London is arguably (definitely) the best restaurant city in the world right now, but with so many new openings each week, keeping up to date with the best new restaurants in London is a full time job. Which is why we’re here of course. Make sure you’re always in the know with our guide to the best new restaurant openings in London and you’ll be leading your mates and dates around the coolest new places around town in no time. Our guide is constantly updated with our curated selection of only the best new restaurant openings you need to know about, so you can always be sure that this little lot will be well worth checking out.
Updated: 10th June 2019
1. Darby’s
We absolutely LOVE Darby’s, Robin Gill’s new restaurant which has just opened next door to the new US Embassy. Although it’s a big space in a brand new shiny building (which will soon have a sky pool 35 metres up) the designers AvroKO have done an incredible job making it feel like a homey, lived-in restaurant with a large central bar area and nice booth seating around the sides. There’s also a great outdoor terrace, potentially the safest seats in London due to the armed police patrolling outside the embassy 24/7. Robin has smashed it out the park on the food front too, with an all day Irish-influenced menu with the likes of beef fillet tartare with chestnut mushrooms and bone marrow, and Brixham wild turbot cooked over fire.
Opened May 2019
3 Viaduct Gardens Road, Embassy Gardens, London, SW11 7AY
darbys-london.com
2. Bao Borough
They’ve had people queuing round the block in both Soho and Fitzrovia, and now Bao has brought that action south of the river with site number three, complete with a basement karaoke room and Suntory Hi-Ball machine. As well as those iconic buns, including new chicken nugget and aubergine baos, there’s a focus on grill dishes and late-night noodles with plates like beef meatball with fried egg and Borough curry with panko goat and frankfurter.
To be honest this is a guaranteed hit for the Bao team, who also operate Taiwanese restaurant and teahouse Xu, so we’re just looking forward to the Borough restaurant freeing up space at the other two!
Opened May 2019
Stoney St, London SE1 9AD
baolondon.com
3. Sette
Rivea is out at the Bulgari Hotel in Knightsbridge and Sette is in. The new Italian is the first outside the US for the LDV Hospitality Group and is based on their restaurant Scarpetta in Manhattan. That means it’s all about New York style Italian with dishes including yellowtail and tuna susci, veal tenderloin with gnocchi alla romana and glazed sweatbreads, and Scarpetta’s famous spaghetti with tomato and basil. In a reversal of what the layout was before, Sette is on the ground floor with new bar, Nolita Social, taking up the basement. The bar will shake up cocktails, serve light bites and have DJs spinning 60s rock, 70s soul and 90s hip-hop.
Opened June 2019
Knightsbridge Green, London SW1X 7QL
settelondon.co.uk
4. Fugitive Motel
Founded by David Burgess and Liam Tolan (both musicians formerly of The Brights and The Light Assembly), Fugitive Motel serves up coffee from Climpson & Sons, with sourdough pizzas (the harissa cauliflower and tahini one has a real kick) and sides like zucchini fritti on offer during the day. Geared towards freelancers looking for a place to work as much as those who want a pizza and beer, there’s cold brew coffee and kombucha on tap as well as plenty of low and no ABV options on draft. Taking design inspo from 1950s West Coast motels, the space is decked out in pastels with a terrazzo bar and plenty of plants throughout, with industrial accents and sharing booths in the pizza lounge. There’s be a shuffleboard court in the bar so you can show off your skills.
Opened June 2019
199 Cambridge Heath Road, London, E2 0EL
fugitivemotel.bar
5. Soutine
Corbin & King, the restaurateurs team responsible for the likes of The Delaunay, The Wolseley, Bellanger and Brasserie Zedel, have gone to St John’s Wood for their latest opening. Soutine is an all-day cafe-restaurant (cafe with bar counter seating up front, restaurant in the back) serving up French food with Russian influences. It has also taken inspiration from the history of St John’s Wood (the area has always been home to artists), so there’ll be murals on throughout the space. Sounds like Soutine will be another guaranteed hit for Corbin & King.
Opened May 2019
60 St Johns Wood High Street, London NW8 7SH
soutine.co.uk
6. Four Legs at The Compton Arms
The Compton Arms in Islington has had a refurb and the makeover extends to the kitchen where Four Legs has taken up residence. The chef duo of Jamie Allan (ex-Hill & Szrok) and Ed McIlroy (ex-Bao) are in the kitchen serving up a seasonal British menu with European and Asian influences, with a focus on local produce. They switch up the menu a fair bit but there’s a few thing always on there including something that’s worth heading down for alone: the cheeseburger. That may not sound so exciting but trust us, this is definitely one of the best burgers in London. With a thin patty, diced onions, pickles and cheese it’s basically like a McDonald’s Quarter Pounder but infinitely better. Another thing that’ll have us hot footing it back there is the keema paratha bread, a pillow-soft flat bread stuffed with minced lamb. Then there’s the cheese and chive fritters, the chicken skewers, and the burrata with broad bean and black olives, all of which hit the spot.
Opened May 2019
The Compton Arms, 4 Compton Avenue, London N1 2XD
@fourlegs_ldn
