London Restaurants - Soho, Fitzrovia, Covent Garden

1 Bateman's Buildings, Soho, London W1D 3EN

Manzi's is the first brand-new restaurant from the Wolseley Restaurant Group (it was first conceived by Jeremy King). Easily one of the biggest new restaurants to open in Soho in recent years, it's a big two-floored affair that has the occasional out-there design moments (there are mermaids). There's an almost entirely seafood menu ranging from shellfish to monkfish wellingtons.

45 Berwick St, London W1F 8SF

Set on a prime corner site on the junction of Berwick and Noel Street in the heart of Soho, this tapas restaurant sees North London restaurateur Stephen Lironi hitting up the West End for his first central London opening. The food might be Spanish but there’s a strong Scottish influence here too, with super fresh razor clams and hake arriving down from the Scottish coast daily.

30 Rupert Street, London W1D 6DL

After success at Arcade food hall with Plaza Khao Gaeng, this is Luke Farrell's first standalone restaurant. It's all about bringing a taste of the late-night canteens of Bangkok’s Chinatown to Soho offering curries, stir fries, drunken noodles and more.

Ilona Rose House, Manette Street, London W1D 4AL

The original Milk Beach opened in Queen's Park before opening this second more central restaurant in Soho. It's part of a redevelopment of the area brought about by the launch of the Elizabeth line. As with the original, this features a mix of South-East Asian and Mediterranean cuisine with an occasional Australian flourish.

15 Poland Street, London W1F 8PR

Bubala first started out in Spitalfields (with pop-ups before that) before opening this second Soho restaurant, featuring food that takes its inspiration from across the Middle East. It's also an entirely vegetarian experience.

8-12 Broadwick St, London W1F 8HN

Miznon, launched by Israeli celebrity chef Eyal Shani, is a hit the world over and this Soho restaurant is no different. The restaurant is mainly all about its filled pitas (the pitas themselves are also amazing) and wherever they open they aim to "take the flavour of each city and translate it into pita".

103-105 New Oxford Street, London WC2H 8LH

This is from JKS, the people behind Gymkhana, Hoppers, Lyles and more. It sees a collection of top food vendors under one roof with probably the hottest table being Plaza Khao Gaeng from chef Luke Farrell. Besides that, there's Shawarma, sandwiches from Margot and Hector Henderson, burgers and more.

55 Great Portland Street, London W1W 7LQ

This is the main restaurant upstairs at The George pub in Fitzrovia. It comes from JKS (the people behind Gymkhana) and Kitchen Table's James Knappett, who is behind the menu. Expect a much more elevated approach to a traditional pub menu.

34-35 Southampton St, Covent Garden, London WC2E 7HG

This is Adam Handling's main restaurant where you'll be able to get some of his signature dishes (not to mention the amazing chicken butter). It's worth also heading to the Eve Bar here for some world class cocktails.

21 Slingsby Pl, London WC2E 9AB

This is the second restaurant for Lahpet, originally finding fame in Shoreditch. It sees them bringing their unique take on Burmese cuisine to the west end, with noodle soups and their famed tea leaf salad all on the menu, along with a great cocktail list. There's a huge heated terrace on the first floor too.

16a Bedford Street, London WC2E 9HE

This is the fourth Blacklock restaurant and one of their biggest. Here you can expect everything they're best known for - great value chops, big steaks and lots and lots of gravy. There are also some amazing pies and ordering something from the cocktail trolley is a must.

27 King Street, London WC2E 8JD

Petersham Nurseries has opened in Covent Garden with two restaurants. La Goccia focuses on Italian aperitivo while the main restaurant is The Petersham, with the same approach to slow food cooking as the original in Richmond.

61 Rupert St, Soho, London W1D 7PW

Paradise took over the space once held by Spuntino, serving up British and Sri Lankan ingredients in a menu that's inspired by the owner's childhood trips to Sri Lanka. This is matched by a sleek room designed by the people who did Smoking Goat and Klin.

23 Greek St, Soho, London W1D 4DZ

The duo behind Bun House and Pleasant Lady have turned their original site into a bar and restaurant inspired by the late-night scene of 1960s Hong Kong. The sugar skin Iberico char siu is a revelation.

14- 16 Brewer St, Soho, London W1F 0SG

Randall & Aubin is a Soho institution, having been here for over 20 years. And there's a reason for its longevity - eating here is a lot of fun. There's a big emphasis on sustainability, on French and British seafood classics - as well as some great rotisserie chicken.

26-27 Dean St, Soho, London W1D 3LL

The original Barrafina moved from its Frith Street location to take up pride of place beside (and a chunk out of) Quo Vadis. This is the Spanish tapas brand's main location in Soho and features some of the best Spanish food in London, as well as great counter action.

28 Rupert Street, London W1D 6DJ

Downstairs from Soho pub The Blue Posts is this tiny restaurant, run by head chef James Goodyear. It's a small counter dining affair with only 11 seats. Expect a regularly changing menu that mixes up British produce with Scandinavian and Japanese techniques.

19 Ganton St, Soho, London W1F 7BN

Pastaio is Italian for someone who makes pasta by hand - something you'll see plenty of in this venture by Stevie Parle (Dock Kitchen, Rotorino, Palatino, Craft) in Soho. Fast, casual and good value - particularly for this area - the pasta is super and the Prosecco slushies a must.

12 Denman St, Soho, London W1D 7HH

After beginning life in a shipping container as one of the first restaurants in Pop Brixton, Kricket has come a long way. Inspired by Indian cuisine, they offer an ever-changing menu of Indian small plates. And they feature what may be one of our favourite snacks in town, the samphire pakora dish.

25 Broadwick St, Soho, London W1F

This is the first of the Temper restaurants, taking over a huge basement spot in Soho. The room is dominated by a central kitchen where all the smoking happens. From that you can expect tacos, meat piled onto freshly baked flatbread and a lot of mezcal.

49 Frith Street, Soho, London W1D 4SG

Coming from the Sethi siblings, best known for Gymkhana and more, this is inspired by roadside shacks (boutiques) of Tamil Nadu and Sri Lanka. These shacks focus on hoppers and dosas which is what Hoppers is all about. Persist in trying to get a table at peak times, it's worth it and very affordable.

24 Great Windmill St, Soho, London W1D 7LG

Blacklock's main speciality is chops - beef, pork and lamb and all at pretty good value. You'll want to go all-in with the chops dripping onto flatbread, but keep an eye out for some great steaks on the specials board. With very affordable cocktails too, a good time is guaranteed.

34 Rupert St, London W1D 6DN

Hands down one of the best counter dining experience in town, albeit not the quietest one. Expect a Jerusalem-style menu here, with additional influences from Southern Spain and Italy, North Africa through to the Levant. You can grab a table at the back - but try for the full-on counter experience if you can.

9 D'Arblay St, London W1F 8DR

Blanchette is from three brothers Maxime, Yannis and Malik Alary who are behind this "French bistro serving simple, classic and inventive French food". It's primarily based around sharing "French tapas" plates.

60-61 Berwick Street, London W1F 8SU

This restaurant comes from the people behind Salt Yard and takes its inspiration from the rural Basque and Italian methods of smoking and grilling over charcoal. The menu is almost entirely cooked on a custom built charcoal fired grill.

46 Brewer Street, London W1F 9TF

This North Italian restaurant was a bit of a sleeper hit at first until word got out about how great the food was. Descend to the basement restaurant for dishes like pappardelle with slow-cooked hare or hand-chopped raw veal with Parmesan as well as a 10 seater bar specialising in Vermouth.

26-27 D'arblay Street, London W1F 8E

From the same people behind Barrica, this is one of Soho's most popular tapas bars - all stools and standing space only. The menu changes daily and you can find many Spanish tapas classics on it, with lots of Spanish wine to go alongside.

21-22 Warwick Street, London W1B 5NE

This was Yotam Ottolenghi's first full-blown London restaurant, following in the footsteps of his still-crazily popular delis. The menu features plenty of sharing dishes - signatures include their courgette and manouri fritters and Valdeón cheesecake.

21 Romilly Street, London W1D 5AF

Alexis Gauthier brings his own take on French cuisine in the marvellous setting of this Georgian townhouse. The menu is now entirely vegan, making this one of the best fine dining vegan spots in town.

46 Lexington Street, London W1F 0LW

Often cited as one of the most romantic restaurants in London, this Soho stalwart is also a great old-fashioned bistro with a decent wine list. If you're looking for somewhere to be flatteringly lit by candlelight - this is the spot.