New opening

• Yangguofu Malatang brings its spicy hot pots to London's Chinatown

  

  Hot pot restaurants are ten a penny in London but the arrival of another new one in the centre of town has got fans rather excited. Yangguofu Malatang is a beast of a restaurant chain from China with over 7000 restaurants all over the world. Up till now if you wanted to try their food in the UK you had to head on over to Hammersmith, but a few weeks ago they unveiled their first restaurant in central

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• Café Ciel opens in The OWO from the founder of Miel bakery

  

  The OWO might be one of London's most expensive new hotels, but it hasn't had the most trouble-free launches. Chief among those was one of the restaurants, Café Laperouse, which had a dire review from Jay Rayner who also called attention to the low hygiene rating. Even though the latter was quickly resolved, the restaurant closed just two years after opening. 

  Now, something new has

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• Berenjak brings its Persian cuisine to Mayfair

  

  1 August 2025 - updated with new early 2026 opening window

  They have restaurants in Soho and Borough Market (not to mention as far afield as Doha and Dubai) and next up for Berenjak is Mayfair. As revealed on their own Instagram page, they're taking on a space on Duke Street right next to The Barley Mow (it's a new development so there hasn't been a restaurant there

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• Carmela's pizzeria brings East Coast USA style pizzas to Islington

  

  1/8/25 - updated with opening date and menu details

  Earlier this year, Nordic restaurant Skal closed its doors for good in Islington, and now we know who will be taking over that space on Upper Street. Moving is Italian/American pizzeria Carmela's. 

  It comes from Phil Chaykin, the man behind Ugly Dumpling in Carnaby, who's teamed up with Gerry del

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• A new Arcade Food Hall might be coming to Covent Garden

  

  The revived food hall trend keeps trundling on. Recently, we've had Market Halls in Paddington, Kerb's Corner Corner in Canada Water, and now there's news that a new Arcade Food Hall

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• The big new London restaurants opening in August 2025 you need to know about

  

  Traditionally one of the quieter months of the year for new openings, there's still a fair bit to look forward to this August. There's the next from Sabor chef Nieves Barragán, a Camino pintxo spin-off in Covent Garden, and a Hoxton pub that's one to watch, not to mention more pizzerias. 

• Supernova's burgers have arrived in South Kensington, around the corner from Museum Mile

  

  We're still waiting to find out what's happening with their Mayfair opening, but in the meantime, Supernova have quietly opened their second smash burger bar, this time in South Kensington. 

  Announced in typically low-key fashion on

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• HANBAAGAASUUTEEKI takes an Asian-inspired approach to smash burgers in Victoria

  

  No, we still haven't reached peak smash burger - here's one we missed (it opened about a month ago). Called HANBAAGAASUUTEEKI, it's an Asian-inspired smashburger restaurant that's opened in Victoria not too far from Bleecker and Shake Shack. 

  There are just three burgers on the menu, kicking off with the standard Another Double Cheese Burger.

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• Berberè's sourdough pizzas are coming to Marylebone

  

  Updated 28/7/25 with launch offer

  They're rated the world’s 6th best artisan pizzeria chain by the 50 Top Pizza list and now Berberè are getting ready to expand more. They're opening their fourth London restaurant on James Street, Marylebone (taking over the space of another pizzeria, Homeslice). 

  Originally opened in Bologna (they have pizzerias all across

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• The Food District is a brand new food court with a global outlook on Edgware Road

  

  Food courts are very much a thing in London once more, and a new one has opened on Edgware Road that promises a shift away from the usual mix. The Food District is calling itself a "global food court" that also happens to be fully halal. 

  It comes from Shaz Khan, the man behind similar food courts 5 Continents in Stratford and Medz Corner in Kensington, but here

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• Aram at Somerset House will be a river-facing cafe, shop and restaurant by Syrian chef Imad Alarnab

  

  He's best known for being a Syrian chef and refugee who moved from pop up to permanent with Imad's Syrian Kitchen, where he's played host to King Charles. Now chef and restaurateur Imad Alarnab is expanding his empire with a second restaurant, at Somerset House.

  Aram is the first part of the enterprise and that will be a daytime space open for breakfast and lunch. The space, which overlooks the building's river

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• The best new London restaurants of 2025 (so far)

  

  As we've reached the halfway point of the year, it's time to look and the best of the new openings of 2025 in London (so far), running from January to June. Here are the restaurants that really made a mark. 

• Jeremy King to reopen Simpson's in the Strand

  

  Updated 24/7/25 with more details and imagery. 

  Jeremy King is definitely on a roll at the moment. He's opened The Park near Hyde Park, relaunched Le Caprice as Arlington and

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• Platapian sees a second generation restaurateur take over from Patara in Soho

  

  It's all change at one of Soho's longstanding Thai restaurants Patara, which has undergone a full 21st-century reimagining and emerged as Platapian. The new look and menu is the result of second-generation restaurateur Nam Parama Raiva taking over the reins from her aunt Khun Patara Sila-On, who launched the Patara group with head chef Phayom Phimkrua three decades ago.

  Twenty years after it opened its doors on

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• The Manicomio team are behind new City Italian restaurant Campanelle

  

  The City has a brand new Italian worth checking out this summer. Campanelle is from the same team behind such classic London restaurants as Manicomio in Chelsea and Canto Corvino in Spitalfields. They've taken over the restaurant in a Grade II listed building between Fenchurch Street and Leadenhall Market.

  The City has a brand new Italian worth checking out this summer. Campanelle is from the

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