British, Modern Restaurants in Covent Garden
1. Frog by Adam Handling
British, Modern restaurant in Covent Garden
35 Southampton Street - WC2E
“Eating at The Frog is like allowing your palate to go to a firework display” – Adam Handling and his teams create a series of dishes of “always-surprising ingenuity, with quirky presentation and mixture of ingredients” both at his Hoxton Square original and his even-more-successful Covent Garden flagship. Both locations offer a mixture of à la carte and tasting menus – the latter incorporating vegan and vegetarian alternatives as well as beer-matching and wine-matching options. The results inspire massive support,not just for being “a well-devised journey expertly executed”, but for food that’s “wow, wow, wow beyond delicious!”. In keeping with the main man’s free-thinking philosophy (and, at E1, a big emphasis on sustainability), his locations have a youthful energy at odds with the fayne dining ethos: an approach that also seems to inspire “impeccable service” from his staff (with a special shout-out to his sommelier – “I’ve never been disappointed when asking Kelvin for a recommendation!”). Where his taste is a tad more divisive is the ambience – to fans admirably un-stuffy and energetic, but to critics slightly “odd” or “nondescript”, and with “loud and dreadful music” in N1. Top Menu Tip – “those cheese doughnuts are the stuff of legend”. See also Adam Handling Chelsea.
2. George in the Strand
British, Traditional restaurant in Covent Garden
213 Strand - WC2R
“Surprisingly good food and charming service” make it worth remembering this historic hostelry (refurbed in recent times), near the Royal Courts of Justice. You can eat in the ground floor bar, or in the upstairs ‘Pig and Goose’ restaurant.
3. St Luke's Kitchen, Library
British, Modern restaurant in Covent Garden
112 Saint Martin's Lane - WC2
2019 Review: Limited feedback this year on this “quirky” venue – “a slightly offbeat mix of clubbiness and restaurant” in a boutique guesthouse near the Coliseum, whose cuisine is “of the fusion variety”. Such as there is, though, praises it as “a perfectly decent choice for a pre-theatre supper”.
4. The Portrait, National Portrait Gallery
British, Modern restaurant in Covent Garden
St Martin’s Place - WC2
“Cracking views over the rooftops of Trafalgar Square and beyond from a sun-drenched room” earn the NPG’s top-floor dining room decent ratings as a venue for brunch, lunch or afternoon tea, or for an “early supper before the opera at the Coliseum”. The food is “quite adequate” although “not spectacular”. (There’s also a Spartan café in the basement).
5. Heliot Steak House
British, Modern restaurant in Covent Garden
Cranbourn Street - WC2
“Exceptional value set deals” (particularly at lunch and pre-theatre) provide reason to discover this unusually situated grill, in the former dress circle of the converted theatre that nowadays houses the UK’s largest casino (right by Leicester Square tube) and looks down on the gambling tables below. Casino owner Simon Thomas prides himself on the quality of the steaks and wines on offer, and it shows.
6. Spring Restaurant
British, Modern restaurant in Covent Garden
New Wing, Lancaster Pl - WC2
“A lovely use of a beautiful space” – “with delicate light flowing in, and a cream-focused colour scheme” – this “open and airy room”, within magnificent Somerset House, properly “lives up to its name”, and “is the perfect setting for the light, fresh and wonderful dishes” created by Skye Gyngell from her “fine, seasonal” menu. That it’s “not cheap” is noted, but seldom with rancour. “Courteous service” completes a “superb” and “romantic” experience.
7. Indigo, One Aldwych
British, Modern restaurant in Covent Garden
1 Aldwych - WC2
2018 Review: This hotel mezzanine boasts a “brilliantly convenient” West End location – “get a table overlooking the Lobby Bar for atmosphere and fun” – and “makes a great place for meetings” of many kinds. “It’s especially a joy to be able to take people who are coeliac or can’t eat dairy to a decent restaurant” – the “clever” menu is entirely dairy-free and gluten-free.
8. J Sheekey Atlantic Bar
Fish & seafood restaurant in Covent Garden
28-34 St Martin’s Ct - WC2
“So cool eating at the bar” – this “enjoyably bustling” spin-off from the neighbouring Theatreland classic has “very good, 1930s-style decor” (even though it was only created about 10 years ago). Compared with the main restaurant it’s “perhaps a bit more about the ambience versus the food” here, and – “with the menu opting for the small-plates approach – costs can mount up”. But, results are “predictably good”, and the operation’s “slick” style and “flexible” format suits it to many different occasions: it’s particularly “great for lunch sitting at the bar, or an early pre-theatre dinner at one of the tables”.
9. Bryn Williams at Somerset House
British, Modern restaurant in Covent Garden
Somerset House - WC2R
This avowedly ‘veggie-centric’ concept from Welsh chef Bryn Williams (of highly rated Odette’s in Primrose Hill) gives top billing to vegetables and fruit, although the menu still offers plenty for carnivores to chew on. It occupies the quirky chamber, right at the back of Somerset House with Thames views, that once housed The Admiralty (RIP) – an intriguing location, but also one smart enough for doing business. From a fair number of reports, there is mostly praise for dishes that are “beautifully prepared and served” – a “detox set lunch with no meat or fish in sight was really inspiring and exciting”.
10. Jacob the Angel
British, Modern restaurant in Covent Garden
16a Neal's Yard - WC2H
“Yummy bakes and great caffeine” help make this tiny coffee house (just 10 covers) in Seven Dials – from the owners of The Palomar – particularly “good for a solo breakfast”.
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