London Marylebone Restaurant Guide

“Wonderful pasta prepared on site” is the highlight at Tuscany-born chef Giancarlo Caldesi and wife Katie’s long-running Marylebone headquarters (they also have a country venue in Bray and a cookery school). Fans reckon it’s “always a treat to dine here – it’s traditional Italian with attentive and authentic service”.

“Formulaic… but it works a treat”. These “jolly” French steakhouses thrive on their “excellent and simple” format. “There’s just one choice on the menu, but it’s brilliant”: salad to start; then steak (“tender and delicious”) with “their magic secret sauce” (“the start of addiction”), plus “piles of hot fries”. (To follow there’s “a wide selection of desserts.”) “No wonder there’s always a queue, but it’s worth it, even though the inside is really crammed and can be chaos.” With the closure of the Soho branch, the remaining outposts are in Marylebone and the City. Top Tip – “ideal for a business lunch”.

“Great fish ’n’ chips” is to be found at this Maylebone veteran – one of London’s oldest chippies, given that it first opened in 1914. Your order can be steamed with olive oil and oregano and accompanied with mozzarella fritters and asparagus for those who want a change from the standard deep-fried option, and there’s a mouth-watering selection of old-school English puds including spotted dick, rhubarb crumble and treacle syrup sponge, all served with custard or ice cream.

“You know what you are getting” according to fans of this sub-brand, spin-off chain, whose ‘café’ branches are a cut below those trading as a ‘brasserie’. They laud its “acceptable” cooking and say, “it’s great to see how well the Ivy’s formula has been rolled out with very atmospheric décor”. Even fans of the “really nice buzz” inspired by these “costly surroundings” can find the food “pretty average” though. And harsher critics (of which there are many) say “what is the point of this expensive and dreadful group? They just demean memories of the original Ivy”. Top Tip – “really reasonable for breakfast with decent portions in a pleasant atmosphere” (and you can book in advance for it, too).

Views diverged this year on this modern Marylebone Japanese – an exponent of ‘Shun’ (meaning ‘food should only be eaten when it is at its best and at the height of its season’). Fans say it’s a “lovely” place offering “novel and delicious” flavours from its wide-ranging, funky menu (‘rock and rolls’, ‘plant-based power’, ‘raw to the core’, ‘robata’…) – sceptics say that it’s “overpriced, with miniscule portions”.

Still “a gold standard”, with their “lovely, beautifully displayed food” – this small group of deli-cafés has expanded slowly since the first one opened in Notting Hill 21 years ago; the latest arrived in Pavilion Road, Chelsea, in January 2022. Hugely influential Israeli-born chef and writer Yotam Ottolenghi has transformed the way much of the world sees Middle Eastern cuisine – and vegetables. “I’m not a vegetarian, but I love eating the veg dishes here and I find I don’t need to order any meat”. (See also the chef’s two grander restaurants, Nopi and Rovi).

The “Scandi bro-burger” consistently “hits the spot” at this Marylebone and Soho duo from Icelander Tómas Tómasson, who has 41 years in the burger business and a mini empire that stretches from his native Reykjavik to Copenhagen, Berlin, London and Oxford. Fun fact: Tómasson became the oldest first-time member of the Althing (Iceland’s parliament) in its 1,000-year history when he won election at the age of 72 last year.

The food at the quartet of London cafés supplied by Lady Bamford’s organic farm in the Cotswolds suffered a mauling from some reporters this year. The Daylesford brand does have some “huge fans”, who praise its venues as “very pleasant for a good-quality snack”. But critics – citing “long waits”, “clueless staff” and “poor-quality, ropey ingredients” – feel they “may be a place to be seen but are overpriced and uninteresting”.

A visit to this “very focused” Marylebone wine bar from sommelier Xavier Rousset is “an exciting experience for wine lovers” – “the breadth and array of Rhône vintages allow for an exploration that’s not possible anywhere else”. The “small plates” of bistro food tick the boxes, but can seem “rather mundane” by comparison.

“Lots of lovely cheese” is on the menu at this specialist trio in Bloomsbury, Marylebone and Highbury, complemented by a “truly interesting and well-curated wine list”. The “delicious fondue and raclette go down well on a winter’s day”.

“Lovely fresh fish”, “cooked simply” and “at prices which should shame its neighbours”, is the attractive offer from this trio of straightforward seafood brasseries in some of the pricier parts of town – Covent Garden, Marylebone and Swallow Street, just of Piccadilly. Top Tip – “there’s a fishmonger’s attached”, so you can take some “high-quality fish” home with you.

“Absolutely flawless…”, “exceptional and memorable…”, “consistently superb” – the superlatives just keep coming for JKS Restaurants’ original venture, which scores just as highly as its sibling, Gymkhana, even if the latter is much better known nowadays. It’s a cosy and “upscale” experience, set in quirky U-shaped premises, off Marylebone High Street, and enlivened by “discreet and friendly” staff. Top Menu Tips – “don’t leave without trying the lamb chops”; “mushroom biryani is a standout”; and “crazy as it may sound for a mere piece of bread, the duck keema naan is a real highlight.”

These “groovy Peruvian late-night bar/restaurants” make “a stylish and fun way to end a night out, with a multiplicity of delicious small dishes on the tasting menu”. Best to go in a party mood: they can be “too noisy for conversation”.

“Don’t let the décor fool you: the traditional sushi and other dishes here are really good and good value!”, according to fans of this “cheap ’n’ cheerful” small chain, whose most commented on outlets are the “really-Japanese-in-feel” Marylebone original and more deli-style Highgate spin-off (Bloomsbury and Bayswater inspire little feedback).

Chef and food writer Ravinder Bhogal presents her “very original, beautifully prepared” take on East African Indian cuisine in a “homely” setting in Marylebone. The odd reporter accused it of being “hyped” but most reports do nothing but enthuse about the cooking’s “inventive and surprising flavours”.