The Best New Restaurants To Book This October
Valencian Comfort Food at Arros QD
Multi-Michelin-starred Quique Dacosta’s Arros QD has been attracting widespread Instagram attention for its photogenic paellas. It was recently awarded a Cullera de Fusta by Wikipaella – classifying it as one of the best paella restaurants in the world. This autumn, it’s upping its comfort game with the launch of a new menu. This features a selection of ‘Socarrat’ – a crispy caramelised disc of seafood stock and bomba rice – and introduces the capital to ‘Caldoso’, a sharing, steaming wet rice hot pot with whole lobster, chicken, cuttlefish and seasonal veg.
64 Eastcastle Street, W1W 8NQ
Visit Arrosqd.com.
Standout Sicilian Dining at Norma
Norma has opened its doors in Fitzrovia. Guided by culinary director Ben Tish (ex-Salt Yard), the restaurant is inspired by the food and culture of Sicily. Choose from homemade pastas including the signature ‘Alla Norma’. Dining in a group? Book the private room and order family-style, sharing platters of fresh pastas, breads and dishes such as spiced, slow-cooked shoulder of Salt Marsh lamb.
8 Charlotte Street, Fitzrovia, London, W1T 2LS
Visit Normalondon.com.
Indulgent Classics at The Betterment
Jason Atherton has opened The Betterment at The Biltmore Mayfair with a seasonally driven menu including wood-fired fish and meats, fresh seafood, signature salads and inventive side dishes. Head chef Paul Walsh, who helped Atherton’s City Social earn a Michelin star in seven months, will be serving dishes including native lobster, oysters, ox cheek tortellini and line-caught sea bass. Don’t miss out on the beef-dripping chips with truffle and mushroom ketchup. An 800-strong wine list is overseen by head sommelier Stefan Kobald and champions new producers and small wine makers.
39-44 Grosvenor Square, Mayfair, W1K 2HP
Visit Thebettermentmayfair.com.
Go Wilder at The Boundary Hotel
Restaurateur Sir Terence Conran has partnered with chef Richard McLellan (previously of The Typing Room and Michelin-starred Alyn Williams at The Westbury) to open this restaurant in the basement of the Boundary. Aiming to source all of its produce from the British Isles, Wilder wants to be as sustainable and local as possible, with some ingredients coming from close to London and picked by McLellan himself. Inspired by McLellan’s supper clubs, where each dish included a wild element, the menu at Wilder will change with the seasons, showcasing the best local produce.
2-4 Boundary Street, Shoreditch, London E2 7DD
Visit Wilderlondon.co.uk.
A Fusion of Flavours at Oren, Dalston
In Dalston this month, Oded Oren opened the doors to his first restaurant. Showcasing his unique style of cooking, which combines Israeli and Middle Eastern influences, this is set to be as popular as his successful pop-ups and residencies at Borough Wines and Louie Louie. Expect seasonal, flavour-packed small plates such as ox cheek and hummus, squid pita, grilled lamb sweetbreads and chargrilled hake kebabs.
89 Shacklewell Lane, Hackney E8 2EB
Visit Orenlondon.com.
Simple & Seasonal Food at Emile
Nick Gibson, owner of award-winning Islington gastropub The Drapers Arms, has opened Emile with Damian Clisby, chef director of Petersham Nurseries. Named for Damian’s grandfather, Emile has a daily changing menu featuring dishes such as venison loin and Paddock Farm pork rib, with feasting lunches on a Sunday. Expect robust food and a competitively priced wine list.
26 Curtain Road, Shoreditch EC2A 3NY
Visit Emilerestaurant.co.uk.
Go Vegan with BrewDog at Biff’s Jack Shack
BrewDog has opened an all-vegan pub with food from Biff’s Jack Shack. A menu of jackfruit-based ‘junk’ food sits alongside a lineup of BrewDog beers. Biff, which is on a mission to bring the world’s filthiest, most indulgent vegan fast food to as many people as possible, will be bringing its unique crispy fried jackfruit to the kitchen, as well as old favourites such as ‘The Father Jack’, ‘The Samuel Hell Jackson’ and classic crispy jackfruit wings.
33-35 Stoke Newington Road, Dalston N16 8BJ
Visit Brewdog.com.
Knockout Pasta Dishes at 10 Heddon Street
This Mayfair Italian comes from the talents behind Smokestak and Kitty Fisher’s. There’s a daily changing menu featuring handmade pastas and produce from the in-house butchery. Expect nose-to-tail dishes such as tonnarelli, brown crab cacio e pepe, and garganelli with spicy pig tail ragu. The restaurant boasts a swanky address, but there is something informal about the rustic wooden tables, booths and open kitchen.
10 Heddon Street, Mayfair, W1B 4BX
Visit 10heddonst.co.uk.
Mediterranean Marvels at Flor
One of the hottest openings of 2019, Flor is a bakery-bar-restaurant in Borough Market from the team behind Michelin-starred Lyle’s. Split across two tiny floors of a 19th-century building, Flor is inspired by the buvettes of Paris and pinxtos bars of San Sebastian, with bottles stacked overhead, a few tables and a marble counter. Baked goods are made in house with British milled wheat – pastries in the morning and fresh flatbreads for dinner. Enjoy drinks from one of the many environmentally responsible producers on the wine list, alongside the simple and seasonal menu.
1 Bedale St, London SE1 9AL
Visit Florlondon.com.
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