In fast-evolving – but not necessarily fast-improving – Chiswick, a smart bistro where the cooking strikingly lacks ambition. The ‘chi’ in Chiswick definitely stands for ‘chichi’ nowadays. Gone are the bad old days when Chiswick’s main drag was nothing more than a magnet for chain pizzerias. Now a slew of stylish new openings confirm the […]
A useful but uninspired chain outlet, handily located for mid-rank business lunching in the heart of the City. Raymond Blanc may technically be French, but he has made himself into something of a national treasure. His Manoir aux Quat’Saisons is a grand and accomplished all-round country destination of many years’ standing. Not something we have […]
Near Fulham Broadway, a spacious and comfortable bar cum dining room; it’s rather hidden-away, though, and we’re not quite sure its cuisine makes it positively worth seeking out. The Fulham premises once known as The Farm have been through a number of incarnations in recent years. Constant throughout has been a comfortable and spacious contemporary […]
Gordon Ramsay’s comfortable and welcoming – if rather beige – Belgravia dining room, offering dextrous cuisine of impeccable standards (reminiscent of Murano’s early days); a closer approach to real ‘fireworks’, however, is perhaps to be found at Marcus Wareing’s establishment, three minutes’ walk away. The recent history of Gordon Ramsay, his group and its recent […]
From the Giraffe people, an OK-ish burgers-and-more chain prototype, handy for Selfridges. There’s not much to say about this bright new son-of-Giraffe chain prototype, in a strip of mid-price restaurants, just off Oxford Street. No one who cared about their food would particularly seek out a Giraffe, and no one who cared about their food […]
A first for Stockwell, this simply revamped gastropub is the first offshoot of the fabled Anchor and Hope – in the same style, it offers a short and very simple menu, realised to a high standard. For a modest-looking gastropub, this new Stockwell outfit has quickly commanded a lot of critical attention, a fact largely […]
On the former Clerkenwell site of Al’s (RIP) Caravan is a Moro-inspired bistro, which offers interesting ‘small-plate’ dishes; the atmosphere is agreeably laid-back, but service is sometimes just plain slow. Too many restaurants in London in recent times have specialised in the known-and-usual. It’s understandable enough in hard economic times, but it’s getting a bit […]
In the heart of a suburban high street, a smart and solidly professional Gallic brasserie from the Malcolm John stable; it’s undoubtedly a useful local rendezvous, but its rather chain-like quality makes it difficult to recommend as any sort of ‘destination’. Malcolm John is quite a mover and shaker in the SW suburbs. The aim […]
Handily located in the heart of Soho, Aldo Zilli’s basic but good-quality veggie restaurant, which comes with the Italianate twist you might expect. Avoiding too many meat products is certainly consistent with the most concise dietary advice of recent years. The American writer Michael Pollen read through all learned articles and distilled their key advice […]
Straight from Central Casting, a ‘perfect local restaurant’, serving tasty Moroccan food in a comfortable and laid-back Wandsworth setting. An early Sunday lunchtime provided the perfect opportunity to visit this Wandsworth Moroccan restaurant that’s been in the limelight more than most since it figured in one of Gordon Ramsay’s TV programmes. The place does not […]
