Banstead Restaurant Guide

“A high-quality find on a suburban parade!” – a “comfortable and highly competent neighbourhood gem” that’s 10 minutes walk from Surbiton station; and which has long been a “mainstay” of sophistication for many local residents. “Eric Guignard in the kitchen provides excellent cuisine and first-class service is overseen by Sarah, his wife”. Other key features are a “very good wine list with a wide selection of reasonably priced as well as special bottles” and “a set lunch that’s outstanding value for food of this quality”. (“I‘ve been coming here for 20+ years and TFT is consistently brilliant with Eric and Sarah remaining at the very top of their game and continuing to develop the great food and wine they offer”).

Tapas Inspired by Spain and Lebanon What does Dar mean? It’s Lebanese for “lounge” and Spanish for the verb “to give”. And that’s a perfect combination with Spanish and Lebanese-inspired tapas as well as fine wines in a relaxed and convivial ambience. This new restaurant is un...

“Just a fantastic highlight for South London” – for the 19th year running, Bruce Poole & Nigel Platts-Martin’s “outstanding neighbourhood restaurant” (in “a lovely location by Wandsworth Common”) is voted London’s No. 1 favourite destination in our annual diners’ poll, drawing adulation from across the capital as well as adoration from the immediately adjacent postcodes. It’s “a high-class restaurant but an unfussy one”: chef Matt Christmas’s modern British cooking is “imaginative” – “with lovely touches throughout” – but “not with silly complications”; and there’s “no tasting menu or small plates, thank goodness!”. When it comes to wine, “they really know what they are doing” and offer “one of the most varied and high-quality wine lists around, with lots of classics, and plenty of new options to try”. “The regular presence of Bruce himself (more common since lockdown) is welcome” and it’s a “very slick operation”: “friendly, not too pretentious” and “seemingly effortlessly convivial”. The room itself is slightly “cramped” to some tastes, but is buoyed along by the “seductive buzz of contented diners”. “It’s still the one to beat – the standards never drop… if anything, it gets better!”

“Nothing changes, and it doesn’t need to” – at this “old-fashioned” French “hideaway” in Pimlico: “always a delightful experience” thanks to its “rustic” and “quirky” candle-lit setting (“you may need your phone torch to read the menu”), which every year ranks near the top of our annual diners’ poll as one of London’s top choices for a smoochy ‘dîner à deux’. Its “comforting, homely cooking” is “unashamedly French”, and essentially unchanged since circa 1964 (which is when it opened); service, similarly, is very Gallic and, for the most part, “utterly charming”. Top Tip – “particularly lovely in the summer: sitting outside, one could be in La Belle France”.

The Bunga Bunga restaurant on the ground floor comprises our gondola bar and authentic Italian pizzeria. Enjoy our well renowned Bunga Bunga stone-baked pizza which we consider the best in London, accompanied with a unique cocktail and wine list covering all regions of Italy.

“Love having such a unique Indian locally” – this “culinary stalwart of South East London is still going strong after nearly 40 years”. “Staff welcome you like an old friend” and chef Jiwan Lal’s cuisine is “at least as good as that of the West End’s fine dining establishments”, in the view of many locals; and “magnificent value for this level of cooking”. Top Tip – “good value buffet on the weekends”.

Chef-owner Shilpa Dandekar (ex-Quilon and Raymond Blanc) opened this contemporary Indian close to South Ken tube station in early 2024 with 30 covers (plus a 20-seater private dining room in the basement). It‘s her first follow-up to the highly rated Pure Indian Cooking in Fulham High Street – reports please!

“The staff are so lovely and accommodating” and help underpin the strong all-round support for this long-running steakhouse, on the fringes of Clapham and Brixton. It serves a curt menu with the focus on steak supported by a few options for non-meat-eaters. Look out for the black-tiled exterior – complete with large red neon signage: by contrast the interior is quite low key.

Our mission: make delicious pizza, served with care, in beautiful spaces.In the beginning we were just Matteo and Salvatore, two brothers from Calabria. We moved to Bologna to study economics, and – like all penniless students – ate a lot of...

“Excellent fish dishes and a very good selection of Portuguese wines” mean it’s worth discovering this South Kensington venture, which can be “a find” to the uninitiated. The creation of Salt Yard founder Simon Mullins and his wife Isabel Almeida Da Silva, it “showcases food from Portugal and its diaspora” (South America, Africa and Asia) and moved to this new location in 2023 after four years in Covent Garden.

“By far my favourite in South West London and beyond!” – Robert & Pat Barnett’s “very buzzy” pan-Asian in Parsons Green took over where its former incarnation Mao Tai left off as a place for a big night out for Fulhamites not wishing to schlep into the West End. “The food is always super-fresh; there’s a diverse wine list and the cocktails are as good as you’ll get anywhere… it’s always my eating place of choice even if it can be a bit heavy on the wallet…”

Something of an unexpected find on the Hammersmith Road – part of the Victorian former premises of St Paul’s Boys School were converted into a hotel some years ago and incorporate this smart dining room looking onto a small park. A variety of relatively affordable menus – Sunday Lunch, Afternoon Tea, and, more recently, a steak and whisky pairing – make it a flexible venue, particularly suited to a family occasion.

“The culinary jewel in Chiswick’s crown” – this cousin to Chez Bruce “located in a side street off Chiswick High Road” is many diners’ idea of the “perfect neighbourhood restaurant”. Having “survived the enlarging of the space” and a “change of staff a couple of years ago, things have now completely settled in as has chef Greg Wellman”; and its performance this year in our annual diners’ poll was incredibly consistent. The modern French cuisine “is a bit cheffier and more refined than before”, with “lots of interesting Asian/Japanese touches”: “interesting, but not too cutting edge” and “most importantly full of flavour”. There’s also a “fascinating” wine list to match (“the commitment to wine, as opposed to just seeing it as a profit centre, is noteworthy” with “an outstanding sommelier who will suggest perfect accompaniment for the dishes but also provide answers to far-fetched requests!”). “It’s all combined with seamlessly efficient service… not as easy to do as they make it look, I suspect!”. “Sit outside on a warm day”. Top Menu Tips – “excellent pasta/ravioli plates add to excellent versions of more classic dishes, and a recent rabbit terrine was world class”.

“Focusing on the food alone, this is right up there with the best” agree fans of chef-patronne Shilpa Dandekar’s low-key Indian seven-year-old – on the trafficky segment of Fulham High Street leading up to Putney Bridge. It’s “really worth a visit” to sample her “unusual but delicious” cooking. Shilpa’s training combined Indian and European culinary traditions (Taj Group and Le Manoir aux Quat’ Saisons). Her husband and co-founder, Faheem Vanoo, runs the front of house.

At Spice Village, we claim that every meal has a story. Interestingly, Spice Village itself has a fascinating story.The story of Spice Village is a story of taste, passion, and excellence exhibited by Nasir & Suleman, two immigrant brothers who journeyed to Lo...

This “long-time favourite gastropub near Richmond Park” in East Sheen has been owned by TV chef Paul Merrett for more than 15 years, and serves “great food and wine”, including in the spacious rear conservatory and garden. “Never had a bad meal here”, agree regulars – many of whom meet up in the bar for a “pre-Twickenham lunch”.

In the underprovided area around Oval, it’s well worth discovering this “nice neighbourhood spot near the cricket ground”. Steak is a speciality (it’s a sibling to Clapham’s Knife, see also), but meat doesn’t over-dominate the wide menu, and results remain consistently well-rated. Top Tip – ‘secret’ outdoor garden out back.

“Next level!” – high-profile Aussie ex-Nobu head chef Scott Hallsworth now has two Freak Scenes: one in Parsons Green (with hot pots, buns, sashimi, grills…) and a newer one near his home in Balham (more focused on sushi, plus robata dishes). Both show his trademark culinary style of “fun, elevated izakaya food” – “exciting menus with bold flavours and combinations” – all served in a “buzzy and friendly” environment.

“They know their clientele” (most of whom are of a certain age), and “really look after them” at this “absolutely classic Italian” south of Sloane Square, founded 30 years ago by Paolo Caraffini. “The food feels like pure 1960s-style London/Italian and is very competently cooked”. “There’s always a great welcome (when they get to know you!), it’s not over-expensive and has a warm and bubbly atmosphere”.