As with all the best restaurants in a major city, lunch may well be a set meal and reasonably priced, and dinner can break the bank if you let it. And again as with all the best restaurants you need to book in advance. If you can’t get a table by reserving online then call the restaurant directly as they usually have more availability. And if you’re staying at a swanky hotel then get the Concierge to book for you.
Not in any particular order:
Estatorio Milos: 1 Regent Street St James’s, London SW1Y 4NR. +44 0207 839 2080
Having several times visited the New York Estatorio Milos I was extremely happy when they opened in London. This is Mediterranean food at it’s freshest and best, and actually much nicer – as in calmer – to visit than the NY version which can be ridiculously over busy.
At lunch time Milos offers a set lunch for 29 pounds. You can’t change the dishes but you can add to it off the a la carte for a price. But you shouldn’t need to. Try the fava bean puree with grilled octopus or Greek salad to start and follow with the salmon or the dorade. The menu doesn’t change but frankly it doesn’t need to. Resist if you can their home made Greek yoghurt. In the evening you eat a la carte and also from the fish market. Be warned that at that point you can be spending big bucks but know that you’re getting the best there is. The food here is not played around with so if you seriously like fancy meals with all the twirls then this may not be for you. But it’s one of my all time favourite restaurants in London. The Greek rose wine is totally delicious.
Milos is always jam packed and you can dress up if you want to and not if you don’t – the same is true everywhere, but expect an extremely elegant international clientele.
Scotts of Mayfair: 20 Mount Street, London W1K 2HE. Reservations: 020 7495 7309
Online Reservations
Scotts is undoubtedly the most famous of these three London restaurants and is the hardest to book. So call well in advance or get your hotel to book for you. And don’t give up.
Everyone who knows about it eats at Scotts from those who live in the vicinity, celebrities, starlets, photographers and ordinary people like me when given the chance. Expect to see the tallest girls with the highest heels and shortest skirts imaginable, smartly dressed business people and casually dressed locals. Possibly all at the same table.
Scotts is famous for seafood and rightly so. This is the place to find the freshest oysters, lobster and dover sole. Try the chargrilled squid, which is unbelievably delicious, miso blackened salmon and roasted sprouts with crispy bacon. Whatever you choose from the menu will be delicious.
There is no set lunch menu at Scotts.
Corrigans Restaurant Mayfair: 28 Upper Grosvenor St, Mayfair, London W1K 7EH, UK
Phone: +44 20 7499 9943
If you live or work in the vicinity of Corrigans you probably know it well. If you don’t you may not have heard of it, but it's well worth a visit, particularly if you like grouse...in season of course.
Corrigans calls itself ‘modern British cuisine in a timeless gentlemen’s club setting’ and it is an extremely elegant and comfortable restaurant. Opened by Richard Corrigan in 2008 it was quickly awarded London Restaurant of the Year by the Evening Standard.
Corrigans offers a Seasonal Lunch Menu with two courses for 28 pounds or three for 34 – for that part of London and in that kind of setting that’s a really good deal. The choice ranges from starters such as Salad of Black Figs and Stuffed Sardines to Wild Halibut or Ribble Valley Duck for the main course. And then there are the puds – go there on a hungry day, and expect to be tempted by Gianduja chocolate and hazelnuts or Pecan Pie. Oh dear
Dinner is more elaborate although along the same lines – superb fish, excellent game and irresistible sounding puds are the order of the day. This is not the restaurant you visit if you’re on a diet. Everything is beautifully cooked and presented and the service friendly and excellent.
