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10 of the best restaurants to experience central London's diverse foodie scene

Hide, a joint venture between star chef Ollie Dabbous and Mayfair’s Hedonism Wines, quickly earned a Michelin star after it opened
Hide, a joint venture between star chef Ollie Dabbous and Mayfair’s Hedonism Wines, quickly earned a Michelin star after it opened

London is home to many of the world’s most innovative and impressive chefs and its restaurants cater to all tastes and budgets with an ever-increasing selection of innovative and interesting restaurants – from Michelin-starred darlings to casual Soho walk-ins.

Soho

Bocca di Lupo

Italian counter-top restaurant Bocca di Lupo, tucked away down one of Soho’s quieter streets, was one of the first to run with small plates when it opened to much acclaim in 2008. Now something of a Soho stalwart, it’s still one of the most exciting places to eat Italian food, thanks to its diverse menu inspired by all 20 of Italy’s regions. The small plate system means you can sample something from each section/region of the menu, too. We’re talking fried artichoke from Roma, Apulia’s raw fish with pink pepper and olive oil and Veneto’s Pappardelle with wild venison ragu to name a few gems. For dessert, hop across the street to Gelupo, the restaurant's gelataria. 

Contact: 020 7734 2223; boccadilupo.com
Opening times: Mon-Sat,12pm-3pm, 5pm-11pm; Sun, 12pm-3.30pm, 5-9.30pm
Nearest Tube: Piccadilly Circus
Reservations: Essential
Prices: ££

Bocca di Lupo
Bocca di Lupo serves a small plates menu inspired by all 20 of Italy's regions

Kiln

This casual, Soho walk-in specialises in Northern Thai food (or specifically the regions where Thailand borders Burma, Laos and Yunnan) and won first place in this year’s National Restaurant Awards for its efforts. It’s affordable, democratic and fun – especially if you’re able get a seat at the long steel counter to watch the chefs cook at their clay pots - the restaurant shuns gas and electricity, instead cooking its deeply savoury and super spicy food over open flames and smoky coals. Fish arrives daily and whole animals are butchered in-house. Be sure to try the lamb and cumin skewer, stir-fried skate with spring onion, and wild ginger and beef neck curry from Burma.

Contact:kilnsoho.com
Opening times: Mon-Thurs, 12pm-3pm, 5pm-11pm; Fri-Sat,12pm-11pm; Sun, 12pm-9pm
Nearest Tube: Piccadilly Circus
Reservations: Walk-ins only
Prices: £

Kiln
A casual open kitchen of wood-burning ovens beckons at Kiln

Bob Bob Ricard

This is the restaurant of choice for those planning to go ‘out out’, which is not a claim many restaurants can make. Yes, the food is excellent, the drinks even better, but the main claim to fame? It is fun, with a capital F. The décor is insanely lavish – like something from the Great Gatsby – with low lighting, lots of gold and marble, and blue or red leather booths (depending whether you are in the blue or red dining room). Famously, there is a champagne button at each booth so you can summon a top-up. Does the novelty of this wear off? No. Food wise, it’s ‘luxury English and Russian’. Think comfort food for millionaires – lobster mac ‘n’ cheese, supersized lemon-sole goujons, Chateaubriand for one. Go at lunchtime and get 20 per cent off the dinner menu.

Contact: 020 3145 1000; bobbobricard.com
Opening times: Mon-Weds, 12.30pm-3pm, 6pm-12am; Thurs, 12.30pm-3pm, 5.30pm-12am; Fri-Sat, 12.30pm-3pm, 5.30pm-1am; Sun, 12.30pm-3pm, 5.30pm-12am
Nearest Tube: Picadilly Circus
Reservations: Recommended
Prices: ££

Bob Bob Ricard - Credit: Paul Winch-Furness / Photographer/Paul Winch-Furness / Photographer
It's fun with a capital F at Bob Bob Ricard Credit: Paul Winch-Furness / Photographer/Paul Winch-Furness / Photographer

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Mayfair

Scott’s

Among the five oldest restaurants in London, Scott’s was originally opened as an oyster warehouse in 1851, in a different location but still…heritage. Oysters are still the star attraction - ideally consumed at the elegant marble-topped champagne bar, which has a giant boat-style sculpture on a plinth housing all the crustacea on ice. A shimmering centre-piece, indeed – and the focal point, décor-wise. Try one of each oyster on offer (sourced from England, Ireland, Scotland and France) and don’t miss the jalapeno vinegar to add some extra bite. Fish is the specialty for main course – try the roast cod with cauliflower puree and chorizo dressing.

Contact: 020 7495 7309; scotts-restaurant.com
Opening times: Mon-Sat, 12pm-10.30pm; Sun,12pm-10pm
Nearest Tube: Green Park
Reservations: Essential
Prices: £££

Scott's
The vast selection of market-fresh seafood – including an oyster and caviar bar – draws diners to Scott's

Hide

Bang on bustling Piccadilly, Hide, as the name suggests, is a tranquil space more akin to a luxury spa or gallery thanks to the stripped back, natural interior – all wood and calming neutral tones, inspired by Green Park, which it peacefully overlooks. The focal point is the swirling spiral wooden staircase taking you through all three floors of the experience - from ‘Below’ (the bar) to ‘Ground’ (all-day dining) to ‘Above’ (fine dining). Just five months since opening in May 2018, this joint venture between star chef Ollie Dabbous and Mayfair’s Hedonism Wines has already garnered a Michelin star. The fixed lunch is reasonably priced for this caliber of restaurant and has such ceremony, from cured meats served speared on feathers to chutney made at your table for the cheese course. Then there’s the wine. The wine list – on a leather-bound iPad – boasts over 6,000 bottles that can be beckoned from Hedonism’s cellars within 15 minutes.

Contact: 020 3146 8666; hide.co.uk
Opening times: Mon-Fri, 7.30am-1am; Sat, 9am-1am; Sun, 9am-11.30pm
Nearest Tube: Green Park
Reservations: Recommended
Prices: £££

Hide
Style matches substance at fine dining star chef Ollie Dabbous' Hide restaurant

The Wolseley

European brasserie dining on a grandiose scale. The Piccadilly site used to be a very posh car showroom of the same name, and the revered atmosphere lives on – you can’t help but let out a little gasp when the ornate room swallows you up. Even though The Wolseley hasn’t been around that long it feels very traditional and comforting. It’s a place for regulars, and low-key celebrities and media people having breakfast meetings, but don’t let that put you off. Whatever time of day you come it feels like an event, and the staff treats you like it’s your birthday even if it isn’t. The menu is full of comforting crowd pleasers from across Europe - like eggs Benedict, coq au vin with creamed mash and black forest gateau.

Contact: 020 7499 6996; thewolseley.com
Opening times: Mon-Fri, 7am-11pm; Sat-Sun, 8am–11pm
Nearest Tube: Green Park
Reservations: Recommended
Prices: ££

The Wolseley
The Wolseley is a grand café on Piccadilly serving modern European cuisine in Art Deco surrounds

Indian Accent

It’s Indian food but not how you know it. The very chic Indian Accent (think British racing green velvet booths, silver gilt walls, lots of marble) is the definition of experiential dining. The menu borrows from other cuisines, giving dishes a clever Indian twist, like the ghee roast lamb with roomali roti – their take on Peking duck and pancakes. Traditional Indian dishes are deliciously subverted – think blue cheese naan and a pickle tray that comes in the form of mini vials of flavoured ‘waters’ to be knocked back like shots when poured into puchkas (essentially, popadom shot glasses). Try a ‘Proper Copper’ kaffir lime leaf-infused vodka cocktail, served in a freezing cold copper cup, to start the experience in style.

Contact: 020 7629 9802; indianaccent.com
Opening times: Mon-Thurs, 12pm–2pm, 5:30pm–10pm; Fri-Sat, 12pm-2.30pm, 5.30pm-10.30pm; Sun, 12pm-2.30, 5.30pm-10pm
Nearest Tube: Green Park
Reservations: Recommended
Prices: £££

Indian Accent
The London outpost of Indian Accent is the third in the stable, after restaurants in New York City and New Delhi

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King's Cross

Coal Office

Coal Office, part of Kings Cross’s new Coals Drop Yard development, is a collaboration between the designer Tom Dixon and chef Assaf Granit (of ‘it’ restaurant Palomar fame). A self-proclaimed ‘food and design playground’, the place is buzzing – it’s dark and industrial with sexy lighting, the music is loud in a good way, and the drinks pack a punch. It’s also intimate, especially if you sit at the kitchen-bar where the magic happens at the Josper oven (cooked over coals). The food is broadly Middle Eastern, but very much inspired by Israel and aimed at sharing. Kudos for dish names ‘Plate for the Brave’ (an assortment of chillies), ‘Bread from the Past’ and ‘Oxitipus’ – potato stew with ox cheek and josperised octopus. 

Contact: 020 3848 6085; coaloffice.com
Opening times: Mon-Sat, 12pm-10pm; Sat-Sun, 12pm-11pm
Nearest Tube: Kings Cross
Reservations: Recommended
Prices: ££

Coal Office
Coal Office is a collboration between designer Tom Dixon and chef Assaf Granit

Dishoom

Yes it’s a chain but boy is this Indian restaurant good, with the added plus that you have several locations around town from which to choose (Kensington, Carnaby Street, Covent Garden, Kings Cross and Shoreditch). Styled like a traditional Bombay café – all dark wood, decoratively tiled floors and wicker-backed chairs – it’s always thriving with a really mixed clientele. The super reasonable menu runs all day, and serves not traditional curries but specialties like the house black daal, lamb boti kabab or the quick lunch-y chicken tikka roll. Beat the inevitable queue by opting for a unique breakfast and their Bombay-take on British classics, including the Full Bombay and the bacon and egg naan.

Contact:dishoom.com
Opening times: See website
Reservations: Walk-ins only
Prices: £

Dishoom
Dishes such as biryani (pictured) have turned the London-based Dishoom group into a must-visit eatery

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Clerkenwell

The Modern Pantry

An original purveyor of ‘fusion’ cuisine, this Clerkenwell institution celebrated its 10th birthday in 2018, and is the sort of restaurant where chefs choose to have dinner. The word fusion is overused but it’s the best way to describe a menu that finds room for beef, almond and soy gyoza alongside sashimi, and slow-cooked pork belly next to the now-famous sugar-cured prawn omelette with green chilli. You can dine all day in this clean, serene, elegant, Grade II-listed dining room overlooking the pretty and historic St John’s Square. An inspiring choice for weekend brunch or afternoon tea with a difference, too.

Contact: 020 7553 9210; themodernpantry.co.uk
Opening times: Mon, 8am-9pm; Tues-Fri, 8am-10pm; Sat, 9am-10pm; Sun, 9am-9pm
Nearest Tube: Farringdon
Reservations: recommended
Prices: ££

The Modern Pantry
The Modern Pantry was one of the original purveyors of 'fusion' cuisine in London