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$$$ | Bloomsbury |
There's an old Amsterdam coffeehouse vibe at this dark and creaky wine bar and restaurant on historic Lamb's Conduit Street in Bloomsbury. Run by two wine buffs and cult wine magazine publishers, you'll find deceptively simple ingredient-driven British dishes like roast Yorkshire pheasant with bread sauce and quince. There's an ever-changing French and British cheese plate menu, fantastic focaccia, sourdough, and soda bread, and an ambrosial wine list.
51 Lamb's Conduit St., London, Greater London, WC1N 3NB, England
Known For
- Paradise for oenophiles
- Unpretentious seasonal British and French wine-friendly fare
- Excellent value two- and three-course set lunch menu
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Sun.
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$$$$ | Covent Garden |
Opened by Thomas Rule in 1798, London's oldest restaurant is still perhaps its most beautiful. The epitome of High Victorian design, overflowing with antique portraits, prints, cartoons, busts, and taxidermy, here you can indulge in traditional British fare like jugged hare, steak and kidney pie, or roast beef and Yorkshire pudding. For a taste of the 18th century, choose game from the restaurant's High Pennines estate, including roast grouse, mallard, or pheasant. Snag a table in one of the skylit rooms or the spot where the Victorian-era Prince of Wales had trysts with the famed beauty and actress Lillie Langtry.
35 Maiden La., London, Greater London, WC2E 7LB, England
Known For
- The oldest restaurant in London
- Traditional British game-based fare
- Famous diners from Charles Dickens to Evelyn Waugh
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Reservations essential, Closed Mon.
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$$ | Hackney |
If you've ever wondered what the future tastes like, it might just be the 11-course tasting menu here at Silo, a sleek zero-waste restaurant opened by pioneering chef Douglas McMaster in this on-trend area of East London. Clever use of techniques like smoking and dehydration will change how you think about everyday ingredients like carrots and potatoes, while the occasional meat dishes—game and offal feature often—are melt-in-the-mouth delectable (those not in the mood for the full 11 courses can go à la carte with the small plates menu). The local neighborhood may still be a bit rough around the edges, but Silo, with its beautiful high-ceilinged dining room, black-clad staff, and wow cooking, is one of the chicest dining experiences in town.
Unit 7 Queens Yard, London, Greater London, E9 5EN, England
Known For
- Atmospheric views of London Stadium and the ArcelorMittal Orbit tower
- Innovative design is full of surprises, including a bar made of recycled Italian shoe leather
- Ingredients like house-churned butter and house-rolled oats that typify the zero-waste philososphy
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Sun.–Tues. No lunch Wed.–Fri.
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$$$$ | Victoria |
Downton Abbey meets The Crown at this quintessentially English, old-school dining salon located within an Edwardian-era hotel down the road from Buckingham Palace. A favorite with royalty and courtiers, here you can enjoy daily specials like traditional beef Wellington or antediluvian quirks such as Eggs Drumkilbo (a hard-boiled egg/lobster seafood cocktail with caviar)—a onetime favorite of the late Queen Mother.
Beeston Pl., London, Greater London, SW1W 0JW, England
Known For
- Plush salon designed by Viscount David Linley
- Glazed lobster omelet with duck fat chips
- Royal history and pedigree
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: No lunch Sat.
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$$$ | Soho |
Everyone feels 100 times more glamorous just stepping inside this candlelit restaurant attached to the swanky Georgian-era hotel of the same name. Straightforward but enormously fun retro British faves include classic pea-and-ham soup, primary school–style mince and potatoes, smoked haddock soufflé, and sticky toffee pudding. You'll also find traditional English scones and buttered crumpets for afternoon tea, and nostalgic 1970s fish finger sandwiches for early evening high tea.
69–71 Dean St., London, Greater London, W1D 3SE, England
Known For
- Classy candlelit dining salon with modern British art on the walls
- Welcoming and highly professional service
- Cheery afternoon and high tea services
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Reservations essential
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Recommended Fodor’s Video
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$$$$ | Knightsbridge |
Medieval English cuisine meets molecular gastronomy in this reassuringly luxurious Blumenthal flagship, with two Michelin stars, within the Mandarin Oriental hotel. Try the signature "Meat Fruit" appetizer (last popular in the 16th century, it's a ball of ultrasmooth chicken liver parfait encased in a citrus-flavored gel "peel") or the much-more-appetizing-than-it-sounds "Rice and Flesh," a 15th-century dish of yellow saffron rice with beef cheeks and red wine. For dessert, don't miss the signature Tipsy Cake (circa 1810)—brioche soaked in Sauternes, brandy, and vanilla cream, with slices of pineapple slowly roasted on the restaurant's open-fire spit. A three-course set lunch (£75) offers good value, relatively speaking.
66 Knightsbridge, London, Greater London, SW1X 7LA, England
Known For
- Handsome dining room with Hyde Park views
- Creative reinterpretations of historical dishes
- Pineapple Tipsy cake for dessert
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Reservations essential
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$ | Victoria |
The area between Victoria and Westminster is something of a wasteland in terms of independent quick-bite eateries, but this minimalist café serves excellent coffee, salads, wraps, and more. Peak office lunchtimes can get pretty busy, so aim to avoid the rush if you want to dine in.
1 Howick Pl., London, Greater London, SW1P 1WG, England
Known For
- Vegetable peels and trimmings made into soups, stocks, and pickles to minimize waste
- Frequently changing lunch menu
- Indulgent treats like buttermilk banana bread
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed weekends. No dinner
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$$$$ | Trafalgar Sq. |
Tom Kerridge made his name earning Michelin stars at rural gastropubs, and there's still a sense of pub grub about the menu here, at his first London restaurant, despite the glamorous high-ceilinged dining room, flawless service, and rather steep prices. That's no bad thing, however, when you've got a chef as skilled as Kerridge—think rich, meat-focused dishes served alongside unusual twists, such as gherkin ketchup or black cabbage purée.
10 Northumberland Ave., London, Greater London, WC2N 5AE, England
Known For
- Inventive use of rotisserie cooking, from steak to cauliflower
- Playful presentation, from irreverant pastry additions to pour-it-yourself sauces
- Atmospheric views of Northumberland Avenue
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$$$$ | Mayfair |
Hidden away in the depths of a Mayfair hotel, Ormer delivers modern British cooking at its finest. In the art deco–inspired basement haven, you can indulge in elegant dishes from executive chef Sofian Msetfi, which celebrate the seasonal and the foraged. You'll find options from roast anjou pigeon to warm Iberico ham jelly. The wide-ranging wine list features an excellent selection of English fizz. At £85 a head, the tasting menu is exceptionally reasonable for the quality you receive.
7--12 Half Moon St., London, Greater London, W1J 7BH, England
020-7016–5601-for reservations only
Known For
- Range of tasting menus
- Excellent wine selection with sharp focus on British fizz
- Great vegetarian and vegan fine-dining options
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Sun. and Mon.
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$$ | Shoreditch |
You feel like quite the foodie insider once you finally track down the quirky Rochelle Canteen—it's set in a former bike shed at the Victorian-era Rochelle School. Ring the buzzer next to a blue door, go through the "Boys" entrance, and enter the long white canteen, where you'll enjoy gloriously understated British fare ranging from deviled kidneys on toast to Yorkshire ham and parsley sauce. Bump along with the Frieze London art crowd, and enjoy guinea fowl with bacon or skate and capers, and finish with quince jelly or lemon posset.
Arnold Circus, London, Greater London, E2 7ES, England
Known For
- Seasonal, daily-changing menu
- Delightful garden views
- Unpretentious vibe
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Reservations essential
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$ | Primrose Hill |
This "greasy spoon without the grease" has become a neighborhood hot spot thanks to its modern reinterpretation of traditional British “caff” food (with the nontraditional additions of a wine list, vegan options, newspapers, and books) as well as its well-connected owners (the restaurant was officially opened by local resident Helena Bonham Carter and the vintage jukebox is “curated” by none other than Robert Plant). Lunch and dinner options feature healthy, homemade takes on British comfort food like bangers-and-mash with onion gravy, salmon fish cakes, and mac-and-cheese. There's also the option of interesting salads like grilled halloumi cheese with heritage carrots and oranges, while breakfast offers a vegan Full English. The ambience is a cross between an American diner and a Parisian bistro, and the service is welcoming if sometimes erratic.
40 Chalcot Rd., London, Greater London, NW1 8LS, England
Known For
- Healthy takes on British comfort food
- Upscale but friendly ambience
- Excellent all-day breakfasts
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: No dinner Wed.
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$$$$ | Covent Garden |
You can feel the history at this 1889 art deco dining powerhouse, which has wined and dined everyone from Oscar Wilde to Marilyn Monroe. Nowadays it caters to business barons, well-heeled West Enders, and wealthy tourists, who come for the Grill's famed table-side silver serving trolley, which might trundle up laden with roast beef or a saddle of lamb. Savoy signatures like omelet Arnold Bennett (with smoked haddock, cream, and Parmesan cheese) or Peach Melba dessert always impress, as do other timeless classics like Chateaubriand steaks and lobster Thermidor.
100 Strand, London, Greater London, WC2R 0EU, England
020-7592–1600-for reservations only
Known For
- Ravishing dining salon
- Beef Wellington from the daily carving trolley service
- Signature glazed omelet Arnold Bennett
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Reservations essential
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$$ | Greenwich |
Stroll west along the Thames, past the interesting architectural remnants of the Greenwich Steam Ferry, to this bright, friendly, waterside pub. Downstairs, you'll find upmarket pub fare—think fish pie with lobster or artichoke and mushroom hotpot with hispi cabbage—while there's a fancier, fine dining menu upstairs.
7 Victoria Parade, London, Greater London, SE10 9FR, England
Known For
- Terrific Thames views
- Bottomless Sunday brunch
- Heated terrace dining
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$ | Bayswater |
A laid-back, airy, art deco--inspired gastropub serving up quality Modern British food, The Prince Bonaparte offers a fine selection of ales and carefully chosen wines. A stone's throw from Portobello Market, it's the perfect place for a drink or a bite to eat.
80 Chepstow Rd., London, Greater London, W2 5BE, England
Known For
- Super-helpful wait and bar staff
- Relaxed and friendly atmosphere
- Legendary Sunday roasts
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$$$$ | St. James's |
London's most opulent dining salon here at The Ritz would impress even Marie Antoinette with its sumptuous Gilded Age rococo revival trompe-l'oeil frescoes, tasseled silk drapery, and towering marble columns. Sit at the late Margaret Thatcher's favorite seat overlooking Green Park (Table 1) and luxuriate in unreconstructed British haute cuisine, such as Bresse chicken with black Périgord truffles or beef Wellington carved table-side. Don't miss the crêpes suzette, which are flambéed table-side by the maître d'. The chef's five and seven-course set menus are also a delight.
150 Piccadilly, London, Greater London, W1J 9BR, England
Known For
- Luxurious dining made for the British elite
- Possibly London's best beef Wellington
- Legendary traditional Afternoon Tea in the Palm Court
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Reservations essential, Jacket and tie
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$$$$ | St. James's |
Lords, ladies, and other assorted aristocrats blow the family bank at this Edwardian bastion of traditional English fine dining on Jermyn Street (the place first opened near the Haymarket as a shellfish stall in 1742). Posh patrons tend to order half a dozen oysters, followed by grilled Dover sole, Blythburgh pork from the carving trolley, or fabulous native game, such as roast partridge, grouse, or teal. There is also soft herring roe on toast, plus pleasing desserts like Peach Melba or sherry trifle.
55 Jermyn St., London, Greater London, SW1Y 6LX, England
Known For
- Traditional English dining focused on shellfish and game
- Waiter service that would put Jeeves to shame
- Bordeaux-heavy wine menu
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Sun. and bank holidays. No lunch Sat., Reservations essential, Jackets encouraged; no sneakers, open-toe shoes, sportswear or short-sleeve tops
