We eat a lot while researching the various guides and reviews you see on our site. And we want to share that food with you. Digitally, not literally, of course. This guide is where you’ll find all of our favourite things we’ve eaten recently, from memorable main courses, to sensational sides, to all the snacks and whatever else in between.
If you’ve eaten something great recently that you want to share with our team, send us an email at london@theinfatuation.com. Now, onto the dishes.
THE BEST THINGS WE ATE THIS WEEK
Shoestring fries
“Like lots of London food people I’ve spent the week mourning the loss of P. Franco and Bright. Two great wine bars and restaurants and, importantly, spaces to have a good time. It’s not easy to foster that kind of environment and they will be sorely missed, agricultural plonk and all. It made me appreciate my time at Lulu’s in Herne Hill even more—but the food in this dinky shop, wine bar, nice place concoction spoke for itself anyway. I could go on about the luscious courgette salad in crab dressing or the bowl of orecchiette in a blitzed broccoli and anchovy sauce. But, it’s the complimentary shoestring fries for me. A pile of salty, crispy matchsticks placed wordlessly in front of me as I sat down. I picked, I scoffed, I sprinkled a few on some crème fraîche later on. These are the little touches that get people coming back, I’ll be doing just that for Lulu’s.” - Jake Missing, Senior Staff Writer
Salsiccia e friarielli pizza
“The Uplands industrial estate in east London has the odd carpet warehouse, but is otherwise exclusively craft breweries. And on a blustery night this week I discovered one of the taprooms, Pretty Decent Beer, now has a pizza place housed in a shipping container right outside. It’s Not Big Dough’s Hawaiian pizza with pineapple jam fully converted me (formerly a firmly anti-fruit-on-pizza believer), but the best pie was the salsiccia e friarielli. The pillowy, chewy crust was slightly blistered, the fior di latte that was the stuff of gooey cheese-pull dreams, and peppery sausage paired perfectly with charred broccoli. I planned on having a slice or two leftover for lunch, then ate it all”. - Sinéad Cranna, Staff Writer
Sign up for our newsletter.
Be the first to get expert restaurant recommendations for every situation right in your inbox.
Gundu dosas
“Picking a favourite dish from my meal at new Sri Lankan spot Rambutan was a really tough decision. This moody restaurant recently opened in Borough Market, and a seat at the counter was a cosy, exciting experience before I even got to the food. Broccoli was grilled on the open fire in front of me, roti was scrunched while I watched on, and prawn curry sauce was tasted by the head chef before being scooped into little bowls. The dish that stuck in my mind for the longest after I’d left were the gundu dosas. Dosa batter was poured into a paniyaram pan (that looks a lot like a mini-pancake-making contraption), and golden, doughy, salty dosa balls were plated up with a generous dipping sauce of tangy, refreshing mint chutney.” - Rianne Shlebak, Staff Writer
PREVIOUSLY, ON THE BEST THINGS WE ATE THIS WEEK
Beef short rib with burnt chilli sauce and spicy mint salad
“The greedy devil on my shoulder always has full control over my cognitive functions, and a menu as good as Lucky & Joy’s makes enthusiastic over-ordering a complete doddle. The Chinese restaurant in Clapton has always been a spot for moreish sesame noodles and neon pink hibiscus margaritas, but this beef short rib was so good it activated not just my second stomach, but my third and fourth. Sugar-glazed and ready to be doused in a lively charred chilli sauce on the side, the beef surrendered from its bone the moment I picked up my fork. I mixed the pink strands with, melt-in-your-mouth fat, with rice and the fresh mint salad on the side, before happily letting the greedy devil take control once more to pull the crispiest bits apart with my hands.” - JM
photo credit: Sinéad Cranna
Gifto's Lahore Karahi
Chapli kebab
“After stepping out of the rain on a particularly miserable Tuesday night, Gifto’s Lahore Karahi in Southall delivered a warming hug of a kebab that I’ve been thinking about, and eating leftovers of, ever since. I heard the sizzling skillet and smelled the fried onions before I saw the kebab, so expectations were building. I wasn’t disappointed. The minced beef patty had a spicy crust and juicy meat inside, and the green peppers on top wrapped the whole thing up with a crunchy, refreshing bite. I ate most of it with a protective 'this is mine' arm wrapped around the front of the plate, which is the universal sign of a great dish.” - SC
Gouqi
Lobster noodles stir-fried with ginger and spring onion
“This lobster number at Gouqi—a high-end Chinese restaurant in St James’s—was a showstopper of a dish. As it should be for £170. A whole lobster—partially deshelled, separated, and placed on top of the noodles—arrived in a subtle ginger and spring onion sauce. There was enough to feed three, but the buttery noodles encouraged me to refill my little bowl, one, two, three times. It was a bit of an effort to get the meat out of the lobster shell, but once I got a mouthful of chunky lobster tail with the noodles, I happily rolled my sleeves up and got picking.” - RS
Coconut tres leches with toasted peanuts
“In this job there are good weeks for eating and there are not so good weeks for eating. This one has erred towards the latter, but a weighty slice of milk cake was a sweet and sugary standout. The coconut tres leches from Ha's Đặc Biệt’s pop-up in Oranj—Shoreditch’s most minimalistic and flatpack assembled-feeling wine bar—was by no means the lightest cake of all time but boy did it taste good. The toasted peanuts crumbled over were dusted with salt and, combined with the boulder of cream on top and the gratings of coconut, it had the sweet and savoury marriage that all my favourite desserts have.” - JM
Shan rice
“The shan rice at Lahpet is greater than the sum of its parts. On their own there was nothing spectacular about the tomatoey rice, sharp pickles, peanuts, and flaky hake, but together, each forkful delivered a super satisfying, crunchy, tangy mouthful. Handily, the side of tofu puffs were scoopable shapes that helped me to shovel rice in when using my fork started to seem like too much admin. I didn’t plan for a Burmese restaurant in Covent Garden to be the restorative highlight of my week but it was.” - SC
M’Arks of Deptford
Prawn taco
“When I sat down for a solo meal at M’arks of Deptford, a pub-ish looking spot on Deptford High Street, I wasn’t expecting to find the kind of food that would make me want to get on a South Eastern train again. But the prawn tacos at this dark wood and brown leather-filled spot are the kind of thing I could eat a whole tray of. Refreshing and zesty, the palm-sized corn tortilla was filled with tender prawns, an excellent guacamole, tangy sour cream, a sweet mango salsa, and spicy jalapeños. It was a messy, delicious handful.”- RS
Hoisin tofu focaccia
"Beaten By A Whisker, a small batch bakery close to St. James Street station, might bring to mind tiny, cuddly animals but its sandwiches are hulking beasts. I wrapped both hands (and incisors) around the crispy crust before working away at enough bread to get to the filling—sticky, hoisin-glazed tofu with strips of cucumber and curls of spring onion. It’s a tried and tested combination that I might (whisper it) prefer between thick slices of soft-on-the-inside focaccia than in a pancake." - SC
Chinese Tapas House
“London has never been particularly good at street food. It’s too cold and we’re too good at commodifying things. But there are still examples, and this jianbing is one of them. Chinese Tapas House is a tiny takeaway spot in Chinatown making the savoury crêpe-like dishes. They start at around £4 but when you load them with marinated pork belly and enoki mushrooms like I did, then it’s more like a tenner. It’s worth it though. The jianbing was painted and fried with two eggs, chilli oil, a feisty BBQ sauce, and a fried cracker. Spicy, meaty, crunchy, messy. A bit flobby but perfect in its own right. It was a satisfying lunch—especially combined with people-watching in the Angus Steakhouse opposite.” - JM
M&D Japanese
Katsu curry
“An in-and-out spot that delivers dependable comfort is often what I need. M&D Japanese in Deptford and its katsu curry fulfilled that desire. My cortisol levels dropped as the crunchy, crispy fried chicken strips, mound of rice, and bowl of sweet-savoury sauce was placed in front of me. This rich, comforting dish at the low-key Japanese restaurant was the kind that had ‘afternoon nap’ written all over it. Add in the fact I sat in one of the squishy booths and I nearly did nod off.” - DM
Apollo Banana Leaf
Chicken ceylon curry
“My first paratha dip into this thick, deep orange curry—one that was recommended by the friendly waiter at Apollo Banana Leaf, a casual Sri Lankan spot in Tooting—was a slightly sweet mix of a tomato sauce with a hint of spice, and a creamy coconut base with aromatic pepper. Filled with a generous amount of tender, boneless chicken, it was the kind of sauce that goes equally well with a vegetable biryani as a flaky paratha. It was was wiped clean from the metal balti within 15 minutes.” - RS
photo credit: Sinéad Cranna
Blackhorse Workshop
PB&J french toast
“The brioche french toast at Blackhorse Workshop Cafe is so pretty that it made me forget I was sitting in a work yard, complete with swirls of sawdust, in an industrial part of Walthamstow. As thick as Anna Karenina, but much easier to get through, the thick, fluffy brioche comes scattered with toasted coconut brittle and topped with generous blobs of tangy blackcurrant compote and airy peanut butter cream. It's essentially a PB&J, which is what I told myself as I ordered another wedge for tomorrow's breakfast.” - SC
photo credit: Rianne Shlebak
Darjeeling Express
Keema Toastie
“The cheese toastie took a massive blow this week. Because this spicy, meaty, keema-filled toastie at Darjeeling Express' new Kingly Court restaurant is incomparably better than anything that's seen a George Foreman. It’s cut into four perfect three-bite squares, with adorable little grill marks on them, and a peppery, moist mutton mix that's softened the inside of the white toast while leaving the outside crispy and golden. This is a toastie that’s worth fighting through Oxford Circus crowds to get to.”- RS
Bacon & Scallop Roll
“There’s a reason why I’ve eaten the bacon and scallop butty from Oyster Shack & Seafood Bar many times before, and it still manages to be the best thing I ate on that given week—including this one. A walk in Epping Forest “for some fresh air” was really planned around a visit to the low-key seafood hut for its surf and turf roll. The bread had a satisfyingly crunchy crust with pillow-soft dough, and was thickly buttered. The perfect combination to soak up the juices (but not fall apart) when hot, salty bacon and meaty, sweet pan-fried scallops were added. It hits the spot every time.” - DM
Char siu pork noodle soup
“Nothing hits quite like a solo bowl of steaming hot noodle soup in a restaurant like Gold Mine. It’s a Cantonese banquet-style spot of the most old-school variety, and the comforting combination of low ceilings, gold-detailed chairs, red carpet, and tender char siu pork of the same colour puts me in a proverbial good place. The broth—clear, crisp, and totally chuggable—should be mixed with half a spoonful of their crispy chilli oil. It’s a deep brown, nutty ramekin that you’d proudly introduce to your parents. As for the pork, well, you see it hanging in Gold Mine’s window on Queensway, but thickly sliced, tender, and sweet (but not overpoweringly so), it’s even better in your bowl. Alongside some bobbing greens and the low-level hum of families spooning at their own lunch, I can’t imagine a more perfectly restorative midweek dynamic.”- JM
Scott’s Richmond
Dover sole
“The dover sole at this larger-than-life Richmond seafood restaurant is hands down one of the best pieces of fish I have ever eaten. Light as air, buttery, and the kind of satisfying dish that’s perfect for a long lunch. Deboned—for minimal chewing—and meunière-style—with a dreamy brown butter, lemon, and parsley sauce—it’s the kind of meal that reminds you that classics are classics for a reason. If you want to feel like you’re on holiday without making the trip to Gatwick, head to Scott’s on a sunny day and order this instead.”- RS
Pigeon & apple
“Dorian in Notting Hill is a total scene. The place fizzes with the clamour of conversation and corks popping, and the bistro dishes feel a bit secondary. But a plate of pigeon made me pause checking out everyone’s outfits—and not just because the prospect of gnawing the leg had me excited. The meat, perfectly pink inside and incredibly tender, sliced through like butter. Meaty morels, cooked apple, and leaves played solid supporting roles, but the pigeon stole the show. The only disappointment is that I didn’t re-order another plate.” - DM
Braised venison mince, mash, and horseradish
“Glaring sunshine, a crisp breeze, and a bowl of piping hot mince and potato by the Thames is more than enough to get me whistling ‘Maybe It’s Because I’m A Londoner’ like a poorly written SNL skit. But, sometimes, it really is all about the simple things—and the Garden Café, a modern British restaurant inside St Mary-at-Lambeth church, knows this. The peaceful canteen sees academics and thinkers of every generation clinking glasses and scraping the last bit of mash from the bowl. The venison—coarsely minced, deep with umami-richness, and topped with shavings of horseradish—was there until it quickly wasn’t. It’s a dish, complete with smooth (but still structurally strong) mashed potato and a handful of crunching and peppery watercress, that is irresistible in its simplicity. Instinctively spooned and shovelled over the ages.” - JM
Guanabana
Island roast
“There aren’t many halal Sunday roasts in London, but of the ones I’ve tried, the jerked beef one at Guanabana, a Caribbean restaurant in Kentish Town, is the best. It’s a hefty plate of food, with the right ratio of rich jerk gravy to everything else—these guys know how to do Sundays right. The perfect bite includes a little bit of everything: spicy, tender jerked beef (obviously), the edge of a crispy roast potato, a caramelised baby carrot, a piece of sweet plantain, and an unevenly cut corner of a beautifully deformed yorkshire pudding that’s soaked in gravy. I’d also recommend ordering the mac and cheese on the side to make a near-perfect plate of food even better.”- RS
Banaadiri Restaurant
Lamb mandi
“Ordering is a mission at Banaadiri, a Somali restaurant on Goldhawk Road. Even after pointing to a picture on the menu above the server’s head and being told it’s lamb and rice, you’re not 100% sure what to expect. Well let me tell you what to expect from the lamb mandi. Expect tender lamb shoulder covered in caramelised onions, potatoes, and peppers that requires minimal chewing thanks to the softness of the lamb. It’s served in a silver tray with a huge pile of yellow, peppery rice, and makes for an excellent weeknight dinner when you’re looking for something that tastes home-cooked.”- RS
photo credit: Jake Missing
Med Salleh Kopitiam
Chicken satay
“Although nothing comes close to a mini almond Magnum in the pantheon of food on sticks, good chicken satay is up there. These four skewers from Med Salleh Kopitiam, a cavernous Malaysian spot in Queensway, are among the best I’ve had in London. It’s clear that care and attention had been given to this chicken on a stick. The tender meat was yellow from a thorough marinating and caramelised to the point of char on edges. Flavoursome enough to eat on its own if similar thought hadn’t been put into the peanut sauce, which was a textured pool of oily and nutty, sweet and spicy goodness.” - JM
Qurma suhzi gosht
“Partly because of the job and partly because I naturally over-order, there were a lot of dishes on my table at Islington’s Afghan Kitchen. Everything, from the creamy chicken in yoghurt to the tender baby aubergines, was comforting but it was the qurma suhzi gosht that my spoon returned to most often. The lamb and spinach stew at the Afghani spot was a beautiful deep shade of green and the meat collapsed at a mere nudge. But the spinach was the main character—cooked down so it was earthy, silky, with a slight, pleasing bitter edge.” - DM
Faros
POWERED BY
Tagliatelle burrata
“I believe you can tell a good Italian restaurant from its classic tomato sauce. That doesn’t necessarily mean it’s the best pasta dish on the menu, but it has to be done well. And the tagliatelle burrata at Faros, an Italian spot on Grays Inn Road, has the kind of excellent basil tomato sauce that’s rich, peppery, and is even better than their fancy truffle number. The sauce has chunks of rogue tomato pieces that cling to the fresh tagliatelle, the pesto drizzled all over adds a nice earthy taste, and the huge burrata adds a nice creamy touch. If you agree to share, be warned that you’ll probably regret it.”- RS
Chicken shawarma plate
“On a dreary midweek lunchtime there is nothing more appealing than actively avoiding conversing with another human being in any kind of meaningful way. So when I wandered past Abu Afif on the Edgware Road and saw a series of solo diners stuffing their faces with shawarma—scrolling on their phones with one hand, holding a half-eaten fatayer in the other—I knew this was my place. The Iraqi restaurant is canteen in style, but its plastic trays and paper plates belie the flavour and tenderness of its shawarma. A plate with salad, hummus, taboon straight from the tandoor, and a pile of steaming meat is just a tenner and it’s straightforwardly delightful.” - JM
“Oxtail” stew
“It’s officially winter, a.k.a. Groundhog Day season. Frowning at the frosty ground, boasting about how many layers you’re wearing, cosying up to your SAD lamp—and repeat. But a night at Jam Delish, a vibrant vegan Caribbean spot in Islington, brought me back to life. The lively dining room and welcoming hospitality lifted my spirits, and their “oxtail” stew in particular revived me. Jackfruit and wild mushrooms created a perfectly tender, pulled meat texture, in a warming, umami-rich sauce. The tangle of crispy onions on top, and satisfying rice and peas below made for a plate that was scraped clean.” - Daisy Meager, Senior Editor
Crème caramel
“Nothing says ‘I’m a food writer’ quite like breaking dry January by eating an armagnac-soaked prune. An eye-rollingly lame occurrence of the highest order and one that I, naturally, regret nothing about. The crème caramel at Bouchon Racine was just too good to resist. Creamy, wobbly, and completely unshareable. Luckily for my sister, we have a symbiotic, you-have-to-try-this relationship, so she got a couple of spoons. In fact, everything about this gorgeous new French spot in Farringdon is too good to resist. It’s about to be that restaurant. Actually, it already is that restaurant.” - Jake Missing, Senior Staff Writer
Satay House
Sambal tumis udang petai
“Anyone who’s read any of my previous entries for this guide will know I’ve got a major crush on beef rendang. It’s the first thing I order when I get to a Malaysian restaurant, and it’s usually my favourite thing there. Except this week, when I visited cosy Paddington spot Satay House I found a new favourite, the sambal tumis udang petai. A stir-fried prawn and petai—also referred to as stinky bean—dish that’s equal parts spicy and addictive. The sambal sauce was fiery, with a heat that built up very quickly, and creamy where it split from the oil. Go, get a roti, and scoop up a prawn, some of the onions, and crunchy petai beans with that sauce.” - Rianne Shlebak, Staff Writer
Evernight
Sweetbread curry katsu bun
“I was sold on Evernight’s sweetbread curry katsu bun as soon as I saw it on the menu. Never has a string of words warranted an instant, ‘yes please, two of those’ more. But when the dish arrived, it exceeded expectations. The sweet smell of katsu curry arrived moments before the small, savoury doughnut-like dish was put down. Filled with soft sweetbread and the warming, thick curry, it was a chopsticks down, eat with your hands situation. Better for mopping, wiping, and not wasting a drop of the sauce. Not everything at the izakaya-style restaurant in Nine Elms was memorable, but this bun most certainly was.” - DM
Fried garlic prawns
“My absolute favourite thing is when I ask a server which dish they’d recommend out of two I’m stuck between and they point to one before I even finish my sentence. This week it happened at You Me Korean, a Korean restaurant in New Malden, where I was deciding between fried garlic prawns and sweet and sour prawns—and I got a firm response of “garlic!”. And after trying the lightly battered, meaty prawns coated in a bright red sauce, I understood. The prawns were tender and soft, the sauce was slightly spicy, with sliced green peppers mixed in, and thinly sliced carrots that added a nice crunch. My favourite dish here used to be the excellent black bean noodles, but these prawns have made me seriously reconsider.”- RS
Special - Đặc Biệt
“Lamb’s Conduit Street—all cobbles, pubs, much-loved restaurants, and content-looking people—is what people who don’t live in London hope all of London is like. It feels like an unimprovable little stretch and then, well, a brilliant little Vietnamese spot opens and I am once again desperately scouring Rightmove. LCS didn’t need Banh Mi Aha! but boy is it an excellent addition. The menu spans phở and bún bowls, to pork chop with gravy on rice but my first port of call is, and always will be, bread. The Special bánh mì is loaded as it should be (crispy pork belly, head cheese, ham, sausage, and a spread of chicken liver pâté) but it’s the other touches—a deeply savoury duck gravy that has a hint of Maggi about it and the splashes of aromatic five spice butter—that take it to another level. There’s plenty of crunch too: from the faultless baguette to the enlivening vegetables and herbs inside. Only the best of the best belong on Lamb’s Conduit Street and Banh Mi Aha! fits right in.” - JM
