With the largest population of Koreans living in the UK, New Malden in south west London is rich in specialty supermarkets and London’s best Korean restaurants. While this is first and foremost the place to come for 10/10 pajeon and an excellent KFC specialist, you'll also find a homely Italian joint and top-tier Persian food. Here are our top picks in KT3.
THE SPOTS
The crunch factor on Tongdak’s fried chicken is, put simply, undeniable. It’s why this Korean fried chicken spot is such a winner. There are a bunch of different flavours like honey butter and garlic soya, but the fried original is where the extreme crunch is at. Salty, slightly spicy, and unbelievably crispy, this will soon become your new favourite fried chicken spot in London. There are only a handful of tables inside and it feels more like a takeaway spot, but don’t let that stop you from venturing away from the high street and making a trip here.
A relaxed neighbourhood restaurant on Kingston Road, Moksha is serving some top-tier Indian classics. The starters, from the citrusy paani puri to the hefty samosas are wholesome, exciting, and so good that you’ll be tempted to fill up on more of the aloo papadi chaat before your mains arrive. But then you’ll miss out on the meat thali with old Delhi-style chicken curry which requires stomach space. With halal meat, plenty of options for vegetarians and vegans, and the kind of food that’ll entice you even if you had a big lunch hours before, this is an ideal place to bring just about anyone. And the friendly service from when you step foot inside to when you ask them to pack up leftover prawn biryani, is just as excellent as the food.
Sign up for our newsletter.
Be the first to get expert restaurant recommendations for every situation right in your inbox.
A small family-owned Korean restaurant on New Malden High Street, Imone only has a handful of tables but still has an airy, open feel, with friendly service and the kind of home-style cooking that makes you feel like you’re at a friend's house. From aesthetically pleasing, perfectly crispy calamari and spring onion pancakes to excellent kan pung gi chicken in an addictive smoky, spicy sauce, the menu is full of fantastic traditional dishes, as well as set three-course lunch deals from £11. Just make sure you book a table as it tends to get quite busy.
We wouldn’t recommend a place solely on friendly servers. But if we did, we’d recommend this little Korean spot in New Malden to everyone we meet. But the smiley staff and top service aren’t even the best thing about this place. What’s even better are the excellent traditional Korean dishes you won’t find everywhere. Things like jajangmyeon—a noodle dish topped with a thick black bean and onion sauce (that you’ll want at least once a week after trying), or dak galbi—a spicy stir-fried chicken dish. With a compact but cosy room, it’s ideal for a small group but if you’re hoping to get a bowl of those noodles all to yourself, it’s worth a solo trip as well.
Located slap bang in the middle of New Malden High Street, Sofreh opened in 2022 and serves some of the best Persian classics in the area—immediately becoming a buzzy neighbourhood spot. With the scent of freshly baked tanoor wafting throughout, plush green chairs, and excellent joojeh on the menu, it’s our favourite place to get buttery grilled kebabs in the area. Come here in a group so you can share the generous portion of mixed mezze, and not be judged when you ask for three extra garlic tanoor bread baskets.
Our favourite thing about New Malden High Street is the high saturation of charity shops—hello trinkets, hello turquoise jewellery, hello Marmite merch from 1996. Our second favourite thing is the crispy Korean fried chicken at Chick and Beers. A casual solo dining and dinner with mates spot, it has a short menu that consists of chicken in its various forms and Addictive Carbohydrates Covered In Nice Stuff. But don’t get too distracted by the jalapeño poppers because you’re primarily here for a tender moment with some chicken that’s so gloriously crispy that it would make for some truly hypnotic ASMR.
When you get to Nori’s address, you might be confused. The entrance is in an alleyway off the high street and you’ll walk in to find an ornate bench and a staircase, but little sign of a great Japanese restaurant. But trust us, up those stairs and to your right you’ll find Nori and in turn, some fantastic udon. The sushi here is satisfying, if a little slap-dash, but the hot and cold noodle dishes and delicately fried tempura are expert takes on some of our favourites. It doesn’t hurt that the intimate dining room is packed full of bamboo and has enough charm to make it perfect for a date night in the area. Planning a family meal or a proper catch-up? Reserve one of the private dining spaces behind the chic shoji partitions
Look outside. If the weather is serving ‘put your sunnies on’ then it’s time to make a beeline for Cake & Bingsoo Cafe. More specifically, it’s time to make a beeline for the signature shaved ice bingsoo that comes loaded with a variety of gravity-defying sweet treats and ice cream. A casual cafe on the high street where Korean desserts reign supreme, there’s a large sharing table that’s perfect for you and a few hungry friends, even larger bubble teas, and a concise menu of cheese-loaded savoury options in case you’re swinging by for lunch. The best part is it’s open from 9am-9pm so if a matcha craving strikes after work, Cake & Bingsoo has got you covered.
New Malden High Street has several cafes but The Place is, well, the place to be. It feels like a proper local spot where everyone knows everyone, and servers brewing Monmouth coffee or whipping up bubble tea make the effort to stop to chat. It’s the kind of spot you’ll pop into throughout the day—for a morning flat white, lunchtime toastie, and slice of cake or doorstep slab of Korean honey bread among the after-school rush come afternoon. A relaxed community hub with top coffee and sweet treats seven days a week.
Al Forno is an Italian restaurant with Big Pepper Grinder Energy. You know, the type of big-hearted place where the menu is as huge as the table, chianti bottles in straw baskets hang from the ceiling, and the air hums with conversation and clinking of glasses. The bubbly-crust pizzas and hefty pasta dishes with shell-on king prawns or minced beef ragu are decent, but you’re really here for the generous hospitality and Good Times atmosphere. Come with pretty much anyone because there’ll definitely be a dish for everyone and it’s the kind of place that guarantees a memorable night.
Does excellent beef noodle soup and BBQ pork belly prompt you to burst into song? Is a Tuesday afternoon spent singing BTS bangers in between bites of kimchi pancake your dream scenario? Get to Han Restaurant. This Korean spot’s tucked-away location at the bottom of an office tower belies the fun and grandeur found inside. Whether you stay in the restaurant with stunning seating in four raised wooden pavilions, nab one of the few tables in the secluded courtyard, or head downstairs to the set of karaoke rooms, you’ll be well looked after by the friendly staff. Plus you'll be well fed and watered—the shelf of spirits behind the bar is packed with everything for a night to remember… or forget.
