The best new restaurants in London

What is it: A casual destination restaurant from chef James Cochran.

Why go: For dazzling food in a super-chilled space.

What is it: A twenty-first century kebab joint in Islington.

Why go: For a kebab that you won’t regret the following day.

What is it: An Italian pasta bar in Covent Garden. 

Why go: For an £8 plate of ‘silk handkerchiefs’ in a rich, chunky walnut butter.

What is it: A branch of the tapas restaurant at Coal Drops Yard.

Why go: To snack on Spanish delights like salt-baked prawns and crispy croquetas.

What is it: A boho-chic Persian joint in Soho from the group behind Bao and Hoppers. 

Why go: The chargrilled poussin: practically perfect in every way. 

What is it: A new branch of the chophouse in Shoreditch. 

Why go: For a great-value plate of tender, caramelised chops.

What is it: A swanky Indian grill spot from the team behind Hoppers.

Why go: Chilli chicken lettuce cups. Ox cheek mini samosa. Sigh.

What is it: The first permanent eatery from the street food supremos.

Why go: Awesome beef burgers. Meaty bites. Stellar service.

What is it: A neighbourhood restaurant from Emily Roux and ex-Le Gavroche chef Diego Ferrari. 

Why go: For the celeriac cacio e pepe. Eating your veg never tasted so good.

What is it: A sibling to the Palomar and The Barbary, in a Tom Dixon-designed space. 

Why go: The party vibe. The fennel salad. The rice pudding.

What is it: A smart Japanese restaurant in Mayfair.

Why go: For sashimi and salads you’ll dream about for days.

What is it: A smart Covent Garden bistro from the team behind Mayfair’s Kitty Fisher’s.

Why go: For posh comfort food in a sumptuous vintage setting.

What is it: A head-turning coffee bar and restaurant in Spitalfields. 

Why go: To order one of everything without anyone judging you. 

What is it: The fine-dining restaurant at Bethnal Green’s Town Hall Hotel.

Why go: For Lego people you can spread on your bread.

What is it: The flagship London branch of a dumpling chain. 

Why go: For wontons in black vinegar and chilli oil. But do get the prawn and pork pancake too.

What is it: A Shoreditch pizza and pasta restaurant with OTT interiors.

Why go: To say you’ve been. Oh, and for pasta carbonara served out of a parmesan wheel.

What is it: A second outing for the Indian small-plates restaurant. 

Why go: For the duck leg. And parsnip crisps. Oh, and the duck leg.

What is it: A King’s Cross small-plates restaurant from Murano-trained chef Pip Lacey. 

Why go: Chorizo and cauliflower. Squid and apple. Crème caramel.

What is it: A classy Cantonese restaurant in Mayfair. 

Why go: For the best Cantonese duck (that is, no pancakes) in town.

What is it: An all-day bakery, restaurant and bar in Newington Green. 

Why go: For just-baked bread and bucketloads of ambiance.

What is it: A modern Thai restaurant serving Bangkok-inspired food. 

Why go: The rice and curry salad: like no ‘salad’ you’ve ever had before.

What is it: A Filipino small plate joint in Hoxton. 

Why go: To pop your kinilaw cherry.

What is it: A swish Indian restaurant in a Chelsea townhouse. 

Why go: For stone bass and sago pud, plus a curry-load of charm.

What is it: A Chinese restaurant in the Bloomberg Arcade, from the A Wong team. 

Why go: The knife-cut noodles. Dark, slippery, moreish.

What is it: A neighbourhood restaurant from the team behind Brixton’s Salon.

Why go: For all the snacks.

What is it: A Clerkenwell restaurant in a former linoleum warehouse. 

Why go: For the cheddar and sauerkraut croquettes, or the croissant bread-and-butter pud. Or both.

What is it: A larger SE1 incarnation of the celebrated wild food restaurant.

Why go: For the wild meat. Whatever shape it comes in, it’ll blow you away.

What is it: A sibling of the Peruvian fusion restaurant, this time in Shoreditch. 

Why go: Because it’s time you tried Peruvian kimchi for yourself. 

What is it: A neighbourhood restaurant in Hackney serving modern izakaya-style food. 

Why go: Records in the corner. Service with a smile. Drinking food to die for.

What is it: A shipping container restaurant in Pop Brixton, specialising in seafood. 

Why go: The squid ‘noodles’: cephalod meets sesame.

What is it: A Fiztrovia small plates restaurant from celebrity chef Yotam Ottolenghi.

Why go: For the squid and lardo skewer. It rocks.

What is it: A street food stall-turned-permanent north London laksa bar.

Why go: The laksa, duh. Get ‘The Standard’: it doesn’t need pimping.

What is it: A smart Sichuan restaurant in Stratford. 

Why go: The jellyfish. Black vinegar, garlic and just enough crunch.

What is it: A stylish modern European restaurant with a raw bar and wood-fired oven.

Why go: For a leek to convert the most ardent of allium-loathers.

What is it: A younger sibling to the Clove Club, with creative small plates. 

Why go: For roast artichoke with a sunflower seed and miso dip. Retro heaven.

What is it: A British-French dining room above an iconic Old Soho boozer. 

Why go: For the calf’s brains: a hyper-rich hit of offal.

What is it: The Soho outpost of famed Istanbul restaurant Yeni Lokanta. 

Why go: Snazzy salad. Bread pudding fritters. And everything in between.

What is it: An all-day Fitzrovia dining room with South American influences. 

Why go: For DIY tacos you won’t want to share.

What is it: A sibling to Holloway’s Xi’an Impression, but with more noodles. 

Why go: For the hand-pulled biang biang ‘belt’ noodles. Carbs never tasted so good.