The Best Posh Restaurants In London

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Dine at one of the best posh restaurants in London, and you’re sure to be impressed with the quality of service, delicious cuisine, and beverages on offer!  More than 60 posh London restaurants have been awarded Michelin stars, so deciding which ones are worth your time and money can be hard. But don’t worry, we’ve found the top restaurants worth sampling.

Whether you’re celebrating a special occasion or just want a taste of the London VIP nightlife on a Monday night, these are the best posh restaurants in London to fit the bill.

Restaurant Gordon Ramsay

Restaurant Gordon Ramsay is one of two posh London restaurants that hold three Michelin stars. Michelin says the classical, modern food “is executed with considerable poise, a lightness of touch and remarkable attention to detail UK quality ingredients, such as Scottish lobster tail and Cornish turbot, are the stars of the menu.

The flagship restaurant of the celebrity chef is a must-visit restaurant for any lover of quality food. Their gift experiences, from their 7-course tasting meal to their a la carte for 2, are the best way to truly understand what is so well-rated about this staple restaurant. It definitely is one of the best posh London restaurants to go out to.

Chef Marcus Wareing worked for Gordon Ramsay until they had a very publicized falling out. Wareing followed up by opening Marcus, which features modern European cuisine with British ingredients. Michelin gave Marcus two stars and said, “dishes come with a refreshing lack of complication”. One of the most popular dining options is the seasonal tasting menu. It gives you the chance to sample items like Dorset crab and Herdwick lamb.

The elegant presentation of the dishes and the decadent way they furnish the restaurant makes sure every customer knows exactly why this place was awarded 2 Michelin stars. Once you dine here, you will never forget it.

Sketch

Sketch is not only one of the best posh restaurants in London but also one of the most expensive. It costs around $240 per person and features extremely high-quality ingredients on all of its French menus. Its tasting menu showcases a sea garden of red mullet, oysters, lobster, frog legs, and pigeon, and don’t forget the six mini desserts.

This venue is a well-known Mayfair staple for its original art-deco themes, with a primary focus on the creative. It makes this place the perfect dining experience for the avid artist, showcasing over 200 artworks from British artist David Shrigley all in their Gallery room.

The room itself looks like something out of a Wes Anderson movie. It has baby pink art deco furnishing adorning the venue and making you feel transformed into another era. And if the decorations didn’t sway you, their innovative and original menu is well known in Mayfair as a must-taste should.

Helene Darroze

Hélène Darroze is a fourth-generation chef of French gourmet cooking. She literally brings the tastes of her native Landes region to England by shipping ingredients in from southwest France.
The Michelin two-star experience includes choosing 5, 7, or 9 courses by selecting marbles from a Solitaire board. It is one of the best posh restaurants in London to go out to.

Each bears the name of an ingredient, such as fresh fish from the Saint-Jean de Luz market or pigeon from Racan, and to play, you simply leave in all the ingredients that you want to go into making your dish.

Looking at the menu, it is not difficult to see why this place has such a high rating by both professionals and customers alike, and their innovative way of leaving the guests more in control of what’s on the menu shows the forward-thinking that has left it a household name in the restaurant business.

The Ritz Restaurant

Even though this Ritz Restaurant only has one Michelin star, that doesn’t mean it’s any less lavish than the others on this list of the best posh restaurants in London. Its fine cuisine matches its magnificent dining room, which is one of the most beautiful in the world.

Besides the usual lunch and dinner menus, The Ritz London also offers themed menus to fit your special occasion, such as the “Pre-Theatre” and “Live at The Ritz” menus. The venue itself screams luxury, transporting you to the ultimate lavish experience every step of the way.

One of their most well-known experiences are their set afternoon tea selection, starting from £57 per person, and is the perfect place to go for the best luxury sandwich and pastry selection, and is never complete without a glass of champagne to tie the whole experience together.

Alain Ducasse

Speaking of lavish, if you dine at Alain Ducasse, expect to pay about $290 per person to nosh on its seasonal menu of French cuisine. If you want to make your seat as luxurious as the food on your plate, you can sit in the centre of the restaurant at Table Lumière, with 4,500 shimmering fibre optics surrounding it.

The luxury French restaurant is famous among critics and consumers alike and if you are looking for one of the best dining experiences in the country, then you should look no further. And it’s not all completely unaffordable, with it being one of the best posh London restaurants to dine in.

For £65, you can experience their lunch hour tasting menu, which includes 3 courses that change every Wednesday and 2 glasses of wine, and we can guarantee it will be one of the best lunches you will taste.

Gauthier

Gauthier also offers an exclusive experience that depends on where you sit and is one the best posh restaurants in London to go out to. Each floor of the building offers different cuisine, prepared in the basement kitchen. The French fare is equally unique because the chefs don’t use measuring devices, recipe books, or timers to create the dishes.

Each season’s menu features the freshest UK ingredients. In addition to this, this Soho staple is one which makes a heroic effort to cater to the Vegan population, with the head chef specialising in vegetable-based menu’s for over 2 decades, showing everyone that vegan food can be just as good as any other, and proving the best menu to prove it, as it won the Best Vegan Menu of the Year award in 2016.

Bob Bob Ricard

If a quiet atmosphere for a first date is what you’re looking for, you’ll find it at Bob Bob Ricard, which doesn’t allow children younger than 12 to dine in and is one the best posh London restaurants to go out to. You can eat your dinner in the all-booth dining room any night of the year — yes, any night — because Bob Bob Ricard is open 365 days per year, even Christmas and New Year’s Eve.

One of our choices of posh restaurants in London, this Soho restaurant serves English and Russian cuisine, from Chicken Kiev to Beef Wellington, and its famous for its “Press for Champagne” button at every table.
They also offer 3 different pricings for their menu, depending on when you visit, from off-peak, mid-peak to regular pricing which, depending on when you visit, can cut 25% off your bill. They also offer useful keys while deciphering the menu, whereby they code all the Russian menu items, so you know just where the dish you ordered has originated from.

Hawksmoor Seven Dials

Hawksmoor Seven Dials is a high-end steak restaurant that serves British beef and seafood and is one the best posh London restaurants to dine in. It’s located in an old brewery, where decades ago brew masters held steak suppers for London’s high society.

Pay attention, don’t go if you’re not hungry. The large cuts don’t usually come any smaller than 500 grams and the regular steaks average around 300 grams. And, you won’t want to forget to sample one of their many sides, such as triple cooked chips and beef dripping fries.
If offers a perfect mix of anything anyone could every want, with a lavish steak menu for the meat lover, and an extensive seafood menu for those who prefer their meat to derive from the ocean.

And the cocktails they offer to wash your luxury meal down with are a must. With an original menu of cocktails, it has something there guaranteed to please everyone, from their gin-based Marmalade cocktails, to their tequila-based Grapefruit Picador.

Island Grill

Island Grill prides itself on its sustainable cuisine that mixes traditional English fare with modern European influences and is one of the best posh London restaurants to dine in. It offers a variety of plate sizes and menus that change with the seasons. Examples of how the chefs mix fresh ingredients among their posh dishes are the Crispy Gressingham Duck Salad and Lancaster London Smoked Salmon.

Located right next to Lancaster Gate station, it is an exceptionally easy restaurant to access, but if you look at their menu, you may begin to understand why it may be slightly more difficult to get a table. This is the very definition of posh restaurants in London. Their use of fresh ingredients put together by some of the best professional chefs in the business, they claim this is all you need to “create a fantastic meal”, and we couldn’t agree more.

Umu

Umu boasts an impressive menu, inspired by traditional Japanese foods, from Tempura to Sashimi, to an impressive selection of varied sushi, this venue pleases anyone who is a lover of Asian cuisine and is one of the best posh London restaurants to go out to.

However, they also offer other cuisines with a selection of French truffles available and a varying speciality menu depending on the market that day.
The restaurant itself looks like something out of a movie, with the whole venue adorning a brown theme, either brown cushion sofa’s, or their wooden interior which seems to dominate everywhere, almost making you feel as though you are in the most expensive tree house in the world.

The kitchen itself is visibly open, so not only can you watch the top chefs prepare some of the finest Japanese cuisine in the city, the open plan makes sure the beautiful scents of the Asian menu reach you.

Dinner by Heston Blumenthal

Dinner by Heston Blumenthal is another 2-star Michelin restaurant, under the name of celebrity chef Heston Blumenthal. It is one the best posh London restaurants to dine in.

The a la carte menu is unforgettable, from their Roast Iberico Pork Chops to their decadent Roast Halibut with Green Sauce. You cannot miss out on these meals, and it is best to go on a very empty stomach so you also have room for some of their lavish sides such as their triple cooked chips, and some of their unbelievable deserts which will leave you coming back for more.

They also offer a chef’s table for a more luxurious, if that was even possible, experience, setting you back £225 for a 9-course dinner, but if you look at the menu, which changes regularly with the chefs creating new and innovative dishes, it’s mot hard to see why.

Benares

Benares is an upscale Mayfair beauty which offers a menu full of Indian-British fusion dishes and is one of the best posh restaurants in London to dine in. The head chef helped this place to be awarded it’s Michelin star and it’s not very difficult to see why.

Atul Kochhar, the head chef, is the first Indian chef with a Michelin star, and his work shows in his menus.
Their tasting menu’s start at £98, making it one of the most affordable venues on this list, but the food still lives up to everything else here, and offers a unique menu that, cooked at this skill level will be difficult to find at any other restaurant in the city.

This tasting menu offers a little bit of everything you could ever want, with a selection of shellfish, chicken, fish, lamb and a choice of dessert, with a sorbet in the middle to cleanse the palate. This decadent blend of culture showcases all that is best about Indian food, and is a must visit for any lover of culture cuisine.

Corrigan’s

Corrigan’s Mayfair belongs to the Irish chef Richard Corrigan, serving locally sourced game food following seasonality and praising every ingredient’s flavor, with dishes inspired by traditional British and Irish cooking. He believes that game is everything you find in nature. From this statement, one can already imagine the intricate and complex dishes served at the restaurant. 

Open for lunch and dinner, the place offers an a la carte menu and a fixed-price tasting option, which changes weekly according to the seasonal availability of every ingredient. Here you can explore flavors from the mountains and the ocean –  Start with a spiced beef tartare served with oyster cream, nori, and tempura. Then, move to the native Scottish lobster ravioli with lobster bisque and vadouvan, a curry-like spice mixed with garlic and shallots. 

The design of the place does a beautiful job reflecting the culture of game, and in each dish, you can taste the freedom of ingredients. The calming blue-toned design of the place when you first enter contrasts with the roughness of game food, and it is perfect when put together with brown leather booths by the bar counter. Inside, different seating areas embrace a more robust decor, with dim lighting and darker shades of green and blue on the walls.

Core by Clare Smyth

Clare Smyth used to be the head chef at Restaurant Gordon Ramsay, leaving the job to open her venue. Today, Core is considered one of London’s best and most luxurious restaurants, with two Michelin Stars and aiming for its third. The restaurant emphasizes sustainable and natural foods, with ingredients sourced from local farmers and producers in the UK. 

The tasting menu dishes at Core cover classics from high American cuisine. Scallops cooked over wood with sea lettuce and herbs, roasted cod with bay shrimps and swiss chard, venison with pearl barley, and whisky… these are some examples of the food you will encounter at the venue. Simplicity in design contrasts with flavor and production complexity, highlighting every color and aroma of ingredients. 

Inside, find a bright and clean environment where light grey and baby green harmonize with wooden tones on the bartop and floors. The dining hall is spacious and has tables of different sizes, perfect for any client. Core can satisfy them all, from couples wanting a romantic dinner to large families celebrating a special occasion. 

Hide

Hide gained its first Michelin star six months after opening. Maybe it was because of their strategic location at Mayfair or their beautiful interiors and wine list. We know that all factors combined, including the menu, always enchant everybody who comes in to dine. The restaurant is divided into three sections: above, ground, and below. Each one of them is distinctive and differs in its proposal somehow. 

The Above area is decorated with light grey and light wooden tones. An almost monochromatic design gives space for artistic expression in the food served. A magnificent and bold staircase lies in the middle of the ground salon, its modern design calling attention to the boldness of the restaurant’s proposal. Below, find a dark and well-packed bar where you will discover exquisite cocktails and aromas. 

Excellence in presentation is one of the core values at Hide, clearly represented on their well elaborated and colorful plates. The dishes here are anything but simple. Toast with melted cheese, poached egg, and truffles on top is an excellent way to start your meal. Move to the steamed cornish sole with mussels and eucalyptus, and finish with a zesty and caramelized dessert.

Jean-Georges at The Connaught 

The Jean-Goerges at The Connaught is the perfect place to go if you’re a fan of truffles. Here, the simplest dishes come covered with thin shaves of black truffles, and you won’t be afraid to ask for more afterward. Inside The Connaught hotel, this restaurant is ideal for every meal of the day, from sublime traditional breakfast to late-night luxurious dinners. 

Here, classic British flavors meet Southeast Asian influences, creating a colorful, eclectic, and aromatic cuisine. Every ingredient is fresh, straight from the farmers market to the kitchen, and then carefully prepared to make it to the dining room like an explosion of essences. Start with a fresh bluefin tuna tartare with avocado, radish, and ginger sauce. For your main dish, maybe a cheeseburger with black truffle mayo or a spiced crusted salmon with coconut-lime infusion, coriander, and garlic. The pizzas are also famous, and sharing one during an alfresco lunch is an experience not to be missed. 

The environment here is the epitome of daytime luxury. Light gray furniture is spread on an isle, surrounded by an entire glass wall that grants you a view of the outside. Small red details on the glass give it a sense of class, and so does the bar on the back, stacked with high-quality spirits. 

Evelyn’s Table

At first glance, the most appealing part of Evelyn’s Table is probably its secrecy. Come in and find a small and straight-to-the-point wine list, carefully curated to match each dish. The house sommelier promises to take you on a unique and multi-sensorial journey, so you can just relax and let him do the work. Sakes and non-alcoholic beverages are also available. Sit at the chef’s counter, which fits 12 people, and watch a gastronomic performance. Make sure to make a reservation ahead of time. 

Evelyn’s table is one of the floors from The Blue Post restaurant, where ingredients come in fresh every day, granting unique and natural flavors that take over each dish. The restaurant is a British pub serving gourmet bar snacks that perfectly match the beer selection. Down in the wine cellar, you will find the gastronomic experience that is Evelyn’s Table: five courses and three chefs. 

The food mixes British products, French training, and Japanese techniques. The result is food that looks like art-nouveau. Find juicy lamb racks, bright green Brussels sprouts, and fresh fish displayed on beautiful plates. The space is small and intimate—a counter in front of the kitchen where you watch the action.