London Temple Restaurant Guide

2024 Review: Robbie Lorraine has upped sticks from Brixton with his Del Boy-inspired pop-up – a witty, multi-course trip back in time to the cuisine of the 80s and 90s (duck-liver paté, prawn cocktail…). This new home is part of a Grade II listed pub just off the Strand: not to be confused with Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese on Fleet Street, which is about ten minutes’ stroll away (although both claim Dickens as a former patron). No survey feedback as yet – reports please!

“Is there better value in London?” query fans, than the £54.50, 5-course tasting menu at this intriguing, “discreet” converted Georgian auction house in Chancery Lane, from Pascal Aussignac’s Club Gascon group, where the elegant, light-filled interior with large roof-light hints at its former purpose. The “simple southern French cuisine” is “precise, cleverly flavoured and pleasantly served”, while the wine list offers equally “good value”. Top Tip – head down to the vaults for an end or two of indoor pétanque in Baranis cocktail bar.

“Really interesting food, superbly prepared” won more consistent raves this year at Jeremy Chan’s (chef) and Iré Hassan-Odukale’s (MD) ground-breaking venture, which moved to this ‘Midtown’ location on Aldwych in 2022 having won renown for itself in St James’s Market. At the vanguard of transforming impressions of African cuisine, chef Jeremy takes the spices of sub-Saharan West Africa and combines them with British ingredients in a ‘micro-seasonal’ culinary mash-up that’s won it two Michelin stars and the UK’s highest position on the World’s 50 best (at No. 15 in 2025). It’s “exceptional food but with an exceptional and terrifying final bill” – the set menu is £350 per person before wine. And while “Jeremy’s personal attention is without parallel”, the atmosphere of this copper-hued chamber can seem “sterile”. Top Tip – at £150 per person, the shorter express lunch menu is a relative bargain.

“Full of a real mix of interesting-looking people”: this “exciting” ‘midtown’ all-rounder benefits from its position at the side of Soho House’s Strand outpost – plus ownership by the co-founders of Frieze magazine and art fairs – to be something of “a canteen” for those in-the-know; and “they seem mindful that the prices mustn’t get too expensive”. This is a foodie favourite too, thanks to the “carefully crafted, really imaginative and unusual dishes with a Mediterranean mojo”: “you never know quite what to expect but it’s invariably well executed” and “after a meal, you just want to hang around until you are hungry again!”. (There’s also “a lovely bakery with everything made on the premises, great coffee and good pastries”). Set in a large (100 cover) and “bustling” space that’s “a bit industrial” for some tastes, there’s also a “spacious flowery terrace for warm days”. Out of lots of reports this year, none have major beefs, but ratings across the board are a tad lower, and – as one regular notes – “it will be interesting to see what effect the recent departure of chef, Yohei Furuhashi, to the Lavery has on Toklas”. Top Tip – “the pre-theatre set menu is very good value”. Top Menu Tips – “fried feta and carrot dishes are stand-out”; “fish and pasta are especially good”; “interesting saltimboca rabbit – very tender if very salty” and “top, subtle-flavoured mussel escabeche snack”.

Back in the day (in 2004), Arjun Waney & Rainer Becker’s successful Japanese fusion-favourite on Charlotte Street helped forge new expectations for fashionable dining out – with its slick combination of sushi, sashimi and robata-grilled items – and “it’s still a winner, even if we have now seen it all before”. Over the years four London siblings have been added, alongside another nine in the eastern Mediterranean and the Gulf. A particular hit with business diners, some reporters visit several times a year, and say “it’s always an enjoyable experience, with delicious options like the black cod, crab gyoza and fillet beef”.

“Exceptional food cooked by Cordon Bleu students” helps win high marks all-round for this culinary institute’s stylish, light-filled dining room: part of its HQ which shifted in 2022 to the Lutyens-designed building that was once the UK base for Reuters. In particular it’s often recommended as “a winner” for business entertaining: “set lunch offers good choices; portions are just right; dishes are prettily presented and taste delicious; and there’s a nice range of wines by the glass”.

James Dawson’s half-dozen wine bars are “super venues to try interesting new wines in”, with “informative service” – “food is something of an after-thought, but pretty good for all that”, and comes into its own with a “fantastic Sunday roast menu: lamb and beef are high-quality and cooked perfectly”. Top Tip – “great deals on a Monday when most others are closed”.

“Fantastic dim sum”, “excellent Peking duck” and “a surprisingly good (and good-value) set lunch menu” belie the “slightly sterile”, “hotel-restaurant” setting in the Hyatt Regency at Blackfriars (fka the Crowne Plaza). The unusual name commemorates the 2009 debut of China’s national cricket team.

“It’s a staple for entertaining visitors to the capital due to the sensational view”, but – predictably – the cooking is “very very average and very very overpriced” at this quintessential, ’90s- minimalist brasserie atop the South Bank landmark, on which we have written pretty much the same dire review since it first opened in 1996. If you want to visit, maybe “just get a drink” at the bar or eat in the (better rated) adjoining cheaper brasserie.

The cheaper section of this South Bank landmark doesn’t generate as much feedback as its slightly grander adjacent sibling, but it occupies a similar rooftop space with large outdoor terrace and – on admittedly limited feedback – escaped its customary drubbing in this year’s annual diners’ poll, making a visit here the better bet: “visited for a work lunch… glad I wasn’t paying, but the simple food was excellent (if eclipsed by the view on a sunny day)”. Another highlight: “the superb team in the bar”.

2023 Review: “Good scruffy fun with a side order of nostalgia” is to be had at this “hidden gem” in the Strand (a favourite with staff at the Indian High Commission opposite). “An almost anonymous doorway leads you up some stairs” where you “step back in time, not to a cheesy incarnation of the British Raj, but to the early days of independence”. Founded in 1951 (Prime Minister Nehru was among the founding members), the ‘club’ is open to the public and serves food that can be (but is not invariably) “excellent” at a “great price”, in an authentically “slightly chaotic atmosphere”. It’s been under siege for the past five years from a landlord itching to redevelop, but it’s “an institution that deserves to survive, and an oasis of good value in central London”. Top Tip – it’s unlicensed – “pause for a drink in the bar downstairs before or after eating” or carry your pint to the table.

For a glam rendezvous near Tate Modern, this Tom Dixon-designed lounge with terrace fits the bill, with its smooth design and variety of menus (all day from breakfast) incorporating tempting bites such as Jumbo Shrimp Cocktail, Crispy Chicken Burger or Surrey Farm Rib Eye. It’s predictably expensive though and nothing you eat is likely to dwell long in the memory.

“Pretty much any Asian dish you fancy is available” (“where else can you get sushi, ramen, laksa and char kway teow in one place!”) at Ding Chu’s five canteens in central and west London, which celebrate their 30th anniversary this year. They are “terrific value, especially for areas of town where restaurants are generally overpriced”. You wouldn’t choose them for a romantic supper though: each interior is a “bit of an overly bright space”.

“Quiet culinary bravura paired with both genuine respect for food and wonderful staff, and all served in one of prettiest rooms in London” maintains a very high level of popularity for renowned Aussie chef, Skye Gyngell’s “very elegant” chamber – a big, airy, light-filled space in the distinguished surroundings of Somerset House, that “always brings a sense of occasion”. Often tipped for romance, there’s just one complaint – “it was all fine… except for the prices!”. Top Tip – “their scratch supper menu is one of the great bargains of all time… as well as being delicious!”

2022 Review: This independent fixture in legal-land (near the LSE) is a long-running staple of the area – welcoming, “always good value”, and with some interesting picks and bin-end deals on the wine list.

This “calm and very comfortable” hotel mezzanine on the edge of Covent Garden is a useful place to know about in a busy area – providing a “very soothing experience, with fairly traditional cooking, good-quality ingredients and generally good service”. It also serves an “amazing Charlie and the Chocolate Factory afternoon tea”, in which “both savoury and sweet elements are first class”. Top Tip – “fully gluten- and lactose-free menu available”.

“As many lovely sandwiches as you can eat, a big selection of teas, great cakes etc; all impeccably served in a beautiful and very comfortable room with a pianist” marks out the central lounge of this famous property as offering one of London’s top teas. The space was called ‘Thames Foyer’ up till its redesign and relaunch in late 2024 and one report does quibble at the changes (“it’s now not as comfortable as extra tables means you eat much closer together and prices seem to be higher”). Most feedback, though, is a hymn of praise and also claims that tea here has “less pressure and formality than at The Ritz”. The venue is also tipped for “a good selection of posh breakfast classics, well-prepared and served with style”.