Diners' Choice: Best Ambience restaurants in City of London

OpenTable

Updated 05 January 2025

Looking for restaurants with the best ambience in City of London? You’re in the right place. Each month, OpenTable analyses nearly 2 million global diner reviews from the past four months. We sort the results by location and category to help you discover new favourite restaurants. It's a great partnership: you book, eat, and review. We listen...and deliver the results for all to benefit. Enjoy!

Restaurant St. Barts

4.8

4.8 (106)

£41 and over

British

Farringdon

About the restaurant

A British Tasting Menu experience for Dinner, and shorter Set Menu for Lunch - tucked away in London’s Smithfield the dining room overlooks the historical Church of St Bartholomew the Great. We received our first Michelin Star in March 2023 and were awarded a Michelin Green Star in February 2024 - making us the only London restaurant to hold both awards.

Tues - Sat Dinner | Tasting Menu | £160pp
Tues - Sat Lunch | Short or Long Set Lunch | £70/£110pp

Restaurant St. Barts is the culmination of passion & hard work from three long-term friends Johnnie, Luke & Toby - the team behind NEST restaurant in Shoreditch. It is a celebration of British produce in the heart of historical London.

Top review

James

Dined on 20 Dec 2024

Probably the best restaurant experience I've ever had.

Ken's Wine Bar

4.8

4.8 (16)

£26 to £40

Wine Bar

Clerkenwell

About the restaurant

A good time cave à manger on Exmouth Market. Ken's presents a daily rotating food and wine offering. Chef Fergus Shields' contemporary European cooking foregrounds seasonality whilst the wine program is led by Dan Long, with the list featuring established icons, natural wine legends, as well as future classics from all around the world.

Top review

Stephen

Dined 4 days ago

We had a superb meal, very tasty. The staff seemed particularly friendly and interested in what they were serving. Particular care was taken of one of our friends who has gluten intolerance. Great all round restaurant!

Le Cafe du Marche

4.7

4.7 (1383)

£41 and over

French

Barbican

About the restaurant

Open for over three decades, Le Cafe du Marche remains a family run, independent French restaurant. Tucked down a cobbled mews on the corner of historic Charterhouse Square and a stones throw from Smithfield Meat Market, we offer honest French food in a convivial and characterful setting. Crossing the threshold, guests feel they escape the hustle and bustle of the Square Mile and instead are transported to the south of France. We have live jazz in the evenings

Top review

Pelham

Dined 6 days ago

Le Cafe du Marche continues to offer a first class dining experience. An interesting menu, excellent food, a particularly good sparkling wine to start and very attentive service. Thoroughly recommended.

Quality Wines

4.7

4.7 (306)

£41 and over

European

Clerkenwell

About the restaurant

We take reservations for both lunch and dinner

At dinner the table is yours for 1 hour 45 minutes if you book up to and including 7pm. Any time after that, it’s yours for the evening

Please note: reservations are for dining from our menu and bookings are predominantly seated at bar stools

Top review

MatthewVIP

Dined 4 days ago

Great food and presentation. Lovely service too! Will definitely be back.

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Experience

The large table

Experience

The large table for Express lunch

The Quality Chop House

4.8

4.8 (2543)

£41 and over

British

Farringdon

About the restaurant

The Quality Chop House celebrated its 150th anniversary in 2019.

Our menus are seasonally-focused and change daily based around the best produce delivered each morning.

We suggest bookings, but do take walk-ins.

In addition to our a la carte menu, we offer a £29 set lunch menu (January to November), and on Sunday lunches we serve a splendid roast.

If you are interested in a table for more than 6 guests, we have a Private Dining Room that seats up to 14. A seasonal feasting menu is available. For more information please give us a call.

Top review

valentini

Dined 3 days ago

I finally managed to be free on a Sunday and I booked for the Sunday roast. I wanted to come for a long time but was never free. I must say it exceeded my expectations. I knew it was going to be good but it was not just good, it was magnificent. The service, the atmosphere, the buzz, and the food were just perfect. I started with the cod roe and padron peppers plus the bread and cultured butter. Then I had the ham, the beef brisket with all the trimmings, and a treacle tart to end what has been an absolutely perfect meal. I drunk excellent wines, a great white to go with the cod roe, then another for the ham, and a red to go with the brisket . The dessert was paired with Pol Roger and the incredibly nice sommelier made me taste a Marsala. They even gave me a salted caramel mini fudge to go with it. Amazing ! I must stress the service has been The best I had in a very long time. Everybody is competent, efficient, smiling, and they know what to recommend and how to make people feel good. I am truly impressed and can’t wait to go back. Thank you so much guys you are incredible !

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Popular dish

Confit Potatoes

Popular dish

Capezzana olive oil ice cream

Experience

Valentine's Day 2025

The Winemakers Club

4.8

4.8 (8)

£26 to £40

Wine Bar

Farringdon

About the restaurant

In August 2014 we opened the doors to our shop and bar in the Victorian arches beneath the Holborn Viaduct. There is history here, the site having served as a wine cellar for over 150 years, most recently as Oddbin’s fine wine store.

During the day the vaults serve as our office, warehouse and tasting room, as well as shop where the general public can buy our wines. At night it becomes a beautiful, atmospheric, candle-lit wine bar.

In the bar we charge £14 corkage on the retail price, except between 12 and 4pm where no corkage is charged. Our list is ever changing, not only showing wines that we import ourselves but also wines that we have tasted and are passionate for, supplied from fellow importers. We also offer a small amount of old Bordeaux, Burgundy, Port and Madeira from our private cellars.

Top review

MarkS

Dined on 6 Dec 2024

Atmospheric vault wine bar, reasonable flat mark up on their shop prices ultimately makes this a good place to drink decent wine at a fair price in central London. Simple food, meats, cheese, raclette sandwiches, etc to nibble with it.

Harrys Bar & Dining Room EC4

4.7

4.7 (298)

£26 to £40

English

Bank

About the restaurant

Please note that Harry's Bar reservations are for food only bookings. For drinks bookings please contact the restaurant directly.
Tucked away in an old cobbled yard between Cannon Street and Bank stations, Harry's Bar & Dining Room has a great atmosphere and prides itself on the quality of its food, wine and service, being professional yet friendly. Offering a fine British/Modern European cuisine the menu includes dishes such as new season Smoked Salmon Gravlax, or Seared Venison Loin Harry's Bar is renowned for the quality and freshness of the ingredients and, in particular, the char-grilled Scottish fillet steaks which are always a winner! A little gem in the City, smart yet homely surroundings and faultless service, and a very easy place to feel comfortable in.

Top review

David

Dined on 16 Dec 2024

Met up with an old friend for lunch, the food was excellent and the service friendly and efficient without being overbearing. Will definitely be back in the new year.

Cloth Restaurant

4.7

4.7 (216)

£26 to £40

Traditional French

Farringdon

About the restaurant

Having spent years supplying London’s top restaurants through their separate wine businesses, Joe Haynes and Benedict Butterworth have joined forces with Tom Hurst, who has worked at Brawn, The Marksman, Levan, and most recently as Head Chef at Lasdun, to launch the trio’s first restaurant together.

Located in a Grade II listed building on Cloth Fair, Cloth Restaurant is part of a historic row of buildings in the City of London that survived the Great Fire of 1666. Down this atmospheric alley opposite St Bartholomew church, Cloth is taking over a double fronted corner site that’s beneath the former home of poet John Betjeman and next door to the two oldest residential buildings in London.

Inside, low ceilings, wood floorboards with antique wall lights and artwork create a cosy, intimate atmosphere, while marble tables, long dark wood banquettes, antique crockery and cutlery will create the feel of a classic bistro.

Top review

Carl

Dined 2 days ago

Excellent food with great service, we will definitely be back.

Hispania Restaurant

4.7

4.7 (411)

£41 and over

Spanish

Bank

About the restaurant

Hispania’s premises, with more than 9,000 square feet are part of the ground floor of the historical building of Lloyds Bank.
With two floors dedicated to show the best of Spain, Hispania is the largest, most accomplished and ambitious project devoted to Spanish gastronomy in Europe.

Top review

ErikVIP

Dined 6 days ago

Best city restaurant for a good business lunch, good ambiance and even better food

Electric Bar & Diner at The Ned London

4.7

4.7 (710)

£26 to £40

Deli

Bank

About the restaurant

A sister restaurant to Soho House & Co’s Electric Diner Portobello, expect everything from burgers and bagels to salads and cheesecake, with plenty of shakes and cocktails.

Electric Bar & Diner serves breakfast, brunch and all-day classics. Eat-in at the counter or in one of the plush red leather booths or grab a coffee and a slice of pie to go from the dessert counter.

Tables of 7+ require a deposit of £25pp which is non-refundable in the event of cancellation or no show and will need to order from a set menu of £55 per person.

Please be advised bookings cannot be made for drinks only. Pets, other than registered guide dogs are not permitted at The Ned. We will try to accommodate pushchairs where possible but please be aware there may not be space at the table. If you would like to request a highchair or for further information please contact the restaurant directly.

Please note The Ned reserves the right to refuse or cancel any reservation either ahead or upon arrival.

Top review

HelenT

Dined 2 days ago

Great place for a relaxed evening supper

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