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Top 6 places to wine and dine in London
Busy London city streets are packed with all kinds of eateries and bars; from the famous market stalls and small pubs in Camden to the top end restaurants and bars in the West End. With all of this choice available, how do you decide what is the best and what really tops the restaurant and bar lists? Lets take a look at our top 6 recommendations for wining and dining in London; a mixture of the top 3 bars and the top 3 restaurants.
Dinner by Heston Blumenthal, Hyde Park
Overlooking one of London’s famous parks; Hyde Park, Dinner located in the Mandarin Oriental hotel is home to Heston Blumenthal and his range of British classic dishes, which have been reinterpreted for the 21st century inside his classic light filled restaurant.
Two dishes in particular, the 18th century Salmagundy consisting of chicken, salsify and marrow bone and the Taffety Tart which combines the flavours of apple, rose, fennel and blackcurrant sorbet, are particular favourites.  If anything was on offer to tempt to you to dine at Dinner; the food is delicious, the service is charming and the views aren’t bad either.
Little Social, Mayfair
Little Social is the baby brother of Jason AthertonÂ’s Pollen Street Social. However, in place of the contemporary cooking which can be found opposite, Little Social serves classic French dishes; such as country pate, using British ingredients.
With an accessible menu and affordable prices with main courses starting at £12, you can dine in comfort whether or not you are able to get one of the banquettes located at the front of house.
Grain Store, Kings Cross
At the Grain Store located in the busy Kings Cross area of the capital, Chef Bruno Loubet transforms classic French cooking on its head and puts vegetables centre stage in each dish, despite it not being a vegetarian restaurant but a fresh approach to food.
One stylish aspect diners will find is that Grain Store is housed within a former warehouse and can be particularly busy at times because of its many original dishes on the menu, rather than tweaking familiar favourites.
Connaught Bar
After visiting the Little Social in Mayfair, located the Connaught Bar on Carlos Place. This decadent, styling and very cosy bar which embraces a welcoming atmosphere along with the 21st century bar scene without compromising its traditional 1920 style hotel bar.
Upon stepping in, charming staff and an extensive cocktail list with some rather lofty prices, you can expect to get exactly what you pay for; quality and class.
Sushisamba
Despite having the famous Japanese cuisine in the name, this rooftop bar located on the Heron Tower builds excitement for its guests with its spectacular views of the Gherkin, the River Thames and St PaulÂ’s Cathedral.
The Sushisamba combines two smaller bars in addition to its rooftop terrace bar, along with its short 7 drink cocktail list each costing £11 or £12 each, and makes the perfect destination for excellence, unbeatable views and amazing crowds with relatively easy access to anyone.
London Cocktail Club
The London Cocktail Club on Goodge Street is one of two establishments owned by JJ Goodman and James Hopkins and home to some of the most unusual concoctions; such as Bacon and Egg in a glass and the Squid Ink Sour. Food is very much the focus at the London Cocktail Club, with plenty of well priced, very imaginative bar bites to accompany your culinary cocktails which show off the creativity of the bartenders.
The menu consists of cocktails such as the Cheese and Pineapple Martini and the Oyster Bomb, along with sweet treats like the Chocolate Brownie, consisting of Baileys, crème de cacao served with a small brownie slice on the side. However, if you’re not ready for drinks that taste like your dinner or desert, options such as the classic Mojito or Bellini are on offer too.
Stuart Leckie is Director of Sales & Marketing at St. Ermin’s Hotel.
With an accessible menu and affordable prices with main courses starting at £12, you can dine in comfort whether or not you are able to get one of the banquettes located at the front of house.
Grain Store, Kings Cross
At the Grain Store located in the busy Kings Cross area of the capital, Chef Bruno Loubet transforms classic French cooking on its head and puts vegetables centre stage in each dish, despite it not being a vegetarian restaurant but a fresh approach to food.
One stylish aspect diners will find is that Grain Store is housed within a former warehouse and can be particularly busy at times because of its many original dishes on the menu, rather than tweaking familiar favourites.
Connaught Bar
After visiting the Little Social in Mayfair, located the Connaught Bar on Carlos Place. This decadent, styling and very cosy bar which embraces a welcoming atmosphere along with the 21st century bar scene without compromising its traditional 1920 style hotel bar.
Upon stepping in, charming staff and an extensive cocktail list with some rather lofty prices, you can expect to get exactly what you pay for; quality and class.
Sushisamba
Despite having the famous Japanese cuisine in the name, this rooftop bar located on the Heron Tower builds excitement for its guests with its spectacular views of the Gherkin, the River Thames and St PaulÂ’s Cathedral.
The Sushisamba combines two smaller bars in addition to its rooftop terrace bar, along with its short 7 drink cocktail list each costing £11 or £12 each, and makes the perfect destination for excellence, unbeatable views and amazing crowds with relatively easy access to anyone.
London Cocktail Club
The London Cocktail Club on Goodge Street is one of two establishments owned by JJ Goodman and James Hopkins and home to some of the most unusual concoctions; such as Bacon and Egg in a glass and the Squid Ink Sour. Food is very much the focus at the London Cocktail Club, with plenty of well priced, very imaginative bar bites to accompany your culinary cocktails which show off the creativity of the bartenders.
The menu consists of cocktails such as the Cheese and Pineapple Martini and the Oyster Bomb, along with sweet treats like the Chocolate Brownie, consisting of Baileys, crème de cacao served with a small brownie slice on the side. However, if you’re not ready for drinks that taste like your dinner or desert, options such as the classic Mojito or Bellini are on offer too.
Stuart Leckie is Director of Sales & Marketing at St. Ermin’s Hotel.
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We’ve dined at Gigamesh in Camden, Luxury, red carpet, beautiful wood carvings.. This is somewhere to dine if you are looking to impress.
Had my birthday meal here and was in awe the whole time to how beautiful the place was. Food was equally amazing!
Interesting selection, we weren’t terribly impressed with thfood at Dinner by Heston, overdone with too much competition of flavours, but the rest of the list is all up there… the Champagne bar at the Connaught is also a must! Much more intimate, and hidden from the madding crowds!