Keston Restaurant Guide

Andrew McLeish’s longtime beacon on London’s south-east fringe receives nothing but plaudits for its “imaginative” and “excellent quality” field-to-fork dining (an ethos reflected in the restaurant’s rooftop beehives), with its loyal army of local fans saying it’s a “very special place that easily beats most high-end offers in Central London”. Even those who have “been using Chapter One for special occasions for over 20 years” don’t get bored since “the menu is changed weekly” to keep things fresh; there’s also a more informal brasserie menu and “the addition of the conservatory bistro is a must for the summer”.

“Extraordinary fresh battered cod and haddock and superb chips” are “savoured” at this “attentive and friendly” traditional chippy on the outskirts of Croydon that’s “still going strong after so many years”. Even a diner who feels “the area’s not the best and the restaurant looks a bit tired” says “the food’s great! – and they always take walk-ins”.

“Cannot be beaten!” – so says the very dedicated local fan club of Victor Choi’s long-established Cantonese fixture on the high street, known locally as a top option for a celebration.

2024 Review: This suburban subcontinental offers an unusual take on Indian street food, having been set up by three brothers keen to pay homage to their grandmother’s cooking, inflected by her travels in Africa and Saudi Arabia; its “authentic” recipes attract nothing but positive reports.

This smart neighbourhood restaurant and bar from Stuart Gillies, for many years Gordon Ramsay’s right-hand man, “never lets you down with quality, value or service – can’t get enough of this place”. The menu offers a mixture of classic British and modern European cuisine, with bottomless brunch on Saturdays and traditional roast on Sundays. There’s now a sibling restaurant on similar lines, Number Eight in Sevenoaks.

2023 Review: A South African-based affordable seafood brand has opened its first UK branch in a former Café Rouge on the market square; Peter ‘Fats’ Lazarides and his brother George opened their first restaurant in Pretoria – more than 300 miles from the nearest coast – in 1995, and there are now more than 215 Ocean Baskets in 19 countries – many of them in sub-Saharan Africa. We expect a roll-out to commence any day.

2024 Review: “A super addition to Bromley” – the borough’s old Town Hall has had £20m spent on a refit as a boutique hotel, complete with this new landmark dining room which launched in late 2022: an imposing chamber, with a soaring vaulted ceiling, wood-panelled walls and clerestory windows. It serves a menu of British classics, and is aiming to be a linchpin of the area. Our early feedback (and press reports) are up-and-down: one reporter liked the “very friendly staff and great building”, but thought “the menu needs to be a little more adventurous”. Another was “slightly disappointed all round, but went shortly after it opened and they were obviously still ironing out stuff”. (Both comments have echoes of Grace Dent’s review in The Guardian: “a gorgeous space…with a brief menu… service is delightful… prompt and friendly, but it’s hard to regard the place as much more than a cafe”).

“The food is great” at this fish and seafood specialist from Richard Kirkwood (ex-J Sheekey and Wright Bros head chef) and co-founder Andy Roberts (a colleague in both kitchens). The project started out under lockdown as a pop-up retail fishmonger and has morphed over five years into a “fantastic local restaurant” with a grill and cocktail bar – while the focus is still on fresh dayboat fish delivered directly from Brixham, Newlyn, Rye and Hastings, they now also serve select meat-based and vegetarian/vegan dishes.

2024 Review: A sibling to Birch in Cheshunt, set in a very large, 18th-century mansion in 200 acres which follows a similar formula combining hotel, club and co-working space. The top culinary attraction is this dining room in the heart of the old property offering foraged fine dining from ex-Typing Room chef, Lee Westcott. It opened in August 2023 (after our annual diners’ poll had concluded) and offers a five-course tasting menu for £69 per person (with a wine pairing at £49 per person). There is also Vervain: an all-day brasserie (plus three bars, a spa, and Lido).

“For consistently authentic tapas” and all “reasonably priced”, this stalwart address can’t be beaten in these parts, having had a fine line in “lovely” tostadas, tortillas and the like since 1991 – and having shut briefly earlier in 2025 to revamp the kitchen. “It’s always packed” (and thus too “noisy” for some).