Right now, technically all of London’s restaurants have recently opened.
But this is where we celebrate the brand new spots opening their doors for the very first time. And so behold: the best brand new places to check out in London.
Want to know what’s coming up? Well, luckily there’s a guide to London restaurants opening soon, too.
Rita’s | Soho
Rita’s have been appearing here and there since 2012 in various guises, including pop ups, residencies, and semi-permanent restaurants (…that fate decided were actually pop ups too). And now, finally, almost a decade on it looks like they might have just cracked it… READ MORE
Opened: October 19th
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Toklas | Strand
The founders of Frieze have opened a restaurant. You’ll find it in a brutalist building just off the Strand, where ex-Spring and Moro chef Martyn Lyons are cooking up a Mediterranean-influenced menu, with a bakery set to follow in November… READ MORE
Opened: 19th October
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Gunpowder Soho | Soho
There’s a new Gunpowder plot afoot. They’re planning to open a restaurant in Soho. The space is on Greek Street, in a former Pizza Express, which they’ve refitted in their sleekly moody style. And the menu has a few new surprises up its sleeve… READ MORE
Opened: October 15th
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Lina Stores City | Bloomberg Arcade
Considering how good it was, Kym’s leaves some big shoes to fill. And considering how literally, actually big it was, it leaves a big space to fill too… and Lina Stores are up to the challenge. They’ve redecorated the two-floor space with their iconic pale mint green & polished silver decor, and filled it with fresh pasta and mains to share… READ MORE
Opened: October 15th
Soft launch: Complimentary post-meal cocktails for Nudge Members until the end of November – find out more here.
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3 Henrietta Street | Covent Garden
This gorgeous, Grade-II listed Covent Garden building is five storeys tall, and is now stuffed with three separate restaurants and a coffeeshop… READ MORE
Opened: 14th October
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Hacha Brixton | Brixton
Remember the agave spirits bar that opened in Dalston in 2019, serving a rotating selection of 25 different tequilas and mezcals? Probably not, particularly if you really enjoyed it. But now you have a chance to remember at their second site, which has opened in Brixton with a bottle shop attached… READ MORE
Opened: October 7th
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Tigre Tacos | Stoke Newington
After residencies in London Bridge and Clerkenwell, Tigre Tacos have well and truly earned their stripes – and now they’ve come to replace the kebab shop parked above Stoke Newington’s mezcal bar Doña. That’s right. Those Doña kebabs are about to become Tigre Tacos.
Opened: October 6th
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Colonel Saab | Holborn
When you open a restaurant in Holborn’s former town hall, you don’t skimp on the decor. This beauteous new eatery is the first UK outpost for hotelier Roop Partap Choudhary, inspired by his father’s travels in the Indian army. And the all day menu promises as much of a feast for the tastebuds as the room is for your eyes… READ MORE
Opened: 30th September
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Trattoria Brutto | Clerkenwell
After a whirlwind decade in which Russell Norman has opened literally dozens of restaurants, and subsequently left the Polpo Group (which he started) to strike out on his own once again, he’s doing the striking with Trattoria Brutto… READ MORE
Opened: September 30th
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Planque | Haggerston
Wine. That’s what Planque is all about. But to expand on that ever so slightly, it’s a wine-focussed restaurant, bar, members club, and shop all packed into a pair of railway arches in Haggerstown. And it comes to us from the esteemed Seb Myers, fresh from his residency at P.Franco… READ MORE
Opened: 29th September
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Rondo La Cave | Holborn
And speaking of wine bars… here’s another, this time in central London. And it comes with the added benefit that the food part of the equation is constantly changing, thanks to a chef residency programme (a little like Carousel). Kicking off proceedings is Adam Rawson, who’s bringing his Anglo-Peruvian concept Cantina Valentina to the table… READ MORE
Opened: 29th September
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Manthan | Mayfair
Rohit Ghai cooks some of the best Indian cuisine in the city. He’s manned the pans at Michelin starred Gymkhana and Jamavar, opened his first solo spot Kutir to rave reviews, and now he’s back in Mayfair with Manthan, a restaurant based on sharing plates and cocktails (both boozy and not).
Opened: 28th September
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Joe Allen | Covent Garden
‘Recently’ might sound like a bit of a stretch for an institution that opened in 1977. But Theatreland classic Joe Allen has only just reopened after the drama of the past 18 months, and it’s been given a new lease of life by chef Gary Lee (who’ll be drawing on his experience feeding luvvies at The Ivy for 17 years) and Polpo founder Russell Norman, who’s created a brand new cocktail bar for the place… READ MORE
Opened: 17th September
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Ekstedt at The Yard
This is the first restaurant outside of Stockholm for Michelin star chef Niklas Ekstedt, and it’s on fire right now. Quite literally, because every dish on the menu is getting a lick of flames from the fire pit, like these oysters flambadou – cooked only by flaming beef tallow dripping from the grill…
Opened: 17th September
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Design District Canteen | Greenwich
Taran Wilkhu
If you’re setting up in a place called the ‘Design District’, you really can’t phone in your design. So we’re happy to report that the people behind the Design District Canteen certainly did not, because this new Greenwich food hall looks pretty stunning… READ MORE
Opened: September 15th
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Koya Ko | London Fields
Koya’s little sister has opened just off Broadway Market, and it’s an instant teleport to Japan, with its tachigui standing dining counter and wafts of freshly made udon and dashi stock wafting from the open kitchen.
Opened: 13th September
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The Seafood Bar | Soho
The Seafood Bar is a family-owned operation from Amsterdam, where they already have three other joints. Starting out as a fishmongers back in the eighties, Fons de Visscher eventually decided to start cooking his briny haul back in 2012 and opened a restaurant, roping in his kids to help. It worked out well it seems, because now they’ve opened a spot on Dean Street… READ MORE
Opened: September 9th
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BiBi | Mayfair
After acquiring a life-threatening condition that stopped him from being able to taste, chef Chet Sharma didn’t simply give up on his life in the kitchen. Instead, he’s opened his own restaurant… READ MORE
Opened: 9th September
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Mimi Mei Fair | Mayfair
Mimi Mei Fair is a restaurant disguised as a stunningly beautiful three-storey townhouse. There’s even a cocktail bar in the basement with an iridescent ceiling. But don’t skimp on the food – courtesy of Chinese-Singaporean chef Peter Ho (formerly of Hakkasan), dishes include crispy golden langoustine with truffle and fried leeks; lobster three ways; and Chinese chive xiao long bao.
Opened: 7th September
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Supa Ya Ramen | Dalston
Luke Findlay’s ‘traditionally inauthentic’ ramen spot opened its doors riiiight before Lockdown No. 1 last year. 18 months and one change of location later, it’s back, serving warming fusion dishes in a cosy BYOB eatery seating 20 at a time.
Opened: 2nd September
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The Water House Project | Hackney
Another eatery to change location is The Water House Project, which, after a successful stint running supperclub-style fine dining in a pop up space, has finally gone permanent. You’ll find it in Hackney in a beautiful double-height space with communal tables and an open kitchen where you can chat directly to the chefs… READ MORE
Opened: 2nd September
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Soma | Soho
Soma comes to us from the two gents behind Kricket, Rik Campbell & Will Bowlby. They’ve taken over the spot right next to their Soho restaurant, and turned it into something quite impressive… READ MORE
Opened: September 2nd
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Kudu Grill | Peckham
The Kudu Collective currently has there venues: Kudu (the restaurant), Smokey Kudu (the cocktail bar), and Curious Kudu (the private diner), and they’re all within ten yards of each other next to Queens Road Peckham station. So it’s something of a shock to learn that the 4th member of the Kudu clan is a MASSIVE one kilometre away in Nunhead. READ MORE
Opened: September 1st
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The Sea, The Sea, Hackney | Hackney
The Sea, The Sea is about to repeat itself. The vaunted restaurant-slash-fishmonger in Chelsea has decided to open a second venue in Hackney this July, right next to Regent’s Canal. And by the looks of things, it’ll be quite a unique space… READ MORE
Opened: 1st September
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Aspen & Meursault | Battersea
Bar Aspen has laid down roots. For those who didn’t get a chance to go, Aspen was a fantastic little pop up wine speakeasy. Yes, ‘pop up wine speakeasy’ weren’t words we’d naturally sling together, but the man behind Diogenes the Dog, the excellently named Sunny Hodge, made it work. And now it’s gone permanent… READ MORE
Opened: 24th August
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Skylight Peckham| Peckham
Coming to us from the team at the original Skylight in Wapping, this Peckham venue boasts enough space for 250 vertigo-immune punters, across both indoor and outdoor spaces… READ MORE
Opened: August 19th
Main image: El Ta’Koy at 3 Henrietta Street
Want to know what’s coming up? Well, luckily there’s a guide to London restaurants opening soon, too.