Watford Restaurant Guide

“Brilliant, Brilliant, Brilliant.....and tucked away in sleepy Amersham”; Laurie Gear’s “classy” venue is celebrating over 20 years in its sixteenth-century grade II listed site in Old Amersham (although it took Michelin until 2019 to cotton on and give it a star). It is one of the most commented-on venues in our annual diners’ poll on the fringes of the capital. “Stunning”, relatively traditional cuisine is “served by people who actually understand the job of hospitality”, in a Scandi-influenced interior.

2023 Review: Limited but good all-round feedback on this family-run Punjabi stalwart, which has long been a feature of the restaurant strip just to the south of Hammersmith’s Eventim Apollo (and which sometimes only serves a restricted menu in the early evening during events there). It also has a branch in Ealing (not listed).

Apadana Restaurant is a 5 Star Award-winning chic restaurant that uses family-kept recipes to craft authentic, sumptuous Iranian classic dishes in the heart of London's trendy Kensington high street.Indulge your senses in our family kept recipes passed on for generation...

A surprise find in an ancient sixteenth-century pub on the high street – Atul Kochhar’s “superb upmarket Indian” is a “delight”, where the set menus are “outstanding value” (“would happily have paid more”, says a fan) and service “very attentive from the outset”. The ambience is sometimes rated no better than “OK” – for some tastes it’s not as immensely characterful as one might think given the venue’s cameo in ‘Four Weddings’, as the backdrop to Hugh and Andie’s romance.

“Stunningly fresh fish, brilliant service and a jolly super wine list” ensure that a dining cruise along the Grand Union canal aboard the barge Prince Regent is “a fabulous part of the London restaurant scene” – while “tucking into a lobster roll with a beer on the Grand Duchess, permanently docked in Paddington basin, is just as good”. The company’s third venue – its first on dry land – is a combined fishmonger and seafood bar in Swains Lane, near Parliament Hill Fields in Highgate, where late-afternoon oyster-and-wine deals are a special draw.

Jesse Dunford Wood’s quirky former pub in Kensal Rise “never disappoints”. It’s open for “lovely meals all day long” (from 10am), delivering a versatile set of dishes from “an ever-changing seasonal menu” made “with fresh ingredients and imaginative preparation”. “Sunday lunch for both vegetarians and meat-lovers is a particular highlight”.

Near the main entrance to Westfield, this Indian venue will celebrate its fifth year in 2024, but is easily lost amongst the glossy anonymity of the surrounding units. It’s the London outpost of a 45-year-old chain that’s 15-strong in India itself. Although it doesn’t inspire a huge volume of feedback, reports are consistently upbeat: “good value, freshly cooked dishes, lovely ambience”.

The Crazy Bear Beaconsfield introduces an exquisite Thai dining experience, where modernity meets tradition in a symphony of flavors. Our Thai cuisine is celebrated for its originality and provenance, embodying the essence of authentic Thai culinary art with a contemp...

Nestled in the heart of picturesque Buckinghamshire, the Crazy Bear Beaconsfield stands as a beacon of extravagance and unique style, blending traditional British heritage with an audacious twist. Our restaurant prides itself on a diverse range of exquisite ...

“An interesting street-food menu is very well executed” at this “real treat” of a Hammersmith café, with a comfortable, atmospheric interior and “friendly service”. “It’s not as flash as Indian Zing across the road, but dishes are full of flavour and good value!”

Nowadays owned by Jesse Dunford Wood, this “beauty of a local restaurant” is a “gem worth travelling to Holland Park for” – “with a warm welcome, efficient staff and a regularly changing menu”. It’s notably “small and cosy”, which most reporters “love”.

Restaurateur Markos Tsimikalis closed his Shoreditch restaurant, Hungry Donkey, to open this brightly decorated Greek venue in Holland Park in late 2022. Our initial feedback is very upbeat all-round and – in April 2023 – The Independent’s Kate Ng was likewise positive, including about the signature Cretan-style cheesecake made with sheep and goat’s milk (“certainly up there with the greats”).

This “absolute gem of a neighbourhood restaurant” sits on a side street off Chiswick’s bustling main drag, and – like its cousin Chez Bruce – has earned a London-wide reputation over the years thanks to its “fine modern British dining”, “well-drilled service with a smile” and “comprehensive list of fine wines”. There’s been some “changing of the guard in the kitchen” in the last 12 months with Greg Wellman, formerly of The Glasshouse, Kew, taking over at the stoves. But whereas some fans say “it hasn’t undermined what remains a very strong offering”, others are less certain and ratings are not what they were: “I’m still the ‘fan from E18’ who schleps across town to go here, and remain a supporter, but it seems to have lost some of that elusive lustre that previously made it so special”.

JM Oriental is the proud recipient of a coveted Golden Chopsticks Award for ‘Best Fusion Restaurant’. Expect a fine dining experience with founder and executive chef, Andrew Hung. Andrew soon realised his path in life was to follow his father’s footsteps into...

“Relaxed and busy”, Michael Lim’s Notting Hill venue is “always a treat”, with “great Singaporean and other Asian dishes”. It has notched up 26 years, first in All Saints Road and more recently in smart new premises on Ladbroke Road. A second branch opened in Seymour Place, Marylebone, in June 2023. Top Tip – “fantastic in the summer with the roof open”.

“Terrific ingredients, cleverly but unfussily combined” has long been the hallmark of Sally Clarke’s “impeccably run restaurant” in Notting Hill, which has been at the cutting edge of promoting seasonal, Californian-inspired cuisine since 1984. “It’s on the pricey side, but quality remains superb”; the setting is “romantic”; and the service, from a loyal and seemingly well-looked-after contingent of staff is “excellent, all overseen by Sally herself”. The “marvellous” wine list has an “unusual emphasis on North American wines” and some “reasonably priced alternatives to famous names”. Top Tip – “the good-value daily lunch set menu is a fantastic way to try this restaurant out”.

A permanently-moored big sister boat for the London Shell Co's moving vessel, with room for 40 covers plus some al fresco tables in summer and a private Captain's Table (expect lots of fishy / nautical jokes - their strapline is "have your hake and eat it") and a focus on British cooking, especially Cornish fish and seafood.

Welcome to The Melody Restaurant at St. Paul's Hotel The Melody restaurant takes its name from one of Britains’ most beloved films. It was directed by Warris Hussein who was the original director of Dr. Who. Melody? has an international cult following since its release i...

“A very worthy successor to the beloved Glasshouse (RIP)” – this new Kew favourite is co-owned by its predecessor’s former manager, Patra Panas. Service is particularly “well-drilled and friendly”; and regulars are “delighted to find that little has changed” after a “seamless” changeover, with “many of the furnishings still in place” in the agreeable (a few feel, “slightly uninspiring”) dining room. Diners dispute whether the “intelligent and carefully crafted” cuisine, from chef and co-owner Josh Hunter, is a step up or down from before, but practically all agree it’s “very competent”, and say “we shall definitely return and recommend it highly!”