London Tooting Restaurant Guide

“What a find” in Tooting Market – Laura Aitkin and Kiki Evans have maintained the “fun” pop-up vibe of their ‘Grape Night In’ wine tasting sessions at their permanent shop and wine bar, where guest chefs cook meals to accompany their ‘off-the-beaten-track’ bottles. They have a second bar in a shipping container beside Waterloo Station.

2021 Review: High marks again for this brave hipster outpost occupying one of the stalls in Tooting’s covered market, and where funky, seasonal, British small plates are served at the counter. Some diners found themselves “questioning some of the combinations”, but most judged results “very good”.

2021 Review: Helping make Tooting’s Broadway Market a foodie destination, this “very affordable” three-year-old seafood specialist wins praise for its “fabulous food, great service and big smiles”. The “really inventive” approach extends to drinks, which include an “amazing gin cocktail” flavoured with oysters. Antiques trade veteran Jimmy Luttman is an “excellent” host.

2018 Review: “Fabulous Pakistani cooking at ridiculously inexpensive prices” makes this “quirky” BYO canteen one of the best in Tooting. “Expect to have to wait for a table.”

2021 Review: The “lovely Thai food” at these reliable cafés is “impressively authentic given that they are a chain” – “excellent value” and “fast”, if occasionally let down by “iffy service”. Founded in 2008 by Saiphin and Alex Moore, who inherited the name of their first East End site, the group has 18 branches in London and expanded to Liverpool, Manchester, Reading (delivery only) and Leeds following the sale of a majority stake to US investors. The couple also have two spin-offs, Lao Café in Covent Garden and the new Chinese noodle bar Hoh Sek in St Katharine Docks.

“Still one of the best curries on the high street” – this basic Pakistani canteen is one of the better bets on Tooting’s curry corridor: in particular, “the grill items are delicious”.

“A must-visit on Tooting High Street” – this modest and “amazing-value” family-run café was one of the first in London to serve “authentic and delicious hoppers and other Sri Lankan specialities” when it opened 31 years ago. “The lunch menu is really good for a cheap ’n’ cheerful meal, but for the best experience go in the evening and eat in the back dining room”.

“This crew started in Pop Brixton and now have opened up a new tasting menu venture in Tooting!” Remi Williams and Aaron Webster’s new site was formerly an outpost of Dip & Flip, but the cuisine continues to celebrate ‘the ancient techniques of smoking, curing and preserving, combined with bold, global flavours and modern influences’. The result is “an excellent value tasting menu” – “absolutely delicious combinations that keep you coming back for more!” and “divinely paired with drinks options”.

This once-thriving burger brand from Nick Jones’s Soho House group has been reduced to a single branch, under the arches in Vauxhall, and a supporting role at stablemate Chicken Shop in St John’s Wood. Fans reckon it’s “good for when you’re in a hurry” – perhaps they should hurry, while it’s still there.

This “busy little local” in Tooting is “always buzzing”, with a crowd drawn by a “brilliant range of tasty tapas, with new ones added recently”. “A local favourite but worth a longer trip if you’re in SW London”.

This “cracking Thai” trio in Battersea, Brixton and Tooting are highly recommended for their delicious and authentic dishes. Run by a large extended family, they have a “great atmosphere” – and the BYO policy keeps prices down.