CITY GUIDE · ENGLAND
London
28 places we would send our friends to
Flora worked in London, so for three years we came back almost every month. Somewhere between the visits, the city turned into a list of tables we keep returning to.
These are the places we send our friends to: Thai grills in Soho, South Indian kitchens in Islington, a bagel on Brick Lane at almost any hour. Every address here is one we have eaten at ourselves.
IF YOU ONLY HAVE ONE EVENING
Our favourites.
Hutong ★
Modern Chinese food with a spectacular view over London.
Kiln ★
Thai-inspired dishes cooked over a wood fire on Brewer Street in Soho. A must-try for us. Our tip: arrive before noon, as it does not take reservations and fills up quickly.
Plaza Khao Gaeng Tottenham Court Road ★
Quilon ★
Fine dining focused on dishes from Kerala and the southwest coast of India.
Normah's ★
Rambutan ★
Kung Fu Burger ★
THE ADDRESS BOOK
All places.
28 places
Soho 5
Kiln ★
Thai-inspired dishes cooked over a wood fire on Brewer Street in Soho. A must-try for us. Our tip: arrive before noon, as it does not take reservations and fills up quickly.
Hoppers Soho
Sri Lankan and South Indian food with a strong Tamil influence.
Acai Berry
Blacklock Soho
Kricket Soho
A modern interpretation of Indian food, with creative small plates.
Chinatown 4
Kung Fu Burger ★
Speedboat Bar
Hefaure
heytea (SOHO)
Mayfair 3
Gymkhana
Fine dining with North Indian food.
Pavyllon London
Fine dining with modern French food.
Islington 2
The Tamil Crown
The Tamil Prince
Tottenham Court Road 2
Plaza Khao Gaeng Tottenham Court Road ★
Din Tai Fung Centre Point
Bayswater 1
Normah's ★
Borough 1
Rambutan ★
Carnaby 1
BAO Soho ★
City of London 1
Brigadiers
A lively bar and grill with very good Indian food.
East Ham 1
NavaRuchi Kerala Restaurant East Ham
Finsbury Park 1
Max's Sandwich Shop
Hackney 1
ACE Pizza Victoria Park
Ilford 1
London Bridge 1
Hutong ★
Modern Chinese food with a spectacular view over London.
Marylebone 1
AngloThai
Shoreditch 1
Smoking Goat Shoreditch
Westminster 1
Quilon ★
Fine dining focused on dishes from Kerala and the southwest coast of India.
OVER THE VISITS
Month by month.
November 2024 January 2025 March 2025 May 2025 June 2025 July 2025 August 2025
FROM THE JOURNAL
Stories from London.
London, autumn 2024.
Autumn weekends in London: a late dinner in Soho, a seafood lunch in East Ham and Kerala cooking at Quilon.
London, winter into spring 2025.
From hoppers in January to Borough Market in March and Thai food on Rupert Street in May: five months of London weekends.
London, spring 2024.
Two weekends in London: Indian dishes on a Saturday night, a southern Thai lunch near Tottenham Court Road and a long Italian lunch in Fitzrovia.
London, one table at a time.
Six photographed restaurant stops across several London visits, plus eight more addresses from our personal recommendation list.
Kiln in Soho. Fire, smoke and Thai flavours.
We returned to Kiln on Brewer Street several times. Dishes cooked over an open fire stayed in our memory.