Restaurants in London
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Honest Burgers
This burger outfit has deftly hopped onto the enterprising Brixton Village bandwagon. Plaudits for their juicy and tender burgers and gloriously rosemary-seasoned triple-cooked chips have rained in from all corners and honest-to-God rightly so: they are well worth the wait for a table, which you could well have to do (it’s titchy, seats around 30 and there are no bookings).
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Inn the Park
This stunning wooden cafe and restaurant in St James’s Park is run by Irish wonderchef Oliver Peyton and offers cakes and tea as well as excellent British food with a monthly-changing menu. The terrace, which overlooks one of the park’s fountains with views of Whitehall’s grand buildings, is wonderful on spring and summer days. If you’re up for a special dining experience, come here for dinner when the park is quiet and slightly illuminated.
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Kazan
Excellent and enjoyable, Kazan gets repeated thumbs up for its set meze platters, shish kebabs and karniyarik (lamb-stuffed aubergines). Flavours are rich and full, service attentive and the refreshingly unaffected setting allows you to focus on dining, with one eye on the evening belly dancers that occasionally swivel into view. Seafood and vegetarian options available.
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Laughing Gravy
It’s hard not to warm to this cosy and very relaxed restaurant and bar in a former foundry building, christened after Laurel and Hardy’s dog (also a colloquialism for whisky). Recently steered in a lucratively fresh direction by new owners, this is a true gem, with a sure-fire menu that’s a combination of locally sourced food (cider-marinated lamb rump, pan-fried red mullet) and culinary talent from chef Michael Facey, with splendid roasts on Sunday. Few complain, many return for a second sitting.
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Le Boudin Blanc
This has to be (one of?) the best French restaurants in the capital: the meat is cooked to perfection, the sauces mouth-wateringly good and the portions huge. The frites (French fries) are the best you’ll find this side of the pond. And there is, of course, a whopping 500 wines to choose from. No wonder it’s always full.
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Leila’s Shop
Tucked away on up-and-coming Calvert Ave, Leila’s Shop feels like a bohemian country kitchen. For breakfast, go for the eggs and ham, which come beautifully cooked in their own little frying pan. Sandwiches are freshly made with superior produce, and there’s homemade lemonade and great coffee. Fresh flowers, large windows and outdoor seating complete the gorgeous little set-up. At the shop next door you can pick up super-fresh and seasonal vegetables as well as hams, fruit, bread and cheese.
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Le Pain Quotidien
A simple, stripped-down French-style cafe that serves superfresh salads, soups and tartines (open-face sandwiches) throughout the day. There are some lovely breakfast options, with organic granolas, breads and preserves, and sinful cakes and pastries for afternoon tea (the fruit tartlets are to die for).
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Loafing
Cute corner cafe with a glorious cake selection, lovingly displayed. Also offers sandwiches, pastries, Monmouth coffee and a great range of teas, served in mismatched fine bone china. The outdoor tables and huge windows make it perfect for people-watching and there’s also a tiny garden to relax in out back.
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London Foodie
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Look Mum No Hands
Cyclists and noncyclists alike adore this cafe-bar-workshop, in a light, airy space looking out onto Old St. Excellent homemade pies and wholesome salads are accompanied by a small range of daily specials, cakes, pastries, sarnies and good coffee. There are also a few outdoor tables and they’ll loan you a lock if you need to park your wheels.
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Luxe
With a terrace on the edge of Old Spitalfields Market, this is celebrity chef John Torode’s newest London venture. Housed in the Old Flower Market building, there’s a 1st-floor dining room (reservations advised) with a central kitchen and lovely corner booths, a more relaxed ground-floor cafe and bar, and a basement venue hosting live music and club nights. The cafe serves a good range of breakfasts, sandwiches and salads and it’s a great choice for a weekend brunch.
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Macaron Boulangerie & Patisserie
Among the spray of gift shops, cafes and delis along The Pavement, this gracious Parisian-style boulangerie welcomes with vast glass windows, an inviting sense of Gallic charm and a scattering of seats flung out front for delicious views of the common. The pastries, baguettes, croissants and ice creams are all tasty and tip-top fresh. Interlopers from other parts of town love it almost as much as locals.
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Mediterraneo
For authentic Italian food, it hardly gets better than Mediterraneo: the pasta is home-made and there is plenty of veal on the menu (a meat that’s almost unheard of in English cooking). The veal escalope in Marsala sauce is simply divine. Chefs use black and white truffles when in season.
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M Manze
Dating to 1902, M Manze (Italian roots) started off as an ice-cream seller before moving on to selling its legendary staples, today dished out by a band of chirpy staff. It’s a classic operation, from the lovely tile work to the traditional working-man’s menu: pie and mash (£3.20), pie and liquor (£2.25) and you can take your eels jellied or stewed (£3.20). David Beckham is rumoured to be a fan.
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Monmouth Coffee Company
Essentially a shop selling beans from just about every coffee-growing country in the world, Monmouth has a few wooden alcoves at the back where you can squeeze in and savour blends from around the world as well as cakes from local patisseries.
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Mooli’s
Started by a duo of Indian friends who’d had enough of the city life, Mooli’s is a breath of fresh air in the quick-bite world (not least because it was partly funded through late-night poker sessions). A cheerful little eatery, it serves fresh, homemade rotis (Indian soft bread) with delicious filling (meat as well as paneer and chickpeas, all prepared with their own sauce and seasoning). There are also homemade chutneys, real lemonade, homemade mango lassis and a nice selection of bottled beers.
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Morito
Little sister to the mighty Moro, this is an authentic take on a Spanish tapas bar. Seats are at the bar, along the window, or on one of the small tables inside or out. It’s relaxed, convivial and often completely crammed. Chefs furiously prepare grilled delights, as well as slower-cooked options and smaller bites. While the quality is top-notch, portions aren’t generous, so you may want more than the recommended three per person. You can book at lunch but not in the evening.
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Nevada Street Deli
There may be a sudden scramble for one of the few outside tables when the sun pops out, but this charming wedge-shaped space is a popular spot for sandwiches (especially bacon sandwiches), all-day breakfasts, mushrooms or gravadlax on toast, a plate of scrumptious handmade sausages in a wealth of varieties (smoked salmon, spinach and feta cheese) or merely a restorative cup of steaming coffee.
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North Sea Fish Restaurant
The North Sea sets out to cook fresh fish and potatoes – a simple ambition in which it succeeds admirably. Look forward to jumbo-sized plaice or halibut steaks, deep-fried or grilled, and a huge serving of chips. There’s takeaway next door if you can’t face the soulless dining room.
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Nude Espresso
A simply styled, well-run coffee shop serving excellent Australasian- influenced breakfasts and lunches that focus on seasonal and natural ingredients. It roasts and blends its own coffee just round the corner at its roastery, off Brick Lane.
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Old Brewery
A working brewery with splendidly burnished 1000- litre copper vats at one end and a high ceiling lit with natural sunlight, the Old Brewery is perfectly located after staggering around Greenwich’s top sights. Right next to the Discover Greenwich exhibition, it’s a cafe by day, transforming into a restaurant in the evening, serving a choice selection of fine dishes carefully sourced from the best seasonal ingredients. The brickwork bar is an appetising prologue to dinner.
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Ottolenghi
This is the pick of Upper Street’s many eating options – a brilliantly bright, white space that’s worth a trip merely to see the eye-poppingly beautiful cakes in the deli. But get a table at this temple to good food and you’ll really appreciate it. At lunch, you can choose from the deli counter, while in the evening there’s à la carte dining, with fusion, meze-sized dishes to share. Weekend brunch is fabulous, though you’ll usually have to wait for a table. Reservations are essential in the evenings.
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Pavilion
Superb cafe overlooking an ornamental lake in Victoria Park, serving breakfasts and lunches made with locally sourced ingredients, and excellent coffee.
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Penny Black
Led by head chef Jan Chanter, this contemporary and stylish restaurant stimulates the senses with its combination of fresh, locally sourced ingredients, culinary excellence and highly appetising presentation. The beef Wellington, potato and fennel bake is a standout experience, but the desserts also demand attention. If you’ve kids in tow, the toad-in-the-hole obliges. Service is top of the range.
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Pizza Express
After feasting on art at the Dulwich Picture Gallery or cycling round Dulwich Park, this petite two-floor eatery is ideally located at the tranquil heart of Dulwich Village. Other local restaurants come and go or change hands but it may take some culinary imagination to unseat this perennially popular outpost of the chain. Kids are always more than welcome and service is always sprightly and efficient; reservations recommended.
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