There’s been some good eating this year
We haven’t kept count of how many meals out we’ve had these year but we can safely say there’s been A LOT – with so many great new openings, who can blame us? We also managed to squeeze in revisits to old faves and trips to some legit London institutions. Out of the countless dishes put down in front of us, these are the ones that we’d go back for again and again.
Beef Wellington – The Ritz
One of the few 5-star hotel restaurants where the food is consistently better than it needs to be and it doesn’t get better than a huge beef wellington served on a silver platter…
Croque Ibai – Ibai
The steaks, particularly the Galician Blond ones, may have taken the headlines at Basque restaurant Ibai, but the Croque Ibai – four little golden bites of boudin noir, carabinero prawns and Ossau-Iraty cheese stuffed into soft, toasted bread – is what really got us talking.
Sweetbreads in Lobster Gravy – The Grill at The Hero
As well as having a cracking pub on the ground floor, The Hero in Maida Vale has a brilliant grill restaurant above it. The sweetbreads in lobster gravy sounds like an odd combo but was a real winner.
Chicken Butter, Crispy Chicken Skin & Jus – Frog by Adam Handling
The entire tasting menu won us over on a revisit to Frog by Adam Handling, but this chicken butter with crispy skin and a rich chicken jus to spread on a freshly baked loaf was a standout course.
Marmite Custard Tarts With Caviar – Sael
Jason Atherton had a very busy 2024, opening five restaurants in less than a year. His British brasserie Sael has a knockout menu and the Marmite custard tart is one of the best bites of food in London.
MSG Fries – TÓU
TÓU’s katsu sandos made a return to London and these excellent fries, sprinkled with chilli powder, Sichuan pepper, and just a dab of MSG, were the perfect pairing.
Pork Chop – Wildflowers
At Wildflowers, Laura Hart and Aaron Potter have brought their take on the Med to Belgravia, and the thick sugar pit pork chop, surrounded by an almond cream and jammy quince, had us dreaming of our holidays.
Veal Brains – Papi
Papi is doing the Jeff Bezos of wine bar dishes. This is rich AF with serious notes of Oxo Cube – maybe that’s the chef’s secret?
Chutoro With Jalapeno Sauce – Juno
Juno may be London’s smallest omakase experience but its delivering some big Japanese-Mexican fusion flavours, like this chutoro (medium fatty tuna) spiced up with a jalapeno sauce, garlic chips and wasabi leaves.
Barbecued Lobster – Cycene
New Head Chef Taz Sarhane has brought a greater focus on seasonal British ingredients to Cycene, which has resulted in dishes like this incredible lightly barbecued lobster, brushed in wagyu fat, and served with fermented tomatoes and an aerated bisque.
Kimbula Banis – Paradise
Dom Fernando revamped Paradise this year, giving it a new look and a new set menu, which starts with these crispy doughy cheesy spicy sweet cubes of green chilli custard, date & lime chutney and Corra Linn.
Tri-Tip Wagyu – Kanpai Classic
It’s hard to pick a fave dish at a restaurant where every course features wagyu but the tri-tip (specially requested from a supplier in Japan) is unbelievably buttery.
Spanakopita – Morchella
As big fans of Perilla, we had high hopes for Morchella and boy did it deliver. We could have had plate after plate of these impossibly light spanakopita cigars.
Cheese Toastie – Goodbye Horses
Headed up by Jack Coggins, De Beauvoir restaurant and wine bar Goodbye Horses was an instant hit when it opened in the summer. The cheese toastie is a must-order thanks to the blend of three cheeses and the genius addition of homemade leek pickle.
Smoked Eel – Lasdun
It’s worth a trip to this theatre restaurant for the smoked eel – on a solid bed of pressed potato flecked with shards of cured ham and horseradish – alone.
Lobster Vol-au-Vent – Hélène Darroze at The Connaught
Filled with lobster, veal sweetbread, mushrooms and parsnip mousseline, this vol-au-vent is worlds away from the ones your mum would dish up in the seventies.
Black Pudding & Squid Croquettes – Zoilo
We first went to Zoilo when it was barely a week old way back in 2012, and happily it’s still going strong. These black pudding and squid croquettes topped with jalapeno are little nuggets of joy.
Stay in the loop…
Sign up to our drops & get us in your inbox.
We’ll be in your inbox every Wednesday at 11:30am.
Put the kettle on!
