London Shepherd's Bush Restaurant Guide

This “beautifully restored, nearly 200-years-old gin palace” on the Uxbridge Road was named at its 1829 launch after the 10-year-old princess who went on to reign as Queen Victoria. These days it serves “really good pub food” – “I’ve never had a bad meal here” – and stocks 100 different gins at its dramatic horseshoe bar. Top Tip – “the pizza and gin-and-tonic lunch offer is a bargain (if a slippery slope)”.

2022 Review: An evocative tiled interior adds to a visit to this cheap ’n’ cheerful Syrian café, near the north end of Shepherd’s Bush Market – a handy place for a fresh fruit juice and affordable mezze meal.

“Still delivering on what it set out to do” – Alan and Mark Wogan’s (yes, the late Terry’s sons) hip pizza chain is the best-rated of the mid-sized groups, thanks to its “huge and amazing pizzas with delicious and unusual toppings” (“now the choice is even easier with the 50/50 option!”). Top Menu Tip – “awesome vegan nduja pizza” is amongst a growing number of plant-based options (and, from June 2022, they now have a fully meat-free site, in their 135-cover Shoreditch branch).

2019 Review: D&D London are rolling out the Bluebird Café concept with this sibling in the former TV Centre at White City: the first eatery to open in the shiny new development. Initial feedback on the food is mostly positive, but its best feature is probably the outside terrace.

“Quite possibly the best meal of my life!” – Endo Kazutoshi delivers “magical experiences, time after time” in his “tiny but scenic restaurant in the old BBC Television Centre” and “there’s no superior restaurant in London”. “Endo blends theatre, passion and extraordinary ingredients” and diners “really appreciate his dedication” in creating an omakase (‘leave it to the chef’) meal that provides “an unparalleled quality of food served with personal flair”. “More than a meal, it was an experience poured out of the heart and hands of Chef Endo… I will return… far more impressive than most 3 Michelin starred meals I have had”.

2022 Review: With its foliage, fairy lights and heaters, this September 2020 newcomer – where tables are predominantly outside – injects a festive spark into a quirky space, next to Shepherd’s Bush market and the Goldhawk Road tube bridge (opposite the station). Founders Will Fuller of Soho House Group and Frazer Timmerman of Incipio Group aimed, apparently, to import a bit of East London groove to this converted railway arch and adjoining large yard, and judging by it being permanently packed they’ve succeeded! Pizza is the menu mainstay and staff try hard. A 120-seater, it’s also available for events.

“One of the best Chinese restaurants in London” is where you might least expect it – in a modern hotel overlooking one side of Shepherd’s Bush Green. Better still, it occupies a “smart, spacious room, so has a calm atmosphere with reasonable noise levels”. The menu comprises “great-quality Cantonese plus other regions”, including “consistently superior dim sum – all well and freshly cooked, with some unusual items alongside old favourites”.

“Much better than the long-established, tired pizza chains!” – the Elliot brothers’ growing group is the most-mentioned of London’s more artisanal pizza multiples in our annual diners’ poll, inspiring joy with their “authentic Neapolitan preparation, with quality ingredients” and featuring “yummy crusts and interesting flavour combinations”. And you get “consistent quality irrespective of the branch visited” too, even if conditions can be “a little cramped and chaotic”.

“Consistently good food, huge portions and excellent value” win solid ratings for this Persian local in Ealing. There’s a “great menu of traditional dishes including kebabs, kashk and ghormeh sabzi” – the classic Persian stew – while “the décor and ambience are authentic and make you feel like you’re in another country”.

“Run by two chef brothers”, this “tiny restaurant” is crammed into the north end of Shepherd’s Bush Market and does a “brisk trade”. Motto: ‘We Speak Falafel Fluently’ – you can order your wrap in the style of Syria, Iran, Lebanon or the owners’ native Palestine. You get “absolutely fresh food, a warm welcome and the best prices in town!”

“If you want your meal dripping down your chest, this is the place!” – “very consistent and superb-tasting burgers” again win a big thumbs-up for this expanding chain, which in 2022 adds branches in first Northcote Road, then Canary Wharf. Top Menu Tips – their classic ‘Ari Gold’ and ‘Smokey Robinson’ options are consistently great (cooked rare on request); vegetarian burgers get upvoted; and any “monthly specials are always worth a look” (“love the limited editions”); “decent sides too”.

“Replacing the much-loved Adams Cafe” is no easy task, but this “new family-run Italian” in up-and-coming ‘Askew Village’ is “a local winner” on all accounts. “The small team provides a short, straightforward menu (pasta is homemade and delicious) and the brief wine list hits the right notes”.

Los Angeles celeb chef Kris Yenbamroong has found a permanent showcase for his US-style ‘nu Thai’ cuisine at the new Hoxton Hotel overlooking Shepherd’s Bush Green.

“A variety of excellent tapas” (mixing Spanish and Italian inspirations) and an appealing, “buzzy” (if sometimes “loud”) atmosphere created huge interest in the original Fitzrovia branch, when it opened back in 2005. But while still retaining a loyal fan club, it can seem overhyped nowadays (“it’s always listed as a go-to place, but there are much better tapas available elsewhere now”). Having spawned various spin-offs (Dehesa, Opera Tavern, Ember Yard), since 2018 it’s been part of Urban Pubs & Bars who have decided to roll it out: first to Westfield in Shepherd’s Bush (which opened in July 2022) and coming soon to Borough Market if local planning objections can be overcome.