Hardens Guide to the Best Restaurants in Oxted
Hardens guides have spent 34 years compiling reviews of the best Oxted restaurants. On Hardens.com you'll find details and reviews of 173 restaurants in Oxted and our unique survey based approach to rating and reviewing Oxted restaurants gives you the best insight into the top restaurants in every area and of every type of cuisine.
Featured Oxted Restaurants
1. Spice Village Tooting
restaurant in
121 Upper Tooting Road - SW17
At Spice Village, we claim that every meal has a story. Interestingly, Spice Village itself has a fascinating story.The story of Spice Village is a story of taste, passion, and excellence exhibited by Nasir & Suleman, two immigrant brothers who journeyed to Lo...
2. Indian Essence
Indian restaurant in Petts Wood
176-178 Petts Wood Rd - BR5
“Deliciously-spiced food with friendly and attentive service” inspires very high and consistent praise for Atul Kochhar’s accomplished venue, which is one of the brighter sparks in this thinly provided area of SE London’s outer ’burbs. Breaking news: according to the restaurant’s website and Insta in October 2025, an upgrade is in progress – ‘We’re thrilled to announce that Indian Essence is about to embark on a bold new chapter, transforming your dining experience. We’re blending style, comfort, and innovation to create a space as unforgettable as the food we serve, so expect a fresh look, a reimagined interior, and a few surprises on the menu’.
3. Chez Bruce
British, Modern restaurant in Balham
2 Bellevue Rd - SW17
“A superb destination full of generosity and honesty” – Bruce Poole & Nigel Platts-Martin’s “faultless”, “neighbourhood” restaurant, just across from Wandsworth Common, is voted London’s No. 1 favourite in our annual diners’ poll for an amazing 20th year. How do they do it? First off, consistency – a typical report will often start: “we’ve been eating here twice a year for about 20 years and it’s never been other than a brilliant go-to for a special meal”. Secondly, nothing about the enterprise is pretentious or showy: it’s “quietly refined but never pompous”. Chef Matt Christmas’s modern British cuisine is “unfailingly excellent” but impressively straightforward – “there’s nowhere for the chef to hide and he doesn’t need to”; impeccable ingredients are “cooked to perfection”, “every single thing on the plate has a taste, and nothing is just there for colour or decoration”. Thirdly, the service. Bruce is a “sympathic owner and he’s in the the room”, along with his staff who are “friendly but not overbearing and extremely well informed (if you’re a wine buff – there’s an extensive list – they’ll happily advise and discuss. But equally they won’t be snooty if you just want the ‘house red’”). Fourthly, the “plain (in a good way)” dining room, which is perfectly in keeping with the un-forced style of the proceedings. Its “lively buzz (as it’s practically always full)” can occasionally seem “noisy”, and for the odd thrill- seeker it “lacks excitement”. But if your taste veers towards “‘mature dinner party’ rather than ‘wild night out’” it feels for all the world like a “proper grown-up restaurant”. Fifth and finally, the final bill – prices are not give-away, but taken as a whole – with the generous little extras like parmesan biscuits to start, excellent breads and butter, a little truffle at the end – it’s “still astonishing value for money”.
4. The Guildford Arms
British, Modern restaurant in Greenwich
55 Guildford Grove - SE10
Ten minutes’ walk south of Greenwich BR, this Georgian corner tavern is more gastro than pub, with a stylishly updated interior and a “beautiful garden”. Much of the menu – for example, steak, fish, chicken skewers – is prepared on the robata grill, and is “a cut above your usual pub grub”.
5. Knife
Steaks & grills restaurant in Clapham
160 Clapham Park Road - SW4
With its red neon signage, black-tiled exterior and bare-brick interior, this well-established steakhouse in the borders between Clapham and Brixton will celebrate its tenth anniversary in 2026. The formula is straightforward, revolving around quality beef all supplied by Lake District Farmers (and roasts on Sundays). This year’s biggest criticism? “Good but pricey”.
6. Cinnamon Culture
Indian restaurant in Chislehurst
95-97 High Street - BR7
This modern, family-run Indian restaurant is a “very useful venue for the area”, delivering food of a “good consistent standard” from a “menu with a bit of thought behind it” – and which includes such unusual dishes as tandoori ostrich fillet and wild boar curry.
7. Babur
Indian restaurant in Forest Hill
119 Brockley Rise - SE23
This Honor Oak Park institution “celebrated its well-deserved 40th anniversary” over the last year and “continues to provide some of the best Indian cooking in London” – it “looks and to an extent feels like a neighbourhood curry house, but the food is in another league”, with diners travelling from beyond southeast London to sample chef Jiwan Lal’s cuisine. They get a warm welcome, too (“I’ve been a regular customer for over 25 years and am greeted like an old friend”). Top Tips – “the good-value Sunday lunch buffet is well worth a trek”; “Swordfish tikka with a well-balanced radish pickle; Champaran mutton curry with excellent quality meat; Mango creme brulee with a very delicate crust”.
8. The Haycutter
British, Modern restaurant in Oxted
Tanhouse Road - RH8
2023 Review: This “lovely” mid-Victorian boozer (believed to be the only ‘Haycutter’ in the country) earns solid ratings for its “good old-fashioned pub grub” and “brilliant” all-round performance. It is now part of the Brunning & Price group.
9. Chez Vous
French restaurant in Warlingham
432 Limpsfield Rd - CR6
2022 Review: The French cuisine may not be cutting-edge, but it is both consistent and highly accomplished at this ten-year-old restaurant with rooms in north Surrey. Chef owners Laurent Pacaud and Martin Bradley ran the business as a catering company for ten years before that.
10. McDermotts Fish & Chips
Fish & chips restaurant in Croydon
5-7 The Forestdale Shopping Centre Featherbed Ln - CR0
“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”.
11. The George & Dragon
British, Traditional restaurant in Chipstead
39 High St - TN13
A “very busy and popular pub just off the A21 outside Sevenoaks”, and occupying a characterful 16th-century building that boasts beams and wonky floors – as well as having a pleasant outdoor space for warmer months. Add in some solid seasonal gastro food (they do a slap-up Sunday lunch) and it’s “lots of fun” to visit.
12. Chapter One
International restaurant in Locksbottom
Farnborough Common - BR6
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”.
13. MEATliquor
Burgers, etc restaurant in Croydon
99 George St - CR0
“When you want a hipster burger dripping in your beard, this place delivers!” – Scott Collins’s “buzzy, vibey” joints are notorious for their “really good dirty burgers” with memorable names (the ‘Dead Hippie’ and its veggie cousin the ‘Tempeh Tantrum’), plus “excellent buffalo wings with blue-cheese sauce”. In early 2025 he opened spinoff venture BLOODsports in a Covent Garden basement (see also), showing live sports and horror films on large-screen TVs.
14. Xian
Chinese restaurant in Orpington
324 High St - BR6
“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.
15. Chai Naasto
Indian restaurant in Beckenham
2 - 4 Fairfield Road - BR3
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.
16. Bank House Wine Bar & Kitchen
British, Modern restaurant in Chislehurst
11 High Street - BR7
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.
17. The Alma
British, Modern restaurant in Crystal Palace
95 Church Road - SE19
2024 Review: This “lovely food-led pub” – a carefully modernised beauty from 1854 on Crystal Palace’s thriving ‘Triangle’ – showcases chef David Yorkiston’s “really great cooking – way, way above typical gastroboozer fare”. “Controversially, it has banned kids under 10” but not everyone objects (“we think the atmosphere is all the better for it, even if it means we can’t go there as often as we’d like)”.
18. Gravetye Manor
British, Modern restaurant in East Grinstead
Vowels Lane - RH19
“The stunning glass-fronted dining room looks out onto the lovely garden” at this “quite magnificent spot” – a “rather splendid” Elizabethan manor house “steeped in history”, amidst 35 acres “of great horticultural interest” that were laid out in the 1880s. The building has been a hotel since 1958, and the very contemporary dining room was added in 2019 – “just glorious on all levels”; “a fabulous summer experience” in particular; and “perfect for a romantic interlude”. All reviews also attest to its “sublime food and super service”, which we’ve rated on the basis of our annual diners’ poll despite new Executive Head Chef, Martin Carabott joining in March 2025 as it was in progress. “With fresh vegetables and fruit from their extensive kitchen garden, it’s a very high quality experience indeed”. One of this year’s worst reviews? “Not sure it’s really worth the money, but it’s always a great occasion”. Top Menu Tip – “particularly good langoustine tartare”.
19. 400 Rabbits
Pizza restaurant in Crystal Palace
30-32 Westow St - SE19
2023 Review: “Always fresh sourdough pizza” has helped build a strong local following for this hip southeast London group, with outlets in Crystal Palace, Nunhead, West Norwood, Herne Hill and Elephant & Castle. A new natural wine selection from specialist importer Les Caves de Pyrène is now available alongside the craft beers on tap. Top Tip – “make sure you leave room for the ice cream”.
20. Kentish Hare
British, Modern restaurant in Bidborough
95 Bidborough Ridge - TN3
“Good-quality food and friendly service” at this village pub, which was rescued in a rundown state by entrepreneur Sir Keith Mills and his wife Maureen a dozen years ago, and is run by well-known chef brothers Chris & James Tanner. “It’s great for families – you can watch the chefs at work in front of you!”.
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