The SL Guide To Marylebone
WHERE TO EAT & DRINK
Marylebone has always been a great place to eat. But a flurry of recent openings from some of the best restaurant groups in the capital has cemented its status. A couple of years ago, St John opened its third site on Marylebone Lane. Like the original, expect the same white-washed walls and nose-to-tail dining experience. We like to book a table at the window and watch the world go by with a glass of manzanilla as we order deep-dried rarebit (which comes with a bottle of Lea & Perrins on the side), middle white belly and anchovies, and a plate of made-to-order madeleines to take away. Earlier this year, Claude Bosi’s buzzy Lyonnaise bouchon Josephine launched an offshoot in a gorgeous space in Marylebone. Make sure to order the white asparagus and mousseline sauce; delicate cheese ravioli with parsley; and black leg chicken with morels, followed by the showstopping banana split.
The team behind the ever-popular Zephyr and Bottarga launched Nina earlier this year to even more acclaim. In Marylebone, the team has turned its attention to Italy, with emphasis on the joys of communal dining and the laboured simplicity of Italian cooking. Expect a raw menu with crudo, carpaccio and tartare, plus an excellent selection of pasta – think beef shin fazzoletti in red wine sauce; spaghetti in a rich, tomato sauce with stracciatella; and bottarga linguine served under a mound of bluefin tuna tartare. Finally, Angela Hartnett is opening her fourth Café Murano on Dorset Street at the end of this month.
As well as old favourites like the above, there are some essential newer names to know. Top of that list is Lita. The intimate Marylebone bistro – headed up by chef Luke Ahearne – was recently awarded its first Michelin star. Dishes celebrate bold, seasonal flavours with a contemporary edge – think bucatini cacio e pepe with sourdough pangrattato; mafaldine with pistachio pesto and smoked burrata; and Cornish pollock with Jerusalem artichoke and roast chicken butter. New for summer there’s a lovely sun-dappled terrace that complements the restaurant’s gorgeous interiors. Then there’s AngloThai. After years of residencies, John and Desiree Chantarasak finally opened a bricks-and-mortar restaurant at the end of last year. The Marylebone restaurant took just three months to win a Michelin star – standout dishes include lion’s mane mushroom and sunflower seed satay; monkfish jungle curry with holy basil; and hogget massaman and black fig. Make sure to book a table at Noreen too. This new Middle Eastern restaurant offers a refined take on mezzes and fire-licked meats. It’s headed up by Mehdi Hani, the former chef at Em Sherif at Harrods and The Dorchester, who draws from his Syrian/Lebanese heritage to serve up the likes of hummus shortrib and cardamon milk buns with whipped butter and date molasses.
A year ago, Andre Balazs’s Chiltern Firehouse would have been top of this list. Balazs’s third site after Chateau Marmont in Hollywood and the Mercer hotel in NYC, the celebrity hotspot sadly suffered a fire in February 2025. It was an SL favourite for the ultimate weekend brunch: think ‘Flaming Benedicts’, which came with crispy potato cakes and jalapeño hollandaise; black truffle scrambled eggs; and lobster and crab omelettes. These days, if we’re after brunch, we’ll grab a elite sandwich from Paul Rothe & Son. Established in 1900, this family run deli and sandwich shop started out selling solely German produce but expanded to offer a range of European and British goods post-World War II. Today, the café-deli is known for its hearty, plate-filling sandwiches. We like to keep things simple with a door-stopping egg mayo with chives and anchovies on brown bread.
The ever-excellent Kol is one of the most interesting fine-dining restaurants in the country. From Mexican chef Santiago Lastra, who now also has the more casual Fonda on Heddon Street, Kol underwent a refresh earlier this month. There’s now a new dessert and drinks experience where the lower-ground floor mezcal bar was, plus a five-course lunch menu (Wednesday-Friday), where guests can enjoy a condensed version of the classic Kol tasting menu. Fresh dishes for summer 2025 include strawberry taco with seaweed and pumpkin seed dip; and a reimagined chilomole with fermented chillis and ash oil. If you love Mexican food, also try Cavita by Adriana Cavita. Another spot with a great cocktail bar and mezcaleria in the basement, the bar showcases the best of Mexican mezcal and tequila, where guests can choose from various flights to try out different agave-based spirits.
Marylebone has plenty of options if you’re in the mood for excellent South Asian food. Another award-winning eatery from the Sethi family (who also look after Gymkhana and Taiwanese dumpling house Bao, which also has a Marylebone spot), Hoppers is one of the best Sri Lankan restaurants in London, named after one of Sri Lanka’s popular dishes – egg-topped pancakes. Unlike the original Soho restaurant, Hoppers in St Christopher’s takes bookings for dinner, and offers four semi-private dining vaults for groups of eight. Try the ‘Taste of Hoppers’ sharing menu to avoid food FOMO and sample the kitchen’s highlights.
Ravinder Bhogal launched pretty-in-pink Jikoni in 2016, drawing on her Kenyan and Indian heritage to fuse dishes from her travels and her childhood, and create a delicious hybrid menu. Combinations on offer include prawn toast scotch egg with banana ketchup and pickled cucumbers; scorched peaches with tofu, lime leaf gremolata and peanut brittle; Kesar mango and golden coin curry thali; and Ravinder’s famous banana cake with miso butterscotch, peanut brittle and Ovaltine kulfi. And finally, Trishna delivers a contemporary taste of Indian coastal cuisine, with a heavy focus on seafood. The informal and pared-back aesthetic of the interiors, offset with antique mirrors, marble tabletops and original wooden panelling, offers a neighbourhood atmosphere, with terrace doors that open onto Blandford Street, creating a semi al fresco ambience throughout the restaurant. Side note: if seafood is your thing, check out Greek fin-to-gill restaurant Kima, which offers a beautifully refined take on surf and turf.
If Japanese food is more your thing, book a spot at Roketsu, which launched its first site in London a couple of years ago. The restaurant is made up of just ten seats at the counter, making this an intimate experience. Food is served in the traditional ‘Kaiseki’ style, a ten-course set menu that revolves around dashi. Each sitting lasts three hours and current menu highlights include Cornish ikejime seabass with lobster, yuzu and Japanese mustard; and Cornish crab with pear, air-dried onion, carrot, fennel, yuzu and dill. We also really rate Taka, which serves a small plate-led menu, focusing on hot and grilled dishes and sushi. Sharers include a yakitori omakase – a whole chicken broken down and grilled over hot coals to create a complete nose-to-tail eating experience. The selection of sushi focuses on quirky adaptations of long-standing favourites, such as kagoshima A5 wagyu sukiyaki with onsen eggs, and popcorn shrimp with daikon salad.
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From the outside, French-leaning wine bar Clarette looks like an old Tudor pub: picture black and white beams and stained glass. But within, the townhouse has had a thoroughly modern makeover – the seating is pink, there’s plenty of exposed brickwork and statement lighting abounds. For a proper pub experience, we love The Coach Maker’s Arms from Cubitt House – the group behind London institutions like The Princess Royal in Notting Hill, The Builder’s Arms in Chelsea and Mayfair’s The Barley Mow. The pub itself is a stunner, but we love to book a table in its pretty upstairs dining room for an elite Sunday lunch.
For some old-school glamour, book a table at Fischer’s. Part of The Wolseley Group, it’s an informal neighbourhood café with a classic Viennese menu. The space is evocative of early 20th-century Vienna and is open for breakfast until late: the menu includes a huge choice of cured fish, salads, strudels, ice-cream coupes, hot chocolates and coffees with traditional tortes. Another tried-and-tested classic is Orrery, which has long combined high-end classic French cookery with a relaxed neighbourhood vibe. We love its smart floor-to-ceiling oval windows and its famously well-stocked cheese trolley. Our menu picks include saffron risotto croquettes with pesto, followed by turbot with braised cabbage, beurre blanc and oscietra caviar. Come summertime, you’ll find us on the plant-filled terrace.
WHERE TO SHOP & VISIT
The eastern half of Church Street is filled with antique shops – many of them run by dealers who started at Alfies Antique Market – and it’s now one of the best enclaves for antiques in London. For more than 40 years, Alfies has attracted serious collectors, interior designers and celebrities to its vast and varied collection of art, antiques, jewellery and fashion. Across four floors of one-offs and genuine treasures, it is one of the largest and longest-running arcades of its kind in the country – and is well worth a post-lunch peruse.
There’s a reason Daunt Books tote bags are spotted all over the capital. With five shops in London and one in Oxford, it’s the place to go to for a traditional book buying experience – and we’re a fan of its beautiful Marylebone site, which is always full of people taking Insta snaps of its interiors. If you’re not sure what to buy, check out its subscription service, which sends subscribers a new title every month, according to their tastes. If your idea of a great Saturday is browsing delis and food markets, pay Green Valley a visit. Established in 1986, it’s London’s largest and best-stocked Lebanese and Middle Eastern food hall (ideal if you’ve got an Ottolenghi book to be broken in). Starting out as a small shop on the same premises, it’s now grown to become a real treasure trove of ingredients and cookware.
There are countless fashion stores along Marylebone High Street. One of the area’s best independent boutiques is Kj’s Laundry, which focuses on niche, under-the-radar brands and is known for introducing new and exciting labels to the UK: think Ulla Johnson, Hope-Sthlm, Humanoid and Filippa K alongside cult favourites such as Samantha Sung, Sessun, Xirena and Masscob. We also really rate Mouki Mou on Chiltern Street, which stocks lesser-known brands mainly from Japan and the US. For menswear, look no further than Trunk Clothiers, the Chiltern Street boutique which carefully curates the very best fashion from Japan, the US and further afield.
When you’ve exhausted the shops, make sure to leave time for a quick visit to the Wallace Collection. Tucked behind Oxford Street, this 18th-century townhouse contains an impressive selection of paintings, sculpture, furniture and porcelain – all shown against a backdrop of beautiful original interiors. Filled with natural light and dotted with trees and sculptures, the Wallace restaurant offers al fresco-style dining protected from both the elements and the crowds of the West End, and it’s a great spot for afternoon tea or a light lunch.
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WHERE TO SLEEP
Discreetly occupying a Grade II-listed townhouse on Upper Berkeley Street, Henry’s Townhouse was once owned by Jane Austen’s brother. It is widely thought that Jane’s visits to Henry in London were of great value, for it was through his support that her work was published. A design collaboration between owners Jane and Steven Collins and the award-winning Russell Sage Studio, Henry’s is an intelligent and glamorous re-imagining of the Regency period, featuring an array of carefully chosen colour palettes, abundant fabrics and beautiful furnishings – think modern four-poster beds, roll-top baths and antiques and artwork that tell a story. In all, there are seven lovely bedrooms, along with a reading room – where complimentary aperitifs are served each evening – plus the Carriage Snug, where guests can mix up a cocktail and play backgammon. Downstairs, you’ll find the kitchen and pantry, where we had one of the best breakfasts we can remember. Best of all, the townhouse is run almost like a lovely family home, with someone on hand to look after you as much or as little as you like.
The BoTree opened its doors in September and fast established itself as a West End hotspot. The first opening from luxury group Place III Hotels, there are 199 chicly colourful rooms including 30 suites, all offering different views of London. The Soho Suites (with views over Henrietta Place and Welbeck Street) have spacious separate living areas and free-standing baths and all come with Jo Loves toiletries and Jasper Conran Wedgewood tea sets. Tao Group Hospitality (the same group behind Hakkasan and Yauatcha) is behind the hotel’s food and drink. Its signature restaurant Lavo serves elegant Italian dishes in a sophisticated but relaxed dining room – make sure to order the tagliatelle al limone infused with marjoram, sweet butter and kaluga caviar.
As well as newer hotels, Marylebone is home to some impressive mainstays. One of the oldest railway hotels in London, The Landmark London is a magnificent five-star hotel and has remained an icon for over 120 years. With 300 bedrooms and 51 suites, the hotel has some impressive restaurants: a stunning eight-storey glass atrium is home to the Winter Garden, which serves a modern European menu and a popular afternoon tea. The Mirror Bar is a great spot for late-night drinks and the hotel spa features a huge health club, treatment rooms and 15m chlorine-free indoor swimming pool. Opened in 1865 as Europe’s first ‘grand hotel’, The Langham underwent an extensive transformation a few years back, and now offers a selection of luxurious guestrooms and suites. Best of all, its bars and restaurants include the award-winning Palm Court, Artesian Bar and the Wigmore, all overseen by Michel Roux Jr. Elsewhere, its Chuan Spa Body + Soul is London’s first luxury hotel spa to incorporate the ancient principles of traditional Chinese medicine into its signature treatments.
Like the original in Clerkenwell, Zetter Townhouse in Marylebone is an independent boutique hotel full of personality. On Seymour Street, the 24-bedroom Georgian townhouse and cocktail lounge offers non-guests a great selection of cocktails and small plates in atmospheric, antiques-laden Seymour’s Parlour, so this is well worth bookmarking even if you don’t need a bed for the night.
Thought you had to leave London to find an idyllic treehouse getaway? Not so. All rooms at Treehouse Hotel are perched high in the city skyline and feature big bay windows that look out to some of London’s most iconic landmarks. The Backyard coffee/wine bar feels just like a real treehouse thanks to the exposed wood décor, while the rooftop Nest bar offers 360° views of the city. Think cocktails, swing seats and DJs working the decks – all from a luxe treehouse fort.
If you want to stay right in the centre of Marylebone Village, book a room at The Marylebone, which is a short walk from Oxford Street, Bond Street and Mayfair. Like the group’s other properties – The Bloomsbury and The Kensington – the hotel’s stylishly designed guest rooms and suites offer modern, art-filled spaces. Our pick would be one of its impressive rooftop terrace suites. The 249-bedroom Nobu Hotel London Portman Square sits on a prominent corner of Marylebone. Like other Nobu properties, the hotel showcases traditional Japanese architectural details and offers a high-end but relaxed stay. Naturally, there’s also a Nobu restaurant – which serves all Nobu Matsuhisa’s culinary classics – plus a pretty bar and impressive outdoor terrace. On a more affordable end of the scale, The Prince Akatori is another Japan-led hotel in Marybone. Expect gorgeously stripped-back interiors and excellent nightcaps in its Malt Room.
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