London's boom of interesting new restaurant openings continues for March with an iconic restaurant reborn, the promise of a glamorous hotel seafood spot and a hotly-anticipated restaurant from an ex-Kiln head chef.
Simpson's in The Strand
100 Strand, London WC2R 0EW
It's been in work for a while, but this month, Jeremy King's magnum opus is finally upon us. It's already had all the Bafta stars in for a preview, and March sees the opening of the first restaurant (and the one most of us remember from its previous incarnations, The Grand Divan. Expect great service, lots of trolley action, and a long overdue return to the glory days of this London institution. The second restaurant, Romano's, will open later on, as will the absolutely massive ballroom. Just try not to take any selfies in the bathroom, no matter how beautiful it looks...
Opening: W/c 2 March 2026
More about Simpson's in The Strand
Impala
Soho - 14 Dean St, London W1D 3RS
This genre-defying restaurant comes from chef Meedu Saad, the former head chef of Kiln, which makes it instant catnip for London's foodie cognoscenti. Described as drawing influences from the North African roots of his father, to Meedu's own North London upbringing, and backed by the group behind Brat, Kiln and Mountain, this opening comes with extremely high expectations. What we do know is that the charcoal grill and wood oven will be where all the action is.
Opening: March 2026
Burro
Covent Garden - 2 Floral Court, Floral Street, London WC2E 9FB
He's the chef and co-owner of the excellent Trullo in Islington and now Conor Gadd is opening his own restaurant in Covent Garden, taking over the space that was The Petersham. It's being billed as an Italian restaurant with Irish hospitality, with dishes like tagliatelli duck and porcini ragu on the menu. The tiramisu ‘bomboloni’ doughnuts sound unmissable, and this will also have a fantastic terrace, hidden away from the crowds of Covent Garden tourists.
Opening: 6 March 2026 (6-8 March soft launch, full launch on 11 March)
Sale e Pepe Mare
Marylebone - The Langham Hotel, 1c Portland Place, Regent Street, London W1B 1JA
This restaurant space at The Langham has struggled with its past openings, but Sale e Pepe looks set to turn the tide. The original restaurant has been open for over 50 years, but was recently bought by The Theslaff group (also behind Los Mochis), and they seem like a group that will make this space work for them. As you can guess from the name, seafood will be the focus here with lobster linguine, seabass crudo and shellfish towers all promised. Tableside service will on point, with a Champagne and Negroni trolley roaming the room.
Opening: 2 March 2026
Teal by Sally Abé
Hackney - 52 Wilton Way, London E8 1BS
Sally Abé is taking over the space that was once held by Pidgin, and after that, Sesta. So it's got a good pedigree behind it and hopefully, Sally Abé's name will help to make the space a success. Her menu will be celebrating the best of British food and produce, with dishes like Dorset crab royale appearing. She's also reviving the Penny Lick dessert, albeit for the still very reasonable £1.
Opening: 26 March 2026
Temaki
Mayfair - 11 Maddox Street, London, W1S 2QF
Delayed from last month, March should see the opening of this Japanese handroll restaurant which originally made its name in Brixton. In Mayfair, they'll have a much bigger space, adding a whole new downstairs section. Up at the counter is where you'll really want to be, with handroll options including lobster with egg yolk, miso and citrus as well as prawn tempura, otoro tuna, teriyaki mushroom and BBQ eel.
Opening: March 2026
El Siete
Soho - 66-70 Brewer Street, Soho, London W1F 9UP
The bar area below what is now El Pastor has been legendary right back to its days as Hix. However, for the first time since then, the whole bar is getting a complete overhaul. Gone will be the long bar from the Hix days, to be replaced with a new circular central bar. It'll also have a new entrance, separate from El Pastor. Drinks will be led by the 777 Margarita, served in a flask to keep it cold, and they'll have a menu of seven mini tostadas as bar snacks.
Opening: 14 March 2026
Holy Carrot
Spitalfields - 61-63 Brushfield Street, London E1 6AA
The original Holy Carrot opened in Notting Hill at the height of London's wave of new vegan restaurants. That original restaurant still does very well, but for their follow-up they're opening things up a little wider by having a vegetarian menu. That's most evident in the new pizzettas that will be on the menu here, but you will see classics from the original like their amazing koji flatbread.
Opening: 13 March 2025
TAQ
Notting Hill - 141-145 Westbourne Grove, London W11 2RR
Having already had the incredibly successful rebrand of Orasay to Dove, Jackson Boxer is helping out with another in Notting Hill, changing Taqueria to TAQ. Leading things here will be ex-Side Hustle chef Eduardo Yishima, while the Jackson and the team at Dove will help on the relaunch. That particularly shows on the Colomba taco, which is a reinvention of the off-menu burger seen at Dove. All in all, it sounds like a very promising relaunch of a restaurant that has been in the area for over 20 years.
Opening: 3 March 2026
Maza
Mayfair - 21-25 Bruton Place, London W1J 6NQ
Another very successful Notting Hill restaurant, for over a decade, is Mazi and this sees the same team opening in Mayfair. Opening in a space that was once a Pizza Express, it's been given a complete overhaul and will now be a Greek restaurant that's specifically inspired by Athenian cuisine. The dish we particularly have our eye on is the Grandmama’s disco fries topped with shredded veal kokkinisto.
Opening: March 2026
Also opening this month...
Kung Fu Mama (Canary Wharf) - The latest outpost for the Taiwanese noodle soup restaurant.
Maki & Ramen (Soho) - Late-night sushi and noodles from a restaurant that originally started in Scotland.
Jul's (St James's, 11 March) - A Mediterranean-inspired restaurant that started life in Ibiza.
Jamie’s Italian (Leicester Square, 11 March) - After a very public exit from the UK, Jamie Oliver is bringing back his Italian in a new guise.
Flipdog (Old Street, 14 March) - This new cocktail bar will be finshing off drinks with a 1200°C iron poker.
Fenix (Mayfair) - Coming from the same people behind Tattu, this is a Mediterranean restaurant.
MRBL (City of London, 3 March) - A new City steakhouse, opening in Leadenhall Market
Chick-fil-A (Kingston) - The fast-food chicken restaurant that's not without controversy arrives in London.
All of London's newly opened and upcoming restaurants...
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