London restaurants - Chelsea, Kensington

The chef and GM who headed up London's top Indian restaurants including Gymkhana and Jamavar are opening their first solo venture in Chelsea.

From Shoreditch to Sloane Street, Adam Handling's rise has been meteoric. At their English countryside hotel Le Manoir Belmond picked Raymond Blanc, now they've put all their resources behind Handling at their flagship Knightsbridge hotel. He's in charge of all the food, including bar, restaurant, afternoon tea and even the room service food.

Former Engawa chef Akira Shimizu is opening his own robatayaki and sushi restaurant in Japan's new cultural centre, Japan House on Kensington High Street.

Caprice Holdings have a pretty good hit rate in London and they're winning again with this Knightsbridge opening. This time around, it's a loosely 50's/60's Italian themed bar and restaurant with its own terrace. It's based on Harry's Bar - but you don't need a membership for this restaurant. Expect casual Italian dining.

Hawksmoor has grown considerably since they first started in Spitalfields - reaching here in Knightsbridge and beyond. At the subterranean Knightsbridge location, you can get all the best steaks and cocktails that they're known for - and some great seafood dishes too.

Already a huge success wherever they open, this sees Dishoom opening in Kensington. Expect a large array of Indian small plates and expect a queue to get in at peak times.

Central London's legendary nightclub Mahiki is getting a sister venue in Kensington, with a Polynesian-themed restaurant inside called Pufferfish. Its tableside-seared salmon, champagne-topped treasure chests and tropical cocktails should reel in the celebs like its Mayfair branch.

After a successful first opening in her home country, Bahraini chef Roaya have opened here in London. Step in for a breakfast flatbread with homemade yoghurt in their terracotta-lined courtyard, try a plum cocktail on the al fresco terrace or order far too much from their Mezzeh sharing plates menu.

The original Zheng in Oxford has been a big hit, and now they've opened a second restaurant in Chelsea. Expect pan-Asian cuisine with a particular focus on Malaysian cooking.

Phil Howard brought in two Michelin Stars to The Square before he moved on. This is the next restaurant where he's in the kitchen, with a slightly more laid-back feel.

He may have shut up shop at Hibiscus, but Claude Bosi is now at the classic Bibendum building. There he's in charge of both the downstairs seafood restaurant and the fine dining upstairs.

Launceston Place has been a mainstay of the high-end Kensington dining scene for some time. And now it's had something of a rejuvenation with new head chef Ben Murphy at the helm. Expect a tasting menu with more than a few twists taken from Murphy's background.

This is the next restaurant from Tom Sellers, who's behind the very popular Restaurant Story. He's joined up with Daniel Phippard for this restaurant hidden behind Brompton Road which will have classic and contemporary influences. And a great big tree in the middle of it too. Expect a buzzing bar.

The Hour Glass pub has two new owners - Luke Mackay and David Turcan, who run Brompton Food Market. Expect a regularly changing menu with lots of products from artisan producers.

A couple of years after the successful launch of The Shed in Notting Hill, The Gladwin brothers are back with their follow up, Rabbit. This time it's a "celebration of wild British food" in Chelsea.

This new Italian is taking over a classic building in Knightsbridge and is being consulted by the legendary Silvano Giraldin, best known for his exemplary service when he was General Manager at Le Gavroche. Expect classic Italian and there's a separate bar and courtyard too.

This Chelsea brasserie has a lot of respected restaurant folk behind it who have worked at Brasserie St Jacques, The Greenhouse, Brown’s Hotel, The Ritz Hotel, Harry’s Bar and The Arch. Expect classic French brasserie dishes with a lot of trolley service too.

This is Marcus Wareing's main base in London, and where he's earned a Michelin star (and also where you're most likely to see him in the kitchen). Expect top-notch Michelin-starred fine dining, where the ingredients are the main focus of the menus.

One of the few London restaurants on the World's 50 Best list, Heston's only London gaff is still hugely popular. The dishes that captured everyone's attention when it opened - the Meat Fruit (chicken liver parfait shaped like a mandarin) and the Tipsy Cake are still on the menu and are must-order dishes if you haven't got round to trying them yet. Keep an eye out for A-list diners, the hotel is a well-known celebrity haunt. 

By day, this restaurant will look for the world to be a basic hot dog kiosk serving up one classic Yankee dog (served with yellow mustard, red ketchup and spring onions). At night a hidden door to the restaurant downstairs is opened, where they'll be serving up an extended hot dog list and also the 'bones' part of the menu (Boston ribeye steak and more) plus what looks to be a great cocktail list.

The team at Bo lang include Head Chef and Dim Sum Master Kai Wang, who has over 10 years experience as a dim sum chef with his previous London places of employment including Novikov and Grand Imperial at Grosvenor House. The menu features a mix of traditional and modern dim sum.

This modern European restaurant boasts a chef, Manuel Oliveri, who has worked at Gauthier as sous chef and management who have worked at Galvin at Windows, Le Gavroche and Rousillon among other places and promises and affordable menu for the area. All this is supported with its own on-site wine cellar.

Ex-lawyer turned chef Guglielmo Arnulfo has opened this new Italian restaurant specialising in dishes from Liguria. The menu includes stuffed courgette blossoms, Troffie al Pesto – a Ligurian speciality pasta with just flour and water, and Cuttlefish in Zimino – Tuscan cuttlefish stew. There will also be a luxury wine cellar with private dining on the lower ground floor, seating up to 15.

This fine dining restaurant in Chelsea is being run by a team with a very impressive background. The head chef is from Marcus Wareing, the pastry chef and sommelier were both at Tom Aikens and the chef patron/owner was at NYC's two Michelin starred Corton. Expect modern seasonal cooking which will pay "particular attention to Britain’s finest artisanal produce".

Two Michelin starred Nathan Outlaw has opened this restaurant in the revamped Capital dining room. Expect dishes like Cornish crab on toast and roast brill on the bone, all created by head chef Peter Biggs who has worked with Outlaw for ten years.

This Victorian hotel in South Kensington (just opposite the underground) has completed a refit and features two new restaurants one of which is the Apero aperitivo bar serving classic cocktails and small plates.

Following successful openings in Moscow, St Petersburg and New York, this Mari Vanna is the London outpost of the restaurant hoping to bring authentic Russian cuisine to Londoners. Expect to be welcomed into a London townhouse that has been given a full Russian makeover, and plenty of comfort food.

After the previous restaurant, the Oriel, was closed down by the owner Earl Cadogan for not being good enough, Corbin and King (also behind The Wolseley and the Delaunay) have snatched up the space. The new 6000 square restaurant is "a true all-day ‘grand cafe’, providing eating and grazing from breakfast through to later evening".