Hardens Guide to the Best Restaurants in London
Hardens guides have spent 25 years compiling reviews of the best London restaurants. On Hardens.com you'll find details and reviews of 5,316 restaurants in London and our unique survey based approach to rating and reviewing London restaurants gives you the best insight into the top restaurants in every area and of every type of cuisine.
Featured London Restaurants
1. The Ritz
British, Traditional restaurant in Mayfair
150 Piccadilly - W1
“The most beautiful dining room on the planet” – this “stunning” Louis XVI chamber is “a wonderful place for a celebratory experience”, especially a romantic one. The “glorious classical cuisine” has “stepped up a notch” in recent years, and “even though it’s eye-wateringly expensive it’s always impressive”, and delivered by “knowledgeable and passionate staff”. Top Tip – “the latest incarnation of its weekend dinner dance is also excellent”.
2. Pied À Terre
French restaurant in Fitzrovia
34 Charlotte St - W1
“David Moore runs a tight ship to maintain standards” and his “comfortable” Fitzrovia townhouse represents “perfection” for its many fans on account of its “unfailingly impressive” cuisine, “awesome” wines, and “good but not overly solicitous service”. There’s an undertow on ratings however, from sceptics who are slightly less wowed – they say “it’s not a bad place, but for these prices perhaps a bit, well… beige”. The griping is from a small minority though – overall this remains one of London’s highest-achieving foodie temples. (There has been a lot of change afoot here post-survey. Popular sommelier and co-owner Mathieu Germond announced he was to leave to establish nearby Noize, and in September 2017 chef Andy McFadden moved on, with Asimakis Chaniotis moving up within the ranks.)
3. Marcus, The Berkeley
British, Modern restaurant in Knightsbridge
Wilton Pl - SW1
Marcus Wareing’s “spacious” and “peaceful” Belgravia chamber is “the epitome of what a special restaurant should be” for its very many admirers, not least when it comes to the “incredible” cooking with “maximum flavours to the fore”, be it from the à la carte, or 5- and 8-course tasting options. However, its ratings are dragged down by a vociferous minority who diss the “disengaged” service and an experience where “everything is fine but nothing is great”: is that second Michelin star just boosting expectations too high?
4. Barrafina
Spanish restaurant in Soho
26-27 Dean Street - W1
“The wait can sometimes be twice the time spent at the counter”, but no-one seems to mind at the Hart Bros kick-ass small group of Barcelona-inspired tapas haunts in Soho (now relocated to the ground floor of Quo Vadis) and Covent Garden. “The buzz is amazing” and, having nabbed a perch (fewer than 30 in each branch), everyone “loves the open kitchen and watching the keen staff at work”, while the dishes themselves are genius – “fresh seafood is amongst the highlights” but “even something as simple as tomato bruschetta is transformed here”. (So far, the February 2017 departure of founding group exec head chef, Nieves Barragán Mohacho, to found Sabor, has had zero effect on ratings – the new incumbent is Angel Zapata Martin.)
5. Barrafina
Spanish restaurant in Covent Garden
10 Adelaide St - WC2
“The wait can sometimes be twice the time spent at the counter”, but no-one seems to mind at the Hart Bros kick-ass small group of Barcelona-inspired tapas haunts in Soho (now relocated to the ground floor of Quo Vadis) and Covent Garden. “The buzz is amazing” and, having nabbed a perch (fewer than 30 in each branch), everyone “loves the open kitchen and watching the keen staff at work”, while the dishes themselves are genius – “fresh seafood is amongst the highlights” but “even something as simple as tomato bruschetta is transformed here”. (So far, the February 2017 departure of founding group exec head chef, Nieves Barragán Mohacho, to found Sabor, has had zero effect on ratings – the new incumbent is Angel Zapata Martin.)
6. Barrafina Drury Lane
Spanish restaurant in Covent Garden
43 Drury Ln - WC2
“The wait can sometimes be twice the time spent at the counter”, but no-one seems to mind at the Hart Bros kick-ass small group of Barcelona-inspired tapas haunts in Soho (now relocated to the ground floor of Quo Vadis) and Covent Garden. “The buzz is amazing” and, having nabbed a perch (fewer than 30 in each branch), everyone “loves the open kitchen and watching the keen staff at work”, while the dishes themselves are genius – “fresh seafood is amongst the highlights” but “even something as simple as tomato bruschetta is transformed here”. (So far, the February 2017 departure of founding group exec head chef, Nieves Barragán Mohacho, to found Sabor, has had zero effect on ratings – the new incumbent is Angel Zapata Martin.)
7. Barrafina
Spanish restaurant in King’s Cross
Coal Drops Yard - N1C
“The wait can sometimes be twice the time spent at the counter”, but no-one seems to mind at the Hart Bros kick-ass small group of Barcelona-inspired tapas haunts in Soho (now relocated to the ground floor of Quo Vadis) and Covent Garden. “The buzz is amazing” and, having nabbed a perch (fewer than 30 in each branch), everyone “loves the open kitchen and watching the keen staff at work”, while the dishes themselves are genius – “fresh seafood is amongst the highlights” but “even something as simple as tomato bruschetta is transformed here”. (So far, the February 2017 departure of founding group exec head chef, Nieves Barragán Mohacho, to found Sabor, has had zero effect on ratings – the new incumbent is Angel Zapata Martin.)
8. The Ledbury
British, Modern restaurant in Notting Hill
127 Ledbury Rd - W11
“Wow! I didn’t think this place could possibly live up to the hype, but it did… and easily!” Brett Graham’s “sophisticated” Notting Hill HQ delivers a pitch-perfect performance and again topped the survey’s nominations for offering London’s best meal of the year. But for all his “stunningly well-crafted” cuisine (“so many dishes that were so memorable”) and “perfectly matched wines”, it’s the “unpretentious, customer-first attitude that makes a meal here that much more enjoyable”: “everyone’s relaxed and having a great time!”
9. Murano
Italian restaurant in Mayfair
20-22 Queen St - W1
As it enters its tenth year, Angela Hartnett’s “understatedly brilliant” Mayfair haven is an unusual example of a swanky, celeb-backed restaurant just getting better and better as it approaches middle age. Though not enormously distinctive in design, “the dining room is beautifully set up – you don’t feel crowded” – and the “charmingly kind staff” help “create a wonderful and romantic atmosphere”. Head chef Pip Lacey’s Italian-inspired cooking is taking the food quality here to new heights – “fantastically good” – and reporters “love that you can construct your own tasting menu”, whereby you select any number of dishes from the menu’s five sections in the order of your choosing. STOP PRESS: in July 2017, Pip Lacey left Murano, to be replaced by Oscar Holgado. Here’s hoping he can keep up the good work.
10. The Five Fields
British, Modern restaurant in Chelsea
8-9 Blacklands Ter - SW3
“The Elysian Fields?” – Taylor Bonnyman’s “graceful and intimate dining room”, tucked away in Chelsea offers an “exemplary experience”, which for all-round quality and consistency has few rivals in the capital. “Phenomenal cooking” – from either the prix fixe or tasting menu – is delivered by “faultless, thoroughly attentive yet unpretentious” staff and “a contented buzz in the room ensures the ambience is never hushed”.
View full listings of 5,316 London Restaurants
Editor's Reviews
Heddon Street Kitchen
London British, Modern £59
Overall Value
Just off Regent Street, a handy brasserie-style operation serving thoroughly competent but rather unremarkable dishes at prices seemingly inflated by association with proprietor Gordon Ramsay.... More
Crocker's Folly
London Lebanese £55
Overall Value
Rabbit
London British, Modern £47
Overall Value
Quaglino’s
London British, Modern £65
Overall Value
La Tagliata
London Italian
Overall Value
DF Mexico, Old Truman Brewery
London Mexican/TexMex £31
Overall Value
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