Top London Restaurants
Alain Ducasse at The Dorchester
Eating out is no longer just about the food - it is an art form of the highest order. Diners look for a restaurant that envelops you in its magic and individual style and provides you with an eating experience that you'll be talking about for weeks on end. A meal in any of our featured Michelin starred restaurants is guaranteed to exceed your wildest gastronomic dreams.
3 Michelin stars
9 Conduit Street, Mayfair, London, W1S 2XG
Tube: Oxford Circus Station
Found at the top of a grand staircase, the sketch Lecture Room & Library is a majestic affair, with a bold red, orange and yellow colour scheme, plush armchairs and imposing high ceilings. The restaurant has held a Michelin star since 2005, followed by a second star in 2013 and a third six years later in 2019. It also holds 5 AA Rosettes, so diners can be assured of an exquisite meal. The tasting and a la carte menus are created by the three Michelin-starred French master Pierre Gagnaire, with innovative dishes such as cocotte of vegetables with smoked orange peel, foie gras soup with sarawak pepper and white root vegetable tart with beetroot syrup and purslane. Adding to the restaurant's shower of awards, the wine list was given the 'Best Award for Excellence' by the Wine Spectator and AA Guide's 'Best UK Wine List'.
3 Michelin stars
The Dorchester, Park Lane, Mayfair, London, W1K 1QA
Tube: Hyde Park Corner Station
Alain Ducasse is the most successful restaurateur in the world, with fifteen more Michelin stars worldwide than Gordon Ramsay. His first London operation, earning him three of those stars, is a hyper-modern 80-seat dining room, fortunately tucked well away from the gaudy monstrosity that is the Dorchester's grill room. The menus are distinctively French, aiming neither for molecular wizardry, nor Ramsay's faux-simplicity, but for an imaginative mixture of old and new techniques, and a total dedication to the craftsmanship of cheffing. The current Parisian love affair with all things Japanese is also apparent. This is one of the most expensive restaurants in London but if you can afford to pay £100 a head, then you're guaranteed a pretty spectacular meal.
3 Michelin stars
68 Royal Hospital Road, Chelsea, London, SW3 4HP
Tube: Sloane Square Station
Gordon Ramsay's level of celebrity has reached such a fever pitch that it has become very nearly impossible to get a table at the small restaurant that first established the belligerent ex-Rangers footballer as the biggest name in British food. If you do manage to get in, what you'll find is an absolutely excellent British restaurant, where subtle touches complement, but never drown, the excellent seasonal ingredients. There's some fantastic offal on offer for nose-to-tail eaters, but the menu also has plenty of simple, traditional options. Service is immaculate and if the decor is starting to date a little, this is more than made up for by the food. The only restaurant run by a British chef to have received three Michelin stars and you can certainly taste why.
2 Michelin stars
La Dame de Pic
La Dame de Pic,
10 Trinity Square London, EC3P 3AX
French Cuisine
10 Trinity Square, London, EC3P 3AX
Tube: Chancery Lane Station
Chef Anne-Sophie Pic, the fourth female chef in history to be awarded three Michelin stars, and the only current French female chef to hold the position, has her first restaurant in the UK with La Dame de Pic , one of two fine dining options within the Four Seasons Hotel London at Ten Trinity Square. The 78 cover restaurant, which has been designed with a nod to the historical Parisian brasseries in a space that is classically English in design, offers a welcoming, relaxed environment with natural wood flooring, carved woodwork, curved leather banquettes and columns covered with beveled mirrors. The food is similar in concept to the original restaurant of the same name in Paris, showcasing Anne-Sophie's passion for unexpected flavour combinations with a focus on seasonal and local ingredients. Very much at the luxury end of the market, a private wine cellar and 14 seat private dining room sit alongside the main restaurant.
2 Michelin stars
Core by Clare Smyth
Core by Clare Smyth,
92 Kensington Park Road London, W11 2PN
British Cuisine
92 Kensington Park Road, London, W11 2PN
Tube: Notting Hill Gate Station
After almost a decade at the helm of Restaurant Gordon Ramsay, Royal Hospital Road in Chelsea, Clare Smyth opens her own restaurant and her first solo venture at 92 Kensington Park Road in Notting Hill. The multi award winning chef takes over the historic Victorian building occupied by Leith's in the 1970s and '80s to create a restaurant with a strong British ethos, in an elegant, relaxed interior. Guests choose from ten to 12 constantly evolving dishes, opting for the full tasting menu or just three or five courses, paired with a choice of 400 fine wines and champagnes. The style takes a natural colour palette of stem green, aubergine, almond milk, copper and burnished gold and links it to the exterior, seen through a picture window looking out onto a living wall. Enjoy at the entrance cocktail bar with room for up to 18 or in the main 54-seat restaurant.
2 Michelin stars
Claude Bosi at Bibendum
Claude Bosi at Bibendum,
Michelin House, 81 Fulham Road London, SW3 6RD
Modern European Cuisine
Michelin House, 81 Fulham Road, Knightsbridge, London, SW3 6RD
Tube: South Kensington Station
French chef Claude Bosi, famous for his restaurant Hibiscus, which closed in December 2016, takes over legendary South Kensington institution Bibendum from March 2017. Housed in the Michelin building in Brompton Cross, Bibendum becomes a temple to 'unashamedly fine dining' on the first floor with seafood restaurant and oyster bar below. The a la carte mixes new dishes alongside recognisable Hibiscus and Bibendum classics. Oyster omelette with watercress and Oscietra caviar and Galician beef filet a la Ficelle with smoked eels, beef jam and leaves are just two of the dishes you can expect. Adding their fragrant blooms to the grand entrance, Hackney florist Grace & Thorn welcomes guests coming in for a coffee and pastry, lunch with friends or Champagne and oysters after work.
2 Michelin stars
70 Charlotte Street, Fitzrovia, London, W1T 4QG
Tube: Goodge Street Station
, Warren Street Station
Tucked away at the back of Bubbledogs and managed by the same team, Kitchen Table offers a more exclusive experience, giving diners a glimpse into the workings of James Knappett and his team. Going beyond the quirky combination of hot dogs and champagne offered at Bubbledogs, Kitchen Table serves between 12 and 14 courses for a fixed price, with a daily-updated tasting menu made using ingredients sourced from small farmers, fishmongers, and suppliers using the best products of the day.
2 Michelin stars
The Connaught, 16 Carlos Place, Mayfair, London, W1K 2AL
Tube: Bond Street Station
Helene Darroze took over at the two Michelin-starred restaurant at The Connaught hotel in Mayfair following Angela Hartnett's departure in 2007. In autumn 2019, the elegant dining room reopened following a two-month refurbishment revealing lightened wood panelling, curvy pink sofas and "enough pink touches... to make even Barbie blush" - Telegraph . The look, which includes paintings by artist Damien Hirst, has been dreamt up by Paris-based interior architect Pierre Yovanovitch and continues downstairs into the show kitchen which boasts a pink marble topped chef's table for ten. The exceptional food starts with a seasonal consomme, to cleanse the palate, and continues with mains which are chosen by their key ingredient - perhaps pigeon, cep or turbot. They're very particular about provenance (even down to the day boat for fish). Presentation shows Helene's meticulous attention to detail and some of the finest wine in the world are nestled among more than 20,000 bottles in the cellar. Armagnac is a speciality. A Darroze family business for three generations, Helene's brother Marc has been brought in to manage the cellars at this "most old-school of hotels" (Telegraph).
2 Michelin stars
43 Upper Brook Street, Marble Arch, Mayfair, London, W1K 7QR
Tube: Marble Arch Station
Mayfair Restaurants come and go but Le Gavroche never changes - the service remains the best in London, head chef Michel Roux Jnr is ever-present (a lesson for the Ramsay's and Rhodes' of the world) and the buttery-rich, classic French food continues to attain heights of gimmick-free perfection that flashy joints like Nobu can only dream of. The decor has changed very little since it was founded in the late 60s, and it continues to the thick carpet, heavy wood, gleaming silverware and green leather simply reek of luxury. The prices are absolutely eye-watering in the evenings, but the £48 three-course lunch is a good deal: it includes wine, water, coffee, canapes and a shorter, but otherwise equally good, menu.
2 Michelin stars
Dinner by Heston Blumenthal
Dinner by Heston Blumenthal,
Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park, 66 Knightsbridge London, SW1X 7LA
British Cuisine
Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park, 66 Knightsbridge, Hyde Park, London, SW1X 7LA
Tube: Knightsbridge Station
, Hyde Park Corner Station
Heston Blumenthal's first foray into London opened in February 2011 amid much fanfare - and quite rightly so. Located on the ground floor of the Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park hotel in Knightsbridge, Dinner by Heston Blumenthal is a labour of love between the snail porridge pioneer and his long-time cooking partner Ashley Palmer-Watts. Offering a new historical take on British recipes, Dinner was labeled a "theatrical tour de force" and "colossal fun" by The Telegraph's restaurant critic Matthew Norman. It's not just the food itself that is fun: guests are surrounded by all manner of zany contraptions - including a trolley-mounted churning device for making ice-cream and a clockwork pineapple-roasting spit - while 35 chefs are on duty in the open, glass-fronted kitchen. The menu is set to change seasonally four times a year, while there are plans for a private dining room, a kitchen table service and afternoon tea.
2 Michelin stars
The Ledbury
The Ledbury,
127 Ledbury Road London, W11 2AQ
French Cuisine
127 Ledbury Road, Notting Hill, London, W11 2AQ
Tube: Westbourne Park Station
Don't be fooled by the name, which should belong to an unassuming gastropub. Nigel Platts-Martin and Philip Howard's venture is a very serious restaurant. This is the kind of food that aims to draw a round of applause before it's even been tasted, where sauces are poured in complex geometries, where slender towers of ingredients appear more like architects' models than food, and where familiar-sounding ingredients have been foamed, crushed and pureed beyond any hope of recognition. Before gentrification, this part of Notting Hill used to be known as 'crack square'. The Ledbury has replaced this trade with food that's better than any drug, but at prices that will bankrupt you faster than the most ferocious addiction.
1 Michelin star
Marcus
Marcus,
The Berkeley, Wilton Place, Knightsbridge London, SW1X 7RL
French Cuisine
The Berkeley, Wilton Place, Knightsbridge, Belgravia, London, SW1X 7RL
Tube: Hyde Park Corner Station
, Knightsbridge Station
After an extensive refurbishment in 2014, the former Marcus Wareing at The Berkeley reopened as Marcus. The refurbished interiors masterfully reflect and complement the modern, fresh approach that Marcus Wareing has taken across the board with the re-launch of his eponymous Michelin starred restaurant. The 'look' exudes cool sophistication; a carefully considered blend of timeless elegance, clean, classical lines and a refined colour palette provides a fresh, inviting and relaxing backdrop for Marcus and his team to thrill and enchant their guests. Marcus remains at the helm, working closely with Head Chef Mark Froydenlund. The essence of the food has been retained but has been updated. The menus deliver modern European food with a British influence characterised by the finest produce, exacting execution and creative flair. Dining options include a la carte, classic and seasonal tasting menus, a spectacular Chef's Table for up to 10 guests and The Salon, a private dining room available for groups of up to 16.
1 Michelin star
8 Hanway Place, Fitzrovia, London, W1T 1HD
Tube: Tottenham Court Road Station
, Goodge Street Station
Boasting the first Michelin Star ever awarded to a Chinese restaurant, Hakkasan can justly claim to be the best of its kind in London. The food here really is exceptional. Straying from the traditional route to provide Western variations on Chinese staples the cuisine is both modern and mouth-watering. Also described as the "sexiest" restaurant in London, Hakkasan's appeal doesn't just rest with its food. Lurking underground at the end of a fairly unappealing (bordering on dingy) side-street, initial impressions aren't great. However, as you walk step by step down the dimly lit staircase, surrounded by cooling slate walls embedded with tiny ruby red lights, a whole new world opens up before your eyes. Bathed in a mysterious, icy blue light, the dining room's discretely placed arrangement of tables appear to emerge gleaming under the moonlight of an exotic Oriental night. Carefully placed screens create an air of privacy and subterfuge, further enhanced by the shadows created by flickering candles and dramatic spots of light. The suavely dressed waiters who slip silently in between tables and behind screens provide an appropriately unassuming yet attentive service, which is key to this whole dining experience. Expensive this is - it doesn't deserve to be anything else - but it's worth every penny.
1 Michelin star
The Clove Club
The Clove Club,
Shoreditch Town Hall, 380 Old Street London, EC1V 9LT
British Cuisine
Shoreditch Town Hall, 380 Old Street, Hoxton, London, EC1V 9LT
Tube: Old Street Station
Former Ledbury chef Isaac McHale and restaurateurs Daniel Willis and Johnny Smith - aka the Ten Bells boys - bring The Clove Club, the private dining club which started in Dalston, to the grade II listed Shoreditch Town Hall. Promising good food, good conversation and good music, the restaurant is split into two rooms, a dining room and a bar, both areas spacious enough to seat 40 people. Those familiar with the menu at sister restaurant Upstairs at the Ten Bells can sample their favourite snacks like buttermilk chicken and pine salt and choose from mains which vary depending on the seasons. Warming dishes in winter months include Cornish hake served with shrimps and turnip tops, braised shoulder of lamb with purple sprouting broccoli and roast mallard accompanied by Jerusalem artichokes and curly kale. Finish with chestnut mont blanc, poached pear and whisky honey or Yorkshire rhubarb which comes with buttermilk mousse and milk crisps.