Hyde Park Corner, British, Modern Restaurant Guide

“The room is the star” at this swish hotel restaurant on Hyde Park Corner, with its gorgeous domed glass ceilings (providing natural light by day) and huge chandeliers. Formerly known as Celeste (RIP), it has now adopted a less fancy, more fashionably straightforward menu under chef Shay Cooper. The overall experience is much more consistently well-rated in this new guise, although there are still some quibbles over “so-so” results and “patchy” service. Most consistent is support for the “sublimely elegant”, “reassuringly traditional, tasty and well-presented afternoon tea”.

Hermès, Loewe and Zimmermann help inspire the Spring/Summer 2023 Prêt-à-Portea collection on the ‘cakewalk’ of this Belgravia chamber, which takes annual inspiration for its wizard patisserie selection from the catwalk of the fashion industry. If you have money to burn, it’s an impressively skillful and witty twist on the afternoon tea experience – tuck into “Hermès’ tasselled bucket bag, crafted out of Victoria sponge sandwiched with apricot jam, wrapped in chocolate and finished with a chocolate feather plume!”

“Tom Aikens is back to his brilliant best!” at his “chic little Belgravia mews house”, where he’s created “an outstanding small restaurant with open kitchen”. Set on two floors, “tables are a bit close”, but the “intimate” style is a selling point for most diners (especially at the chef’s counter), as is the fact that there’s “plenty of interaction with the chefs including patron Tom”, all of whom “serve and explain with a remarkable personal touch”. The menu – “exquisite food, delivered with passion and skill” – draws on Tom’s upbringing – “love the story-telling… a truly special experience”.

2023 Review: This smartly kitted-out pub with a “nice outdoor terrace” on a cobbled Belgravia street has a “short, simple and well-executed menu”, providing “Sunday roast and fish ’n’ chips of quality”.

2023 Review: The “wonderful afternoon tea” at this “luxury” hotel on Piccadilly hogs the limelight since the former Galvin at the Athenaeum dining room was rebranded during the pandemic. The lunch and dinner menus offer contemporary British cuisine from chef Ian Howard. Top Tip – the cream tea is a steal at £10 for homemade scones, Cornish clotted cream and strawberry jam plus a pot of tea.

This illustrious chamber was closed during our annual diners’ poll, awaiting a May 2023 relaunch under the brand of talented whippersnapper, Tom Booton (who has only just hit 30). It is the first time the grill has had a chef’s name over the door in its 92-year history, and heralds a major change of gear for the space – no longer is it to be a hallowed foodie temple, but now more of a luxe brasserie with ‘Tom’s cheeky personality shining through’ (at least that’s what the press release says). In comes breakfast for the first time (with truffled egg and soldiers and omelette Arnold Benedict); Sunday lunch; a chef’s counter; sharing dishes; and a general culinary ‘tie loosening’ moment with ‘twists on British classics’. As part of this cuddlier style we are also promised ‘playlists hand selected by Tom’; and ‘playful cocktails and artisan English beer’.

“Consistent, tasty, dependable” food at a “price-point that’s pretty competitive given its Mayfair location” is the deal at this Shepherd Market outfit named after an 18th-century courtesan. At almost 10 years old, the excitement it generated at launch has diminished, although fans reckon it “continues to excel” as both “a business destination with character” and “a romantic and atmospheric” spot.

2023 Review: “A great change to the ghastly chains” – Victoria & Grace Sheppard’s elegant, “friendly” café is tipped for its “terrific coffee”, as well as a quiet bite or their ‘bottomless brunch’.

2023 Review: Fans say it’s “nicer eating on the ground floor than being restricted to the much more expensive tasting menu upstairs” at this glossy landmark, opposite Green Park. Open from early morning, it’s “an unusual but sophisticated haunt for breakfast in the heart of Mayfair”. And, as with upstairs, “the availability of Hedonism Wines via a tablet, means the wine list has more toys than Hamleys!”

2021 Review: Sloane Street’s old Cadogan Hotel – formerly a creaky, old Chelsea anachronism – has been transformed to join the über-luxurious Belmond portfolio: it now provides a “gorgeous” and luxurious backdrop to a meal (“perfect to impress a client in Chelsea”). Wunderkind chef, Adam Handling, is in charge of the dining room, and fans say that his individualistic cuisine is “knock-out”: “from the bread with chicken-butter onwards, everything about this menu is now the best of modern British”. However, there’s also a slightly worrying proportion of disgruntled reports too: “as a massive fan of Adam Handling’s Frog restaurants and even his cooking at Caxton Grill back in the day, I was anticipating greatness from AH Chelsea. But the food was sorely disappointing, confused, and as such, very overpriced. Hoping the food matches its surroundings soon!”

Were it not still considered “outrageously expensive” in over 40% of reports, it might be easier to recommend this “well-located”, old-faithful brasserie (est. 1976). When it was relaunched under new ownership in late 2021, it was widely derided for its poor standards. But even though its cooking is still too often dismissed as “standard fodder”, overall feedback on its food improved this year, with fans praising its “menu to suit all tastes, including many traditional and down-to-earth dishes”. And anyway, cost-be-damned, it’s “still the haunt of the business lunch crowd” thanks to its “long-established, buzzy ambience” and handy location near The Ritz.

2021 Review: Approaching its 300th birthday, this Mayfair pub is more stylish than most in the West End, partly due to its history of celebrity ownership (it was part of Madonna and Guy Ritchie’s divorce settlement, with Ritchie getting The Queen of Pop’s share when they split). Foodwise, it’s also been a decent bet in recent times (although it did receive one ‘off’ report from a former fan this year).

2021 Review: In a masterstroke of casting, Andrew Lloyd Webber recruited Brixton’s Naughty Piglets team to run the restaurant at his new Other Palace Theatre in Victoria, bringing their “dependably delightful” cuisine to this “almost secret location tucked away by Buckingham Palace”.

When it opens in September 2023, this rooftop restaurant promises to be one of the capital’s glossier debuts in recent times. It’s on top of the Peninsular London – a branch of the landmark HK hotel, overlooking Hyde Park Corner (right next to The Lanesborough). The kitchen is under the culinary direction of Claude Bosi, the Lyon-born chef behind Bibendum in Chelsea, who will provide a contemporary European menu. Let’s hope the cuisine really takes off… unlike the model of Concorde, which it is promised will soar above the heads of diners on the outside terrace.

“What a fabulous new bar and restaurant where Boudin Blanc (RIP) was” – this latest, April 2023 member of the well-known, wine-led group has been instantly hailed as a “wonderful addition” to picturesque Shepherd Market. “Thoroughly grown-up in style, it feels a bit more professional and slick than the lovely Holborn original”. In particular, the superior bistro cooking is “more interesting than in WC1”: “no culinary fireworks or cheffy tricks” but “worth it even for non-wine drinkers” and “reasonably priced considering the neighbourhood”. As you might hope, there’s an “exceptional” list of vintages “across a wide range of price points” with “random treasures at reasonable prices”, delivered by “charming and engaged staff” who “can actually have a conversation about a given bottle”. “Can’t recommend it more highly!”