London South Lambeth Restaurant Guide

2021 Review: “Grab a seat outside either at the counter shelf or at one of the tables” of this eleven-year-old deli “in an off-the-beaten track, verdant garden square in Vauxhall” for an authentic lunchtime treat from a short Italian menu. In colder weather you eat inside at a few closely-packed tables surrounded by shelves of produce.

A “quirky” but “gorgeous restaurant in a listed building” surrounded by modern skyscrapers – this “Vauxhall institution” occupies a much-chandeliered showroom of architectural antiques (run by LASSCO), which adds a unique sense of occasion to chef Jackson Boxer’s “assured” and “interesting” preparation of “modern British classics”. “Quiet and serene, with a diverse and older crowd of a lunchtime – it’s buzzing and vibrant with a younger clubbier crowd on a weekend”. Top Tip – “the Dexter beef and bone marrow tartare with shallots is the best steak tartare in London”.

This “gastropub of real standing” (est. 2010) a short walk from Vauxhall is just the place to “get your laughing gear on some excellent modern British fare”. “It looks like a pub” and is a “proper South London boozer at the front, where you can have a quiet pint”, but “you don’t judge the book by the cover” – in the back is a “well thought-through carnivore’s paradise” (“go hungry for big plates of usually rich food”), with a “good selection of wines by the glass”. “Booking is obligatory”, although not quite as difficult as its more famous stablemate the Anchor & Hope, close to Waterloo and the South Bank. Top Menu Tip – “offaly tasty options not easily found elsewhere”.

2021 Review: In the “desert” of Vauxhall’s riverside developments, this year-old offshoot of one of India’s best-known luxury restaurant groups occupies the smartly furnished ground floor of one of the new blocks, and specialises in Rajasthani cuisine. Feedback is still relatively limited, but such as there is says it’s been an “excellent arrival”.

“An amazing combination of flavours and heat” is the reward for a visit to this Sichuan newcomer: a relatively simple-looking walk-in operation on two floors near Vauxhall Park. “Staff are knowledgeable and helpful” and the ingredients are high-quality (for example, only Iberico pork is used). Top Menu Tip – “anywhere that takes rabbit seriously is very good news!”

2022 Review: This once-thriving burger brand from Nick Jones’s Soho House group has been reduced to a single branch, under the arches in Vauxhall, and a supporting role at stablemate Chicken Shop in St John’s Wood. Fans reckon it’s “good for when you’re in a hurry” – perhaps they should hurry, while it’s still there.

2023 Review: ‘Where there’s tea there’s hope’ is the philosophical underpinning of this “quirky café”, which occupies a converted pub by Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens, and “does amazing breakfasts” and “unusual teas”, plus yummy buns. “They are a tea house though, so there is no coffee available!!”