There are tens of thousands of restaurants across London, representing every imaginable cuisine, budget, and atmosphere—and when it comes to a night out on the town with friends, this city brings its A-game. Happy hours, bar menus, and shared plates coexist with gourmet tasting menus and award-winning wine lists for custom experiences to fit everyones expectations for a fun meal. But where are the smartest, savviest diners eating out? Welcome to the Tastemaker 20. We’ve pulled data from thousands of restaurants to find the top spots among OpenTable's most expert, seasoned diners. You’ll find everything from neighborhood gems to classic fine dining, airy bistros to modern Japanese—all vetted by the types of tastemakers who know the best spots around the city. Impress your friends and score a table; we wish we could join you.
| Restaurants: | Dinner by Heston Blumenthal, Hide Above, Hide Ground… |
|---|---|
| Price Range: | ££ - ££££ |
| Cuisines: | British… |
| Neighborhoods: | Knightsbridge, Mayfair… |
Dinner by Heston Blumenthal, a two-Michelin-star restaurant at the Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park, presents menus devised around the concept of Britain’s long culinary history. Noted on the menu are the ...
Hide Above occupies the top floor of a spacious three-story venue in Mayfair that stuns with its nature-inspired décor—especially the swirling central staircase with its gleaming wood grain—and with i...
Hide Ground presents a more casual, all-day version of the Hide Above experience, describing the mid-level venue as “the hearth of the restaurant.” The food is just as exquisite as that served upstair...
It should come as no surprise that Jason Atherton, the star chef behind a global empire, created one of London’s coolest restaurants as his flagship. The emphasis at this sophisticated, Michelin star-...
London’s restaurant critics can’t seem to get over the lack of pretentiousness at Portland—the comparison of its dining room’s understated decor to a cafeteria often comes up in reviews—but they unive...
British-born celebrity chef Jason Atherton, one of Gordon Ramsay’s most successful proteges, opened Social Eating House in 2013, and it won a Michelin star just six months later. Chef Paul Hood’s menu...
It’s arguably the most fun to dine at Angler, a Michelin star-winning fish and seafood restaurant atop the City’s South Place Hotel, on a sunny summer day when the rooftop terrace promises cool cockta...
Kai, a plush and sophisticated two-story restaurant in Mayfair, has since their 1993 opening consistently ranked among the best restaurants in London and top Chinese restaurants in the world. Chef Ale...
Before som saa transformed a former fabric warehouse in Spitalfields into a trendy and spacious restaurant specializing in elevated regional Thai cuisine, it was a tremendously successful pop-up. A cr...
With its unmatched location on the top floor of the London Hilton on Park Lane, Galvin at Windows boasts incredible views across Hyde Park and the rooftops of Mayfair. If you never venture beyond the ...
Yotam Ottolenghi made his name with a very successful string of London delis before opening Nopi in 2011. Here in Soho, the chef’s signature bold, fresh Israeli and Mediterranean flavors, along with h...
The original Blacklock restaurant in Soho (it later gained sister venues in the City and Shoreditch) famously occupies the basement of a former brothel a stone’s throw from Piccadilly Circus. Promoter...
This is the original Hakkasan that launched a global empire, the place that perfected modern Cantonese dishes, dim sum, and creative cocktails amid a chic and glamour-tinged setting. Head chef Tong Ch...
Sake no Hana brings authentic but modern Japanese fine dining to Mayfair, where its stunning light-filled dining room inspired by a cypress forest feels a world away from London. Expect to remove your...
Yauatcha, an all-day dim sum restaurant in Soho boasting a Michelin star, takes inspiration from a traditional Taipai tea house, yet the vibe of this basement venue is modern, trendy, and almost club-...
Chez Bruce opened in 1995, which in London’s fickle fine-dining scene makes them a veritable grandfather, one who still has his wits about him and can show the youngsters a thing or two about fine Fre...
Is COYA Mayfair the only Incan-Peruvian fine-dining restaurant in London? Actually, no. But they're certainly the best in a new genre of their own making, the result of chef Sanjay Dwivedi’s year-long...
In an airy, spacious converted warehouse painted stark white throughout, Bistrotheque attracts a fashionable crowd who dine on a mixture of classic cuisine and contemporary creations. There’s a three-...
Covering two floors in the heart of Mayfair, Park Chinois comprises the glitzy Club Chinois downstairs and the main dining room, Salon de Chine, and bar upstairs, both taking their distinctive and unf...
Upon the opening of the original St. John in 1994, the restaurant taking over a former bacon-smoking house in Smithfield, head chef Fergus Henderson launched an entire movement as the pioneer of “nose...