London's best outdoor dining

Time Out's guide to outdoor dining in west London

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  Gallery Mess

  Saatchi Gallery, Duke of York’s HQ, King’s Road, SW3 4LY (020 7730 8135)

  Chelsea Art space

  Two years on since launching in 2009, the Saatchi Gallery’s fabulous brasserie is still going strong. You can sit inside, surrounded by modern art, but the grounds outside are littered with portable tables until 9.30pm, when last orders are taken (6.30pm on a Sunday), if the weather’s fair. The food is by Rhubarb, best known for its very upmarket event catering. You might kick off with salmon ceviche teamed with guacamole and chilli before tucking in to a juicy beef burger served with tomato compote. Round it all off with a modish pud: passion fruit panna cotta with mango and basil salad, say. Read more
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  Greek Affair

  1 Hillgate St, W8 7SP (020 7792 5226)

  Notting Hill taverna

  This relaxed and relaxing little Greek bistro near Notting Hill’s Gate cinema has a sweet first-floor terrace above the restaurant, with parasols, heaters and little plants around the ten tables. The menu is a celebration of Greek meze, from dips and stuffed peppers to grilled octopus and spicy sausage. Although the terrace umbrellas give some protection against the elements, if a downpour strikes, the owners will herd everyone into one of two function rooms inside. Read more
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  Princess Victoria

  217 Uxbridge Rd, W12 9DH. (020 8749 5886)

  Shepherd’s Bush gastropub

  This gastropub has an adorable herb garden in a walled courtyard. There are drawbacks: the garden’s in shade after around 6.30pm; the ten tables, seating up to 42 people, can’t be booked; and the fact that this is where you retire for a puff on one of the fine Cuban stogies from the pub’s Wine & Cigar Shop will put some people off dining. Read more
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  Petersham Nurseries Café

  Church Lane, off Petersham Rd, TW10 7AG (020 8605 3627)

  Hothouse posh nosh

  Although not strictly speaking alfresco – you’re dining under a glass roof – this place feels as outdoor as can be, set in an idyllic garden centre just past Richmond. Few London dining rooms can match this one: a magical hothouse alive with palm trees and scented jasmine, the mismatched tables ornamented with terracotta pots of sage and lavender. After chef Skye Gyngell left at the beginning of 2012, Greg Malouf took over the kitchen. Malouf has not replaced Gyngell's menu, he has supplemented it. So the bright, Mediterranean colours and flavours, with lots of Italian ingredients, remain. You might start with a delicious rabbit served on a parsnip skordalia (garlic-flavoured Greek purée) followed by 'bisateeya' (pastilla) of duck is one of the few Arabesque touches. Puds are lovely too: take a zesty rhubarb pavlova with a layer of lemon posset. After eating, you can potter around the plants in the nurseries outside, then walk back to Richmond across the fields. Reservations are essential, and can be made a month in advance. Read more
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  Blue Elephant

  Waterside Tower, The Boulevard, Imperial Wharf, Townmead Road, Fulham, SW6 2UB

  Thai on the Thames

  The upmarket Thai restaurant Blue Elephant in Fulham closed in in December 2011 to relocate to Imperial Wharf, a modern development overlooking the Thames. From mid January 2012, Blue Elephant has taken over these premises, formerly Saran Rom. The menu has intriguing and well-executed dishes, as well as classics confidently and attractively served. The view of the river from these 28 riverside tables, with sun umbrellas and heaters, is certainly better than the view the other way: Blue Elephant is part of a soulless modern complex right on the Thames. But we love those helicopters. Read more
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  Stein's

  55 Richmond Towpath, TW10 6UX (020 8948 8189)

  Riverside beer garden

  If you’ve never been to a German beer garden, Stein’s is good place to start. Set along a stretch of the Thames towpath, just a short walk from Richmond town centre, the large riverside garden can seat up to 300 alfresco diners at shared wooden tables, around half of which offer some shelter from the elements. Food is the best of Teutonic stodge, ignoring the fripperies of starters and going straight for no-nonsense mains, with generous plates of regional sausages with sauerkraut, fried potatoes or dumplings the order of the day. Lighter bites come in the form of salads (though many of these still have sausages hiding in them) and there’s a range of traditional Bavarian puds, like apple strudel with whipped cream. Complete your meal with an eponymous stein (the name of the one-litre glass beer tankard) frothing with the golden nectar from two of Bavaria’s best-loved breweries, Erdinger and Paulaner. If you’re a hops weakling or can’t stomach the £8-a-stein price tag, there are pints and half-pints too. Read more