London West Brompton Restaurant Guide

2024 Review: “A quirky steampunk theme combined with an emphasis on cocktails and craft beers accompanies very sound modern Indian cooking” at this Earl’s Court venture, whose name pays tribute to the 19th-century Scottish botanists who classified the subcontinent’s plants. “After a few false starts on the site, this restaurant has found its forte under the same ownership as its predecessor Mr Wing (RIP)”.

“For something simple with a good glass of vino and some people-watching”, this Golden Oldie in Chelsea can still be a “fun” option. It’s been ground zero for Sloane Rangers since it was opened in 1986 by wine merchant John Brinkley (and “the markup on wine is probably one of the lowest in London, as you don’t have to select from the list but can go to his shop next door”). “The food is nothing to write home about” though, and some people feel the place generally is “losing its footing”… but they’ve been saying this for ages now.

Down a gentrifying side street near West Brompton tube, this characterful boozer was among the first in town to go gastro in the 1990s – and has a “better vibe than ever”, thanks to its enlarged garden (“a winner when the sun shines”); and also now a refurbished upstairs dining room. The slightly unusual Italian-influenced menu helps make it “a good-value option for a relaxed meal with friends”. (It is part of a family-owned west London group that includes the Dartmouth Castle in Hammersmith and Swan in Chiswick.)

Rioja-bred Abel Lusa “has been serving top-quality Spanish food since 1995 – long before Hispanic restaurants became fashionable in London” at his South Kensington flagship. He “deserves a medal for consistency at least” as it’s “hard to have a bad meal” here, and yet it’s “surprising how rarely it is mentioned in foodie circles”. The same cannot be said of its renown down at the All England Club: both Nadal and Alcaraz are regulars during Wimbledon fortnight (although often it’s for delivery-only) and Lusa now serves food at major tournaments around the globe.

“The quality never waivers” at Abel Lusa’s “fun and buzzy” tapas bar in South Kensington, a spinoff from his famous Cambio de Tercio – and some even reckon “the food is better than in its more expensive big brother over the road”. Top Menu Tips – “patatas bravas a must, as well as the jamon”.

2024 Review: With its “good North Indian cooking” from family recipes, this well-established venue with Bollywood posters lining the walls is these days a rival to veteran Noor Jahan for bragging rights on Earl’s Court’s “curry corner”.

“You’d think you were in a capable restaurant in Italy” at this “totally reliable neighbourhood favourite” almost opposite Chelsea & Westminster Hospital, where you’ll find “comforting and quality home cooking”, “excellent, welcoming service”, and “good prices for the area”. It’s a “cheap ’n’ cheerful” set-up though: “the interior is not fancy and it can get very noisy”. Top Menu Tip – “fabulous zabaglione – even better than usually found in Italy!”.

A South Ken fixture for more than 60 years, this curry house classic is a treasured neighbourhood asset to its local regulars (“it’s the only Indian we ever go to…”). Critics feel its performance is “very unexceptional”, but that somewhat misses the point that it is the venue’s very reassuring predictability and familiarity that’s so central to its appeal, not to mention its “reasonable prices” (“at some posher Indians in West London, the prices are insane”).

“Reliable, comforting French fare” and a predominantly Gallic wine list keep well-heeled locals comfortably fed and watered at this “candle-lit and romantic” wine bar and restaurant on the border between Earls Court and Kensington.

2022 Review: This Fulham Road newcomer on ‘The Beach’ opened mid-lockdowns with a contemporary Italian offering. It’s the brainchild of Leandro Longo (La Caricatura) and chef Ignacio Fuggiero (The Met). You can opt for an eight-course tasting menu (as well as two-course, three-course and à la carte options) but the approach has strong, traditional Italian roots.

Wanting to eat in the wee hours? This stalwart chain has fed tolerable diner food 24/7 (VQ = Vingt Quatre, geddit?) to the denizens of the Fulham Road for as long as anyone can remember (before 1995 it was called ‘Up all Night’); and has a more recent outlet (unusually, licensed till 4am, though you must be eating) that’s more convenient if you are clubbing in the West End on the ground floor of a Bloomsbury hotel.

2023 Review: This “treasured Chelsea local, tucked away in a cosy basement off the Fulham Road ‘beach’”, inspires a devoted following from its regulars, looking after them with “classy and delicious” Italian dishes and an impressive wine list. Tourists and casual passers-by are unlikely even to notice the all-but-hidden entrance, adding to the clubbish appeal.

2022 Review: ‘A taste of rural France on the Fulham Road’ is the promise at this ‘gourmet traiteur’ in Chelsea: an early 2020 newcomer where dishes (to go or for delivery within 4 miles) are designed for reheating at home and prepared by Chris Hill, who most recently worked as a senior sous chef at The Ritz. It’s owned by Dimitri and Mira Plaquet, of a high-quality Belgian food group called La Villa Lorraine. They must be doing something right, as in mid 2021 they launched a second store in Wimbledon.

Yasuhiro Minemo & Shinya Ikeda’s odd but “excellent” duo are over a decade old but little known, perhaps due to the “somewhat sterile” nature of the interiors: both in Kensington backstreets (“cramped seating on high stools on the bright ground floor, or in the downbeat ‘Siberia’ of the dark basement”); and in the ‘Yashin Ocean’ younger sibling in the potentially cute old Brompton Library on the fringes of South Kensington. If you like “top sushi” however, this is some of the best in town: not cheap, but without the second mortgage required at the Mayfair omakase restaurants. Top Tip – “the set lunches are top quality!”

Celebrating its 60th anniversary this year, this “old-fashioned, elegant Italian” in a sidestreet off a stretch of the King’s Road near World’s End “still feels family-run after all these years” and is beloved of well-heeled parents from SW3 and beyond for a “perfect Sunday Sunday lunch en famille” thanks to its “lovely atmosphere”, especially in summer in the charming garden. Its wider fanbase are struggling, though, and the days when it was a magnet for stars from Jack Nicholson to Liz Taylor are largely in the past. It doesn’t help that it can increasingly appear “incredibly expensive for what it offers”, with several reporters noting that it has “gone downhill recently” (“good things have disappeared from the menu…”; “they seem to have stuffed in more tables…”; “revisited after several years… heart-broken at the decline”).

“A benchmark for upscale pubs” that “exemplifies the very best of British” – Brett Graham’s famous boozer in a distant Fulham backstreet remains “an absolutely brilliant, 10/10 favourite” serving “Michelin star comfort food at its best” in a “pub environment” (although while you can drink at the bar, practically all seating is dedicated to eating rather than drinking). It’s hearty fare, though, and “big on red meat”. Top Menu Tips – “one of the best Sunday roasts ever”; “the best trifle I’ve had for a long time”; “exceptional venison Scotch eggs”.

A Ukrainian ‘neo bistro’ on the edge of Earl’s Court, set up by chef Yurii Kovryzhenko and his partner Olga Tsybytovska following the Russian invasion of their country. “It continues to be staffed by Ukrainian refugees and produces its modern, lighter take on Eastern European food well” (“also interesting is the Ukrainian wine offering… despite losing 60% of its vineyards when Crimea was annexed, the variety of intriguing wines from the remainder of Ukraine is worth exploring”).

Close to Earl’s Court station, this modern take on the classic Italian neighbourhood trat’ was launched in March 2024 by the family who founded the Spaghetti House group back in the day (in 1955). It opened too late to generate much in the way of survey feedback, but the press have mostly found in its favour: in April 2024, The Observer’s Jay Rayner didn’t like the steak or pricey wine list, but found the antipasti and pasta lived up to the family’s heritage, and both he and the Mail on Sunday’s Tom Parker Bowles (in May) applaud the pizza: “thin and crispy… [with] an uncommon subtlety to the toppings”.

This “upmarket” and “traditional” pub tucked away on the edge of Chelsea near Stamford Bridge is owned by singer James Blunt and his wife Sofia, and mimics a country local with a “cosy bar area and a lovely conservatory”. The “delicious food” is at its best for Sunday lunch, when it’s “the perfect place for a pint of beer and some roast pork”.

“Great Thai vegan food” – inspired by Thailand’s annual Jae vegetarian festival – is found at this “delightful and welcoming” venue in the restaurant strip opposite Earl’s Court tube. “The meat substitutes are really convincing, so it’s a good option for meat-eaters and vegans alike”, with “interesting dishes, full of flavour and at very reasonable prices”.