Best new restaurants in London of 2026 so far

What is it? A vegetarian bistro that might just blow your mind.

Why we love it: Depending on your degree of plant-based militancy, Holy Carrot’s second restaurant either vaguely bends its own rules or totally upends them. At the original outpost in Portobello, head chef Daniel Watkins’s live fire cooking and ferment laboratory established Holy Carrot as one of London’s great pioneers of vegan cuisine. But this new outpost in Spitalfields is not vegan, with all manner of dairy- and/or egg-based wonders across the menu. We previously reckoned that the first Holy Carrot was ‘[not] out to blow your mind’. Well, the second very much is.

Time Out tip: Holy Carrot’s sequel is more chill than its first outing, so it’s fitting that their greatest dish is also its most casual. Pizzettas and flatbreads made using fermented koji and silken tofu get their own section of the menu – and rightly so. 

Address: 61-63 Brushfield Street, Spitalfields, E1 6AA. 

Opening hours: Mon closed, Tue-Fri 12-3.30pm & 5-11pm, Sat 10.30am-3.30pm & 5-11pm, Sun 10.30am-8pm.

Expect to pay: Starters £10-16, flatbreads £14-16, mains £16-19.

What is it? Regional Italian knockouts in a revamped pub on cobbled Columbia Road.

Why we love it: The debut restaurant from Dara Klein takes over a gorgeously gabled Victorian boozer on the eastern fringes of Colombia Road. It still feels pubby, with a handpainted sign, 1930s-styled stained glass windows, mahogany wood-pannelling and, inexplicably, a giant portrait of Cher above the bar. The menu dips into rarer regional cracks of Italian cuisine, with historic offerings such as anchovies in saor (a ye olde Venetian marinade), alongside a hypnotic passatelli in brodo, and a furiously fresh chicken Milanese served with dill, fennel, celery, tarragon and crisp green apple.

Time Out tip: Getting a table here can be tough, but the bar area is always reserved for walk-ins. Chance your arm on a drop-in perch, where the full food menu is available.

Address: 109 Columbia Road, Bethnal Green, E2 7RL.

Opening hours: Mon-Tue closed, Wed-Fri 6-10pm, Sat 12-3pm & 6-10pm, Sun 12-4pm.

Expect to pay: Antipasti £5-16, primi £15-19, secondi £20-27.

What is it? A boisterous Italian restaurant that recalls pre Lizzy Line Soho.

Why we love it: Like Noble Rot with a bawdier sense of humour, Osteria Vibrato might just be your new favourite restaurant. Pasta, wine, and a waiter who might just get up in the middle of service and bash out a little light jazz on the piano - what more could you want? It comes from Charlie Mellor, who, a decade ago, opened Hackney Road’s Laughing Heart, a small plates wine bar named after a rousing Charles Bukowski poem, with a 2am licence and a deeply devious energy. Of course, Hackney is now overrun with small plates wine bars, so Charlie’s done the only thing he could; bring his uproarious brand of hospitality to Soho. 

Time Out tip: The salt cod is supposed to be epic, but it had sold out by the time we got there. If it’s available, do order it.

Address: 6 Greek Street, Soho, W1D 4DE.

Opening hours: Mon-Thu 12.30-4pm & 5-10.30pm, Fri-Sat 12.30-4pm & 5-10.45pm, Sun 12.30-5pm,

Expect to pay: Small plates £4-25, pasta £23-30, mains £35-42.

What is it? If you’ve tried Xi’an food in London, chances are you’ve already tasted Guirong Wei’s genre-defining cooking. Her latest opening is tucked away in Fulham.

Why we love it: As the force behind cult favourites Master Wei and Xi’an Impression, Guirong Wei has played a central role in broadening the city’s understanding of regional Chinese cuisine, introducing biang biang noodles and refreshing liang pi to a landscape once dominated by Cantonese and Sichuanese staples. The Wei expands the focus with cold dishes and dumplings.’ At The Wei, these alternative Xi’an favourites take centre stage. While her central spots are known for long queues and quick turnover, the pace here is noticeably calmer. There are pork and prawn dumplings, and chilli-flecked chicken bites with a moreish crunch.

Time Out tip: Don’t skip the silky pig ear salad with its crunchy, addictive cartilage.

Address: 461-465 North End Road, Fulham, SW6 1NZ.

Opening hours: Mon-Sat 12-10pm, Sun 12-9.30pm.

Expect to pay: Starters £8-12, noodles £11-15, mains £10-20.

What is it? Tasty Thai in a railway arch under Peckham Rye station that feels not unlike a spruced-up air raid shelter.

Why we love it: Years after the initial nu-Thai boom, there’s still a ravenous market in London for punchy papaya salads. Kruk offers a veggie-friendly take on Thai, with every dish having a vegetarian counterpart. A valiant cause, but we’re faithful to fish and meat on our visit, starting with a flawless round of oysters dressed with green nam jim and teeny tiny kalamansi lime, then betel leaves wrapped around poached prawns and chunks of pink pomello, tossed with crunchy toasted peanut and salted caramel fish sauce. There are also fried venison wontons and a salad of tea-smoked bavette slices, chicken thigh skewers and a creamy duck phaenang curry. This is serious cooking, and like most dishes we try, nothing is too spicy. These are friendly but intoxicating flavours, that won’t blow your head off but may leave it at a slight angle. 

Time Out tip: Pudding is a must. Go for the strangely soupy black sticky rice pudding with mango, which gives an Ambrosia-by-way-of-Chiang-Mai end to the meal.

Address: 213 Blenheim Grove, Peckham, SE15 4QL.

Opening hours: Mon-Tue closed, Wed 4-11.30pm, Thu 12-11.30pm, Fri-Sat 12pm-12.30am, Sun 12-5pm. 

Expect to pay: Small plates £4-10, larger plates £12-18. 

What is it? The latest from Martin Kuczmarski, the man behind The Dover, which has remained a searing hot ticket since it opened in 2023.

Why we love it: Martino’s is a little less New York and a little more Milan, with a simple pasta, pizza, meat and fish menu, and all-day dining (it’s open from 8am on weekdays). Home to the Sexiest Dining Room of The Year, like the Dover, it’s all very sensual; glossy walnut walls, film noir-worthy venetian blinds, extremely flattering light, and staff who glide across the parquet floor like Fred Astaire mid-foxtrot. Food is unobtrusive, yet occasionally surprising. Shoestring zucchini fritti is a stand-out, skinny strands of courgetti that retain the crispness of the batter thanks to vinegar-infused salt. The taste is Brighton chip shop by way of a Calabrian trattoria. There is also beef and pork tortellini in a delicate chicken brodo, tonno tonnato, meatballs zuppetta and aglio e olio spaghetti.

Time Out tip: Can’t decide what to drink? Opt for a Martino’s Shakerato; a fabulously fluffy combo of Campari, gin and orange juice. House wine is also very decent value at £27 for a 500ml carafe. 

Address: 37 Sloane Square, Chelsea, SW1W 8AN.

Opening hours: Mon-Fri 8am-4pm & 5.30pm-12.30am, Sat 9am-4pm & 5.30pm-12.30am, Sun 9am-4pm & 5.30pm-midnight.

Expect to pay: Pastas £15-30, mains £24-49, pizza £16-22.

What is it? A roaming, contempo Cantonese-inspired concept from chef Jenny Phung and partner James ‘Shep’ Shepherd, now in residence at ‘wine pub’ Godet until the end of 2026.

Why we love it: Godet feels like a Provençal country cottage meets a grubby old scroat boozer. There are cutesy cafe curtains, the occasional church pew, jugs full of fresh flowers, and candles on every table. Despite this discreet backdrop, Ling Ling’s swiftly sets about trying to get into your pants with full-throttle flavour and seductive kitchen technique. Top of the Ling Ling’s charm offensive are exceedingly crunchy fried pork and water chestnut wontons, radish cakes slathered in soy pomegranate dressing, and a delightfully sloppy charred hispi cabbage with pickles and hoisin. Do we, as a city, need yet another hispi cabbage dish? If you’d asked me moments before setting foot inside Godet, I would have said no, but Ling Ling’s have changed my mind. Here, the omnipresent brassica has been released from its small-plates prison and been given a new lease of life, slathered in an ultra umami, near-nutty sauce.

Time Out tip: Order the addictive glass-skin chicken, where soft and bouncy meat rests in a thin but extra-flavourful broth, tender shimeji mushrooms and tong ho greens adding to the soupy melee.

Address: 382 Essex Road, Islington, N1 3PF.

Opening hours: Wed 5-11pm, Thu 5pm-midnight, Fri 5pm-12.30am, Sat 3pm-12.30am, Sun 3-9pm.

Expect to pay: Small plates £3.50-12.50, bigger plates £17-24.

What is it? A homely Hoxton set-up serving accomplished Chongqing cuisine.

Why we love it: Sat at the foot of a deep flight of stairs, Jiāonest is a demure space - candlelight, soft jazz, tastefully thick dark wood chopsticks, a medicinal herb cabinet obscured by patio doors. It’s minimal without being too knowing or overwrought. The food is extemely good. Spiced house salad comes with a warning about it being ‘a little dramatic’, and was the first dish to get the blood pumping. Seasonal leaves were dressed in a numbing sauce, with crispy pig’s ear julienned alongside strips of tofu skin. It came alongside gongbao fried chicken, piled up in a little cup and topped with an airy cream cheese, peanut and chilli mixture. I would happily attempt a Guinness World Record to eat as many of these as possible.

Time Out tip: The showstopper is inarguably the málà short ribs. Gigantic, cretaceous hunks of meat, soft, drenched in cinnamon-y clove-y glaze, tendrils of crunchy bamboo taking on the flavour, gentle fronds of mint bringing it together. 

Address: 230 Kingsland Road, Whitmore Estate, E2 8AX.

Opening hours: Wed-Sun 5.30-10pm.

Expect to pay: Starters £2.50-12, mains £12.50-24. 

What is it? Most Londoners know about Forza Wine by now. This small plates restaurant and wine bar is a dependable place to have a Good Time.

Why we love it: It’s where you go to meet The Girls to share a bottle of natty orange and crispy cauliflower fritti. It’s the sort of place you could take a date, but your mum would also quite like. The cult resto has now arrived in Soho, launching its third outpost (alongside Peckham and the National Theatre). Already extremely popular, the space is large and airy. On a Tuesday night it’s rammed with dates, catch-ups and groups of food-conscious friends meeting for a cheeky post-work Lambrusco (my glass of Paltrinieri slipped down a treat). 

Time Out tip: It may not be a Peckham rooftop, but Forza Wine Soho has an outdoor terrace that will be calling our name come t-shirt weather.

Address: Unit 1, Ilona Rose House, Manette Street, Soho, W1D 4AL.

Opening hours: Daily 12pm-midnight.

Expect to pay: Plates £4-20.

What is it? Inside the former wine bar space at Carousel, this Mexican-inspired seafood restaurant is about the lighter, less carb-conscious side of Latinx cuisine, with nary a taco in sight.

Why we love it: This is Tulum for the Mounjaro masses, and the menu brims with fresh and flirty ceviches, and fish crudos. Oysters are served with a funky, fermented petróleo that hums with a potent bloody mary kick, and are a signpost for a meal that’s all about freshness underlayed with a creeping confidence. The prawn, burnt mandarin and ginger ceviche is far soupier than ceviches normally are on these shores, and it’s all the better for it, a kaleidoscopic bowl that’s at turns sweet and tart, and simply incredibly good. Come also for creamy crab rice and burly lobster flautas with a deeply British addition of Spenwood cheese.

Time Out tip: Order the ‘citrus bonanza’ for pudding, a Mexican take on the classic Italian holiday dessert of a lemon stuffed with sorbet. This is more ambitious, with the addition of grapefruit granita, and neon pink rhubarb sorbet. 

Address: 19-21 Charlotte Street, Fitzrovia, W1T 1RW.

Opening hours: Sun-Mon closed. Tue-Sat 12-3pm & 5pm-midnight.

Expect to pay: Big sharing mains around the £50 mark, but smaller starters around £15-25. 

What is it? The South African restaurant specialising in braai cooking, which has upped sticks from its original Peckham location and landed in posh Marylebone.

Why we love it: With husband and wife duo Amy Corbin and Patrick Williams still at the helm, Kudu has brought with it many of its beloved dishes, including crisp beef fat potatoes, to Moxon Street. Their new clientele might be dressed in flashier clothes, but Kudu manages to retain its homey charm. Kudu is a very pretty restaurant indeed, but we’re not here for the aesthetic. We’re here for the dish that made Kudu famous; bread with malay butter aka a vat of liquid gold harbouring aromatic curry leaves and sweet curls of pickled shallot. There is also oysters with savoury tomato dashi, salty scorched mackerel with kohlrabi and apple and peppery biltong, as well as mains from the braai, which are huge and hearty affair.

Time Out tip: Upstairs you’ll find Smokey Kudu, a cosy drinking den open until midnight

Address: 7 Moxon Street, Marylebone, W1U 4EP.

Opening hours: Mon-Sat 12-3pm & 6-10pm, Sun 11.30am-3pm & 6-9pm.

Expect to pay: Small plates and starters £8-18, mains £24-44.

What is it? Korean/Euro fusion from Joo Young Won, who used to be head chef at the Michelin-starred Galvin at Windows in Mayfair. 

Why we love it: The front room-esque space features wall-mounted coat hooks a la St John, an exposed brick fire surround and so many two-tops that you feel like you’re an extra on First Dates. This is a date spot and no mistake, with food made for sharing and fork fights over who gets to scoff the last kimchi fritter. A warm pumpkin and crisp pear salad is delicately dressed with gochujang and, what we first thought were tiny little spuds, turn out to be soft puffs of fried potato gnocchi. Cured Chalkstream trout is so fresh, it practically swims off the plate, a perfectly tart sesame and plum soy, with grapefruit and crisp cucumber adding to its sprightly charm.

Time Out tip: You must order Joo’s fried chicken, a dish so good that the chef gave his name to it. He backs it hard and so do we, crunchy yet silky tenders on a sweet-but-not-too-sweet chilli sauce dotted with crunchy peanuts. 

Address: 35 Stoke Newington Church Street, Stoke Newington, N16 0NX.

Opening hours: Mon-Tue closed, Wed-Thu 6-10.30pm, Fri-Sat 12-2.30pm & 6-10.30pm, Sun 12-3.30pm.

Expect to pay: Small plates £6.50-16, bigger plates £12-27.

What is it? An extremely good-looking Cantonese restaurant behind Wonton Charlie’s lunchtime noodle bar next door to London Fields station.

Why we love it: Cafe Kowloon feels more like a club than a restaurant. Here, the spirit of recently closed Elephant & Castle sweatbox Corsica Studios lives on, not just in those curved railway arch ceilings, but in the fact that a DJ has casually propped up a mixer at a corner table and seems to be deep into his own one man Boiler Room session. Such interior comeliness would mean nothing if the food wasn’t equally beguiling, and happily, it is. In the kitchen is acclaimed chef Budgie Montoya, who kicks out Cantonese classics with aplomb, from soupy bowls of beef tendons and soft and squishy yun cheong sausage, to lo bak go and outrageously thicc prawn toast, which is as prawny as it is toasty, and served with slightly battered heads on the side. Suck the brains, crunch the rest.

Time Out tip: Try one of their Chinese-inspired takes on traditional cocktails; shiso daiquiri, white negroni, and an alfonso mango marg. 

Address: 392-393 Mentmore Terrace, London Fields, E8 3PH.

Opening hours: Wed-Sat 5.30-11pm.

Expect to pay: Small plates £6-15, large plates £18-28.

What is it? DakaDaka - which is Georgian slang that translates as ‘big mood’ - is a boisterous Eastern European dining room on Mayfair’s buzzy food hub, Heddon Street. 

Why we love it: Georgia is kind of at the crossroads of the Middle East and Eastern Europe – between Turkey and Russia – and the cuisine very much reflects that in a ‘you get dumplings, but you also get pomegranate’ type of way. Chef Mitz Vora is not trying to offer a slavishly nostalgic ex-pats only experience, but neither is this about culinary reinvention. It’s traditional food, served smartly, with an emphasis on flame-cooked stuff. 

Time Out tip: If you know one thing about Georgian food, you may be aware of khinkali; elaborate hand twisted, stew-filled dumplings. They’re great here. The shitake mushroom variant (there’s also a pork version) is superb, with rich, hot soupy goodness spilling out of firm dough.

Address: 10 Heddon Street, Mayfair, W1B 4BX.

Opening hours: Sun-Mon closed, Tue-Thu 12-2.30pm & 5.30-10pm, Fri 12-2.30pm & 5.30-11pm, Sat 12-11pm. 

Expect to pay: Small plates and skewers £10-16, mains £18-36.

What is it? A fun and fabulous first restaurant from head chef Nathaniel Mortley, aka NattyCanCook.

Why we love it: 2210 is a vibe from the moment you walk in. There’s a slightly rowdy playlist that will have you questioning whether you’re in a club or restaurant. You’re coming here for Natty’s inventive plays on Caribbean signatures. The ackee and saltfish spring rolls; the confit pork belly; the wiri wiri lamb rump which comes with a light and smoky baba ganoush, sharp pickled onions, mint oil and tamarind jus. Of course, there is jerk chicken on the menu, but it’ll be the lamb that creates the most extreme food envy. 2210 is also a perfect place for the age-old jollof vs rice ‘n’ peas debate to be properly hashed out. The jollof won for us, thanks for asking. 

Time Out tip: Natty’s Sunday lunch is already a firm favourite, offering a Caribbean twist on the classic roast dinner, and prices start from £25.

Address: 75 Norwood Road, Herne Hill, SE24 9AA.

Opening hours: Mon-Tue closed, Wed-Thu 5-10pm, Fri 5-11pm, Sat 12-11pm, Sun 12-9pm.

Expect to pay: Starters £5.50-12.50, mains £24-42.

What is it? The latest from Nieves Barragán Mohacho, the visionary chef behind Mayfair’s Sabor (which was awarded a Michelin star in 2018).

Why we love it: Nieves goes deep into her own personal history in this superlative Spanish spot, starting with her Basque roots. An unmissable starter is the quisquillas de cadiz: raw bodied shrimps with crunchy, cooked heads. The Legado sandwich is another must-order, inspired by Nieves’ grandmother: consisting of Swiss chard, cecina (Spanish cured beef) and smoked cheese, woven together with fried breadcrumbs. The headliner is unmistakably the quarter Segovian suckling pig, which is the ultimate indulgent self-treat: the depth of flavour, tenderness of the meat and salty umami of the crackling skin is an unforgettable combination. 

Time Out tip: It would be a crime to miss out on their lengthy dessert menu: deep-fried churros come with saffron ice cream and white chocolate mousse drizzled in olive oil and decorated with roasted pistachios. 

Address: Unit 1C Montacute Yards, Shoreditch, E1 6HU.

Opening hours: Mon-Sun closed, Tue-Sat 12-2.30pm & 5.30-10.30pm.

Expect to pay: Small plates £7-25, large plates £14-85.

What is it? Cambodian food in a restaurant above a pub in Borough. (Not just any pub. The pub that Bridget Jones used to live in. That pub.)

Why we love it: Much like your favourite band’s discography, Barang’s menu hits hardest at the start. The snacks and small plates contain nary a dud. Prahok ktis (basically Cambodia’s fishy-porky national dipping sauce, served with a variety of scoop-shaped veggies) is an easy order: unpretentious and moreish. On the other end of the innovation spectrum is the blue fin tuna; generous slices of raw, butter-soft fish, covered in a Kandinsky-esque arrangement of kumquat circles and compressed melon triangles. We also demolished fresh Carlingford oysters, grilled hogget chops and nicely tender winter greens studded with crisp-edged pork jowl nuggets.

Time Out tip: Dessert isn’t skippable. Barang’s sorbet - pineapple and galangal - is a unique proposition. You’ll not forget the honey-like pineapple syrup and charred fruit chunks in a hurry.

Address: Upstairs at The Globe, 8 Bedale Street, SE1 9AL.

Opening hours: Mon closed, Tue 5-9.30pm, Wed 12-3pm & 5-9.30pm, Thu-Sat 12-3pm & 5-10pm, Sun 12-6pm. 

Expect to pay: Small plates £4.50-16.50, bigger plates £10-24.

What is it? An eatery attached to Bermondsey’s produce market Spa Terminus, helmed by former St John chef Emily Chia, with Klaudia Weisz and Alex Keys ex-of Rochelle Canteen.

Why we love it: Their ethos really works: make great food with great ingredients from trusted people that you want to work with. Sometimes, it really is that simple. All 1970s dark wood and posh-smelling candles, with an open plan kitchen to add a pleasing level of bustle, inside it’s like being in the dining room of a classy older relative’s New York loft. The menu is a small but perfectly formed selection of plates designed for sharing. Eighty per cent of the dishes are sourced from local traders, including the tasty ‘banh mi’ terrine, crab raviolo and cacio e pepe dauphinoise.

Time Out tip: Drink their tallow martini, a small but perfectly crisp take on the classic, with fino sherry and a rendered suet that gives the smoothest of finishes.

Address: 1 Dockley Road, Bermondsey, SE16 3AF.

Opening hours: Mon-Tue closed, Wed-Thu 5.30-9pm, Fri-Sat 12-2.30pm & 5.30-9.30pm, Sun 12-3.30pm.

Expect to pay: Dishes £8-29.

What is it? The not-that-little sister of one of central London’s most important restaurant launches of the past few years, Dover Street Counter sits two doors down from its glossy sibling, The Dover.

Why we love it: Just as elegant, but with a naughty glint in its eye, it’s almost enough to make Mayfair cool for the first time since the Beatles played on that roof. Unlike The Dover, Dover Street Counter is an all-day affair. The short, easy menu is made up of things everyone wants; tuna melts, burgers, lobster, salmon steak, pasta, and a raft of juicy sandwiches. Order the ‘disco fries’, loaded chips drowning in pickled chilli and ginger, which are true to their name and as addictive as a primo Donna Summer heater. The cheeseburger is so on point as to almost be a cartoon-like rendition of the all-American meal, the perky beef patty topped with luminous yellow cheese, pickles, ketchup and mustard. I had a hangover before I ate it, and after three bites, I did not. Surely the sign of a burger doing its job. 

Time Out tip: Get a martini. Cocktails here are very, very good.

Address: 31 Dover Street, Mayfair, W1S 4ND.

Opening hours: Mon-Wed 12pm-midnight, Thu-Sat 12pm-1.30am, Sun closed. 

Expect to pay: Snacks £7-13, sandwiches £13-18, mains £18-36.

What is it? An elegant ode to southern Italian family dining in Queen’s Park.

Why we love it: Casa Felicia is helmed by chef Francesco Sarvonio, formerly of Manteca and currently of Elephant. The menu switches up daily, but always promises southern Italian ‘soul food’. We loved the pleasing heap of puntarelle salad embellished with pear and hazelnuts, faultless seabass crudo and the most intriguing take on parmigiana we’ve ever seen (the whole vegetable roasted, skinned and fried in a tempura batter, then cocooned in cheese fondue). Pasta is great too; fettuccine porcini and the paccheri with mussels and squid are both simple but impeccable. 

Time Out tip: Stick around for post-dessert roasted chestnuts delivered by chef Francesco, who tells us that dinner at his grandma’s house wouldn’t be complete without them. 

Address: 79 Salusbury Road, Queen's Park, NW6 6NH.

Opening hours: Mon closed. Tue-Wed 6-10pm, Thu-Sat 12-3pm & 6-10pm, Sun 12-5pm. 

Expect to pay: Antipasti £4-15, pasta £16-21, secondi £23-95.