The best restaurants in Paddington

Moored beside each other, this pair of barges on the canal at Paddington are hard to miss with their exterior painted by Sir Peter Blake. Their bottomless weekend brunches are particularly popular. For the menu, think Aussie-inspired dishes like tiramisu lamingtons and sweetcorn fritters with mashed avo. The nearby Bondi Green is also a good option from the same people.

As the name suggests, this is the open-to-all all canteen for the private members club catering to journalists working in international affairs and particularly in conflicts. The restaurant is open for lunch and dinner during the week serving up an international menu in a dining room filled with amazing Magnum photographs.

If you’re after a traditional Indian meal in comfortable surroundings, then this elegant West London spot is just the ticket. From an extensive menu, the tandoor section is probably the best area to spend time on and it’s a particularly good spot to go if there’s a vegan or vegetarian in your group.

Any restaurant that’s managed to survive more than five decades in the frenetic London restaurant scene must be doing something right. Royalty and celebrities alike have been flocking to this Malaysian restaurant since the 1970s for dishes like the titular satay and laksa too. If you’ve managed to save room for dessert, the deep-fried banana is a must.

This modern Lebanese restaurant in the heart of Paddington is handy for commuters and office workers alike. If you’re here with a group, the set mezze menus are the easiest way to go, but they also do a line of what they term ‘massguettes’ - baguettes stuffed with lamb or chicken shawarma or falafel. You’ll find a decent selection of Lebanese wines on the wine list here.

Open all day from breakfast through to the early evening, the menu at Mihbaj focuses on dishes from Jordan and Palestine. It also boasts a hidden terrace which is a perfect little oasis from the hustle and bustle of Paddington. Start the day with shakshuka or French toast with rose and vanilla ice cream. If you’re here later in the day their upside-down maqluba dish of aubergines, tomatoes and lamb is unmissable.

Spotting this bakery and cafe is easy - just look for the queue snaking its way down Connaught Street. A viral sensation, everyone is going crazy for La Maritxu’s burnt baked Basque cheesecake. Order a slice to have in, with a cup of coffee or get a full cheesecake to go.

There’s really one main dish that you cross town to try at this Queensway Cantonese - the famous lobster noodles. They’re deservedly well-known, but there’s plenty more on this seafood-focused restaurant that you’re going to want to try from the Dover sole to the salt and pepper squid.

As popular with visiting Malaysian tourists as it is with locals, this restaurant offers an extensive Malaysian menu with all the classics represented from roti canai to Hainanese chicken rice through to nasi lemak and beef rendang.

Part of a boutique collection of pubs, a quick look at this popular gastropub’s menus shows that its food offering is a cut above the usual boozer. With plenty to please both vegetarians and meat eaters alike, the sustainable and seasonal offering makes this somewhere to return to again and again.

Run by the same team as The Grand Duchess, this touring boat takes you on a two-and-a-half-hour cruise to Camden and back while serving up amazing food. There’s a strong focus on sustainable British seafood and that local theme extends to the drinks list too.

The Paddington branch of this boutique BBQ restaurant group serves up steak, tacos and more with a focus on using the whole animal. It also does a handy line in takeaway burgers at lunchtime and this was the group’s first restaurant to be fully halal.

A restaurant that delivers exactly what it promises - cheese on a barge. This permanently moored boat serves up exclusively British and Irish cheeses in a range of small and large plates. As you might imagine, they also do a very good grilled cheese sandwich.

Permanently moored on the Grand Union Canal, this barge-turned seafood restaurant allows you to watch boats motoring past whilst enjoying the best fish that the Cornish day boats have landed. There’s a decent amount of alfresco space and look out for their weekly oyster special deals.

This longstanding Chinese restaurant is always crazily busy and there’s a reason for that - you can always rely on it for great dim sum. The banquet menus make it a solid spot for large group gatherings - handy for family catch-ups or business lunches. Outside of dim sum, the fried soft-shell crab is a must.