London, French Restaurant Guide

The “exciting and gorgeous” setting (a “spectacular” conversion of a Victorian school chapel) helps create “a certain aura” – fitting both romantic dinners and power lunching – at the Galvin Bros’ Spitalfields fixture. Its “fabulous standard” of modern French cuisine and “professional but easy-going service” won it more consistent praise this year as one of the best all-rounders in the City, and, some would say, in town.

“David Moore’s gastronomic home has stood the test of time through many chefs that have gone on to star elsewhere”. All reports on this “world-class” Fitzrovia townhouse agree that – with the help of Asimakis Chaniotis at the stoves (since October 2017) – “it is amazing how standards have been maintained” with “creative cuisine that’s delicious but not fussy”. “Friendly guidance from the knowledgeable and engaging sommelier” is another plus in navigating an “exceptional” wine list, with “interesting and well-priced vintages from unusual places”. Gripes about the ambience were largely absent this year, with typical feedback describing it as “always elegant, always stylish”. Top Tip: “the space at the front of the restaurant is more crowded – ask for the back room when booking”.

Gerald Mirey and Ko Ito have put down permanent roots in Fulham at this cute little modern bistro, near the top of North End Road’s market. Dig beyond the weekend brunch, and the à la carte here is distinctive and very competitively priced, offering fusion dishes underpinned by classic French cuisine with Japanese notes. Alongside the inventive food menu is a list of French wines and Japanese sake (as well as London craft sake Kanpai).

Chef William Drabble maintains a low profile but his “expert cuisine” inspires a small but smitten fan club for this under-the-radar dining room in a swish St James’s hotel – a “cosy room with enough room between tables for privacy”. “He remains in the kitchen, where he belongs, and remains my favourite chef!”

Proprietor Gavin Rankin (ex-MD of Annabel’s) “is much in evidence” at this “very discreet and efficient” Mayfair fixture – “a comfortable English take on a Parisian brasserie” that’s one of a tiny handful of restaurants ever visited by The Queen (and, fair to say, “a safe place to entertain”). For its traditional following, “this is the sort of restaurant you aspire to go to once a week, for the rest of your life” – a “properly grown-up and elegant” venue, with “impeccable service”, offering “good interpretations” of “Anglo-French classic dishes” and “a well-chosen and fairly-priced all-French wine list”.

“The kind of restaurant that sets the gold standard” – this “classy and understated” neighbourhood star has an obscure location in a Chiswick side street and echoes the “unshowy” excellence of its stablemate Chez Bruce, “delivering the goods year on year”. “Novel, vibrant and exciting cooking still thrills and surprises” and service, likewise, “is outstanding – you never feel like a waiter is looking over your shoulder but the staff are attentive to everything”. The persnickety feel that the interior is maybe a mite “clinical”, but most reporters feel “the surroundings are lovely”, “all very relaxed”, cosseted by “the hum of happy diners”.