Dawn and Dudley the Sausage dog's Parkside Home

With its thick cream carpets, neo-classical mouldings, mahogany tables and velvet upholstery, there’s a plush feel to this elegant restaurant from the renowned Clare Smyth. Her signature purity and precision are on display across a menu of refined and reinvented traditional British and French dishes. ‘Fish and chips’ is in fact Dover sole filled with lobster mousse, while the sherry trifle is a sweet, simple hit of nostalgia. As a side, choose from a wide selection of classic potato recipes, be it boulangère, dauphinoise or hasselback. A chic, cosy private dining room in the basement is perfec

Elystan Street is a neighbourhood restaurant, but as that neighbourhood is Chelsea, you can expect to find elegance and style in spades. It’s a collaboration between Philip Howard and Rebecca Mascarenhas, and with its huge windows, well-judged lighting and friendly service, it's an equally charming spot for a light lunch or an intimate dinner. The cooking comes with well-defined flavours and a lightness of touch, exuding a pared-back, unfussy style that suits the frequent Mediterranean influences. Barbecued octopus with aioli, crispy chickpeas and tardivo is a prime example.

A rightly popular neighbourhood restaurant, this is a place you can’t help but fall in love with. Located close to Clapham Common, it’s an intimate operation where the open kitchen lets you in on the action. Kick off with a G&T made using their house distilled gin, before enjoying fine British produce crafted into deceptively complex dishes packed with bold flavours. The inventive 'sardine bolognaise dumpling', for instance, showcases consummate seasoning and meticulous attention to detail in every element. The smooth service team bring welcome personality to proceedings.

Andrew Wong’s inspiration comes from across all of the Chinese provinces; join him for a three-hour culinary voyage around the country with the ‘Collections of China’ evening menu, where he presents his own unique interpretations of regional dishes, which demonstrate extraordinary sophistication, creativity and depth of flavour. Start with a drink downstairs in the Forbidden City, or come at lunch for outstanding dim sum – they even have a dim sum tasting menu. Clued-up service adds to the overall experience and dishes are explained with obvious pride.

The Harwood Arms is a pub at heart, so bar snacks are a must: munch on homemade crisps or a venison Scotch egg while you peruse the menu with a pint. The cooking at this pub may be highly accomplished, but it still does what pub food does best: leaves you feeling eminently satisfied. The menu is British to the core and the owners supply much of the expertly cooked deer and game. Well-balanced dishes burst with flavour and allow each main ingredient to shine by keeping things simple.

There’s a wonderful fusion of setting and cooking at Cornus. A sister to long-standing Chelsea restaurant Medlar, it’s a refined, simply decorated restaurant with linen-laid tables and understated quality. The same goes for the dishes, which are based around superb produce, much of it seafood from the southwest coast. The likes of sweet Devon crab and roasted Cornish cod are made all the more delicious by the kitchen’s restrained approach and consummate technical skill. The chefs know they’re using brilliant ingredients, so never overcomplicate matters.

Heston Blumenthal has announced that this restaurant at the Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park hotel will close for good in early 2027, so now’s the time to see exactly why it has always been so highly rated. The menu may take inspiration from England's oldest recipe books, but there is still something decidedly 'Heston' about the creative dishes. The signature illusory 'Meat Fruit' epitomises his playful influence, while providing a reminder that superb flavours underpin his dishes – in this case it's a smooth, delicious chicken liver parfait. In another twist, guests are asked how much interaction