent rather than stiff.

Mahjong Rooms

XU’s private mahjong rooms pair a characterful setting with the promise of a more intimate Chinese dining experience.

Marcus

Marcus Wareing’s Knightsbridge dining room brings poised modern British cooking, calm white-tablecloth grandeur and precise service into balance.

Maze Grill Mayfair

A polished Gordon Ramsay Mayfair grill with dependable produce, confident room energy and an occasion-friendly sense of celebration.

Mosimann's

Anton Mosimann OBE’s family-run dining club turns a converted church, cuisine naturelle and quiet expertise into a distinctly London sense of occasion.

Mugaritz

An ambitious, idea-led experience whose welcome and setting are compelling, but whose food repeatedly mistakes provocation for pleasure.

Murano's

Opened in 2008 and awarded a Michelin star within four months, Murano remains a refined Mayfair address for exemplary food, wine and welcome.

Visited 31 July 2025

Natty's Jerk

Food that warms the soul and stays in the memory: smoky, spiced and full of generosity, with the sort of easy welcome that turns a meal into an occasion.

Number Eight

A friendly Sevenoaks restaurant and bar built around seasonal small plates, a flexible room and the pleasure of ordering for the middle.

Pétrus by Gordon Ramsay

A composed Belgravia dining room where modern French cooking, a remarkable wine cellar and polished service make the occasion feel properly complete.

Picture – Fitzrovia

A thoughtful Fitzrovia address built on polished plates, personal ambition and a serious belief in value.

Pollen Street Social

Jason Atherton’s flagship remains a contemporary, buzzy room for ambitious modern British cooking, remarkable butter and desserts that know how to finish.

Red’s True BBQ in Shoreditch

A smoky Shoreditch basement of red neon, big flavours and occasional barbecue glory, with some cuts falling short of the sermon.

Regional Thai Taste

Distinctive regional flavours and a welcome willingness to move beyond the familiar.

Restaurant Interlude

A rare garden-led dining experience where Sussex produce and foraged ingredients make the surrounding estate part of the menu.

Restaurant KÖD – London

A dark, handsome Danish steakhouse that keeps the brief pleasingly simple: good beef, well-made sides and a room worth lingering in.

Restaurant Ours

A fashionable Knightsbridge room where friendly staff and a strong bar carry a concept-led evening.

Rocksalt Folkestone

A dramatic harbour-front room that puts the Channel in the frame and local seafood at the centre of a confident, accessible menu.

Rules

Historic London dining with a sense of theatre, tradition and proper old-room charm.

Visited 22 May 2025

Sael

High ceilings, leather banquettes and Britpop in the background set the stage for a modern brasserie with energy, confidence and a reassuringly broad menu.

Sagardi – London

Pintxos, fire and a bustling Basque rhythm make this an easy room to enjoy.

Visited 30 October 2025

Salt Shed

Bold, vibrant and unapologetically centred on exceptional meat cookery. Salt Shed delivers the kind of generous Brighton energy that makes a long lunch disappear.

Saltoun Supper Club

A sociable supper club with imagination, generosity and a welcome sense of occasion.

Scott's Mayfair

One of London’s oldest oyster and seafood rooms, still capable of combining professional polish with properly indulgent plates.

Shampan 4 @ The Spinning Wheel

A confident Indian table with spice, generosity and enough refinement for a special evening.

Shuang Shuang

A sociable, hands-on meal where the pleasure comes from choosing, sharing and dipping.

Six by Nico "Childhood"

Nostalgia gets a polished tasting-menu treatment, with fun doing much of the work.

Six by Nico "The Chippie"

A playful six-course return to BTNDC, turning chip-shop memories into polished tasting-menu theatre at Six by Nico Canary Wharf.

Smokestak

Excellent smoke and deeply satisfying meat, served with a refreshingly direct attitude.

Sorrel

Steve Drake brings Roux Scholarship discipline and 25 years of experience to a thoughtful Surrey restaurant with serious but generous intent.

Spring – Somerset House

An elegant hidden gem in a palatial setting, with light-footed seasonal cooking and a few avoidable table and bread embarrassments.

Visited 27 February 2025

Starling Bistro

A one-Michelin-star neighbourhood bistro cooking excellent British produce with respect for provenance, clarity and the people gathered around the table.

STK London

A glamorous American-style steakhouse where music, polish and a high-energy room give the familiar format a sense of occasion.

Stovells

A composed, quietly luxurious room where the cooking rewards close attention.

Street XO

A club-like Mayfair collision of Asian flavours, dazzling drinks and unusually excellent staff, with the room’s exuberance mostly held in check by the cooking.

Temper

A meaty, smoky Soho night saved by excellent desserts and sides after a disorganised start.

Thackerays

A serious local dining room with old-fashioned care and a polished finish.

The Chiltern Firehouse

A glamorous Marylebone landmark where the atmosphere remains the most persuasive part of the evening.

The Clink – Brixton

Purposeful cooking and a meaningful setting make this a table with real substance.

The Clock House

A polished Surrey dining room where the setting and the cooking share a quiet confidence.

The Cloisters @ Nutfield Priory

A handsome setting with a sense of occasion, even when the plate is less assured.

The Dining Room (Reigate)

A calm, accomplished Surrey dining room with an unusually complete sense of hospitality.

Visited October 2026

The Dog & Pickle

The club’s evening at The Dog & Pickle in Essex: a two-AA-rosette kitchen cooking generous modern British food, scored 40/50.

The Fat Duck

A landmark of culinary imagination, where playful theatre is held together by serious technical craft and a rare generosity of spirit.

The Fordwich Arms

A deeply appealing Michelin-starred pub where Kentish produce, old-room atmosphere and exacting cooking are held in unusually good balance.

The French Table

A warm local French restaurant whose best moments are rooted in care and comfort.

The Grumpy Mole – Tadworth

A leafy Surrey inn with a warm welcome, local-supplier instincts and the kind of generous cooking that suits a long country lunch.

The Harwood Arms – London

London’s original Michelin-starred pub remains a persuasive celebration of British game, proper hospitality and a room that never loses its ease.

The Ivy – Cobham

Reliable brasserie pleasures, delivered with polish and a room built for lingering.

The Jolly Gardeners

Ambitious pub food with generous portions, a relaxed room and some genuinely excellent dishes.

The Jugged Hare

A central-London banking boozer hiding a serious gastropub, with seasonal British ingredients and a properly fun sense of generosity.

The Kentish Hare

A stylish village restaurant with local produce, a welcoming bar and the technical confidence to make a country meal feel properly special.

The Old Bank

A polished neighbourhood room where familiar cooking is handled with quiet competence.

The Pass @ South Lodge

A 20-cover kitchen theatre where Matt Gillan’s precise tasting menu is matched by genuinely passionate service.

The Ritz London

Old-world ceremony, polished service and classic French-leaning cooking in one of London’s most recognisable dining rooms — at a suitably serious price.

The Swan – Chapel Down

A beautiful Kent setting with confident modern British cooking, Chapel Down wines and service that knows how to have fun.

The Victoria Oxshott

A confident Surrey pub revival with elevated British classics, a generous garden and a serious commitment to making the room feel communal.

Toriton Izakaya

A welcoming Japanese izakaya with a strong personal story, generous portions and a menu that rewards sharing across the table.

Tristans

Michelin-starred cooking in a comfortable, relaxed setting, where technical precision never overwhelms the pleasure of sitting down to dinner.