Bayswater, British, Modern Restaurant Guide

This “noisy, fun” and “quirky little place” – just off Notting Hill Gate – was the first of the Sussex-based Gladwin brothers’ ‘farm-to-fork’ restaurants to open in the capital, a dozen years ago, and is applauded for the “fresh ingredients” that one might hope for. One reporter feels that it’s “not as good as it was”, but ratings have held up decently over the years.

Jeremy King is back! (with a vengeance?) at this big, bold newcomer in a landmark new development opposite Kensington Gardens and on the corner of Queensway. Apparently it will be “very much within the ‘Grand Cafés & Brasseries’ mould that [he] love[s] so much but it is however very much of the early 21st Century rather than 20th”. Perhaps that means less of the Edwardian (Ivy, Wolseley, Delaunay) or Victorian (Sheekeys) style that has characterised his earlier openings. BREAKING NEWS. In September 2023, King announced he is returning to the original site of Le Caprice, where he found fame. He sold the name long ago, but it’s already being talked of as Le Caprice 2.0.

2023 Review: Regular DJs feature on the entertainment programme at this May 2022 newcomer in Bayswater (which opened too late for feedback in our annual diners’ poll). Extensive wood panelling is the most eye-catching feature of the cosy interior, while the short dinner menu (earlier in the day there’s one dedicated to brunch) looks more aimed at good-value sustenance than foodie fireworks.

“A very solid offering in a great space” – this restored late-Victorian tavern in Notting Hill provides “delicious food from Ben Tish”, culinary director of the smart Cubitt House group. This extends from breakfast via a £15 ‘worker’s lunch’ to more sophisticated evening dining.