Back in December, I asked for some restaurant recommendations for my son and his girlfriend, who were going to be passing through London on the way to the US from Uganda, and I thank you.

Now, we're all (5 of us) going to be in London for 4 days at the end of August, before we all return to the US from Egypt. We've been in London a number of times before, but with my son, we've always been relegated to eating at coffee shops and fast food (and Aberdeen Steak House(s)) because he's a terribly finicky eater, even now at age 23 (I sure wish he'd get over this!). He does eat all kinds of Asian cuisine - Chinese, Thai and Indian in particular, but they've been eating Indian regularly in Uganda (which they say has fantastic Indian food, presumably due to the large Indian ex-pat population in Kampala). He loves Italian food (pesto is pretty much the only green food he eats), although his girlfriend mentioned recently that he had tried zucchini (well, I hate zucchini, too, so I wouldn't be surprised if he does LOL!)

So, here I am again. I'd love some recommendations that aren't TOO pricey, not fancy (definitely no dress-up required) and not fussy, but also not fast food/coffee-shop/Aberdeen's!

Thanks for your help (again).

I had a really excellent meal at Prezzo. It's a chain specializing Italian food. I went to the one in Salisbury, but they have plenty of restos in London.
http://www.prezzoplc.co.uk/locations.html#london

Wagamama is decent (severs pan-asian cuisine, mainly noodle dish). It is also a chain.

Lastly, I really enjoyed Belgo Centraal. Great mussels and fries, and lively atmosphere. They have a "beat the clock" deal between 5pm and 6:30pm. If you order during that time period, your meal will be charged the time you ordered. So, if you order at 5:30, you'll be charged £5.30.

Yming is a Chinese place in Soho that I really enjoy.

http://www.yminglondon.com/

Dim Sum places seem to be growing like weeds, as well. Some, though, seem a bit heavy on style and short on substance, but I'll take my dim sum pretty much any way I can get it. Ping Pong is one of the more well-known chains, and is decent enough.

Plenty of great Indian joints, as well, but it sounds as if you fear they will be tired of it. I'll leave it to others to recommend specifics.

Carluccio's is another decent Italian chain with several restaurants around. One is across from the S. Kensington tube station.

Thank you all - this is so helpful.

Keep the suggestions coming!!

Last week we stumbled on Fire and Stone on Maiden Lane in Covent Garden and really enjoyed our meal. It's sort of like California Pizza Kitchen with a world beat. At the suggestion of our server I had the Canberra and it was excellent. Prices were quite reasonable, especially for London. Quite informal, perhaps a bit noisy but overall very pleasant. www.fireandstone.com

Oh - I'll have to remember Fire and Stone - looks good.

Some good suggestions above. An idea that might make sense is something like tapas. That way the picky son can order plain ole meat and potato-type dishes while the others can be more adventurous and everyone can taste everything - or not.

www.goyarestaurant.co.uk/ is a good one - but it is in Pimlico so may not be close to where you are unless you are visiting Tate Britain.

http://www.squaremeal.co.uk/restaura...287/Best_Tapas lists 10 in all parts of central London.

Great little Italian place--Luigi's of Covent Garden.

London is a big city with lots of restaurants. Recommendation can depend on which part of town you'll be in.

For Italian, zizi is a chain with standard pasta/pizza/salad. Slightly better qualit is Oliveto on Elizabeth St between Sloan Sq and Victoria.

For southern Indian food, my favourite place is Woodland, a veggie place in the southern end of Marylebone. Closeby is a good fish and chips place, Golden Hind. I also used to enjoy tapas bar Providores also on Marylebone High St but I stopped recommending it about a year ago--the place has become victim of its success, now too crowded, food and service quality deteriorated, not good value for money.

If there are a good number of you, you can try Lebanese places north of Marble Arch along Edgeware Rd.

For carnivoires, I'd recommend Smiths of Smithfield. Slightly out of the way (the place is a meat packer district near Farringdon), better value on the ground or first floor.

Dimsum--an excellent choice for lunch (note it is usually not available for dinner in traditional chinese restaurants). Rather than Ping Pont, I'd recommend Royal China--one on Baker Street, another one in Queensway.

I must say I'm not a big fan of Carluccio--their hot entrees are actually centrally prepared and microwaved on site.

Another vote for Prezzo, although I prefer their free range rotisserie chicken to the Italian dishes.

Gourmet Burger Kitchen makes tasty burgers and within the "burger" category there is a good variety.

The multi-course lunch specials at Kiku in Mayfair offer excellent value for very good Japanese food and is popular with staff from the Japanese embassy. Reservations advised but reserving just a day in advance is usually fine. Regular dinner menu is pricey.
www.kikurestaurant.co.uk

<i>Gourmet Burger Kitchen makes tasty burgers and within the &quot;burger&quot; category there is a good variety</i>

I second GBK as a great place for lunch. One of the better burgers I have had in Europe.

I haven't been to London since 2002 but there was a great tapas place up the street from the Victoria Station - near the Victoria Coach Station. On the corner of Buckingham Palace Road where Elizabeth Street and St. George's Drive meet. Very reasonable, crowded, delicious food and a large variety.

Any if the Biagio retaurants are good and also reasonable. There is one on Piccadilly and another in Covent Garden. There is a smaller pizza one near King's Cross.

veeolette: That could have been the other branch of Goya (actually in Eccleston Place close to the corner of Elizabeth and St George's sts). That location closed, but the one I linked on Lupus street is still in business. It has a Tapas bar on the ground floor, full service Spanish restaurant downstairs.

You guys are great - I don't think we (or even my son) will go hungry!!