16 Best Restaurants in London, England

One of only five three-Michelin-starred restaurants in the city, Alain Ducasse at The Dorchester achieves the pinnacle of classical French haute cuisine in a surprisingly fun, lively, and unstuffy salon. Diners feast on a blizzard of beautifully choreographed dishes, including classic rum baba with Chantilly cream, sliced open and served in a silver domed tureen. Slick service is off-the-scale outstanding, while the sommelier is a brilliantly charming expert on all things vino. The £285 tasting menu is the best way to sample the full gourmet experience overseen by chef patron Jean-Philippe Blondet.  

British restaurateur Keith McNally re-creates his famed New York Parisian–style grand brasserie at this bustling spot off Covent Garden. The soaring grand café setting creates an enchanting backdrop to enjoy the reassuringly classic French brasserie menu, including standbys like fruit de mare platters, lemon sole meunière (with capers and parsley), côte de boeuf, and grilled lobster. A fitting treat for pre- and posttheater meals, spoil yourself with classy rock oysters and steak tartare before polishing off a pile of profiteroles for dessert.

Flavorful, inventive dishes elevate this hipster casual joint to the top rank of London's midrange gastro titans. With a focus on in-house curing, pickling, smoked meats, and heritage vegetables, expect a cavalcade of unlikely combinations and classic gastronomy specialties. The food is modern European with an emphasis on British produce; their beautifully delicate Cornish halibut with shrimp butter sauce and sea herbs is a prime example.

Be sure to ask for a table in the dreamy, white blossom–filled conservatory at this warm, cozy, and seriously romantic Provençal country-style inn off Covent Garden. Once inside, you'll be won over by the old-fashioned but refined French cuisine and charming country innlike ambience. Options include Loire Valley rabbit ballotine, poached wild turbot, and Charolais beef cheeks with fine French beans. Lunch specials and £39 pre-and posttheater prix-fixe meals (with a glass of bubbles) are a brilliant way to experience the cuisine and celebratory atmosphere. With its warren of candlelit, interlocking oak-paneled dining rooms, and open fires, Clos Maggiore never fails to enchant.

Punchy black-and-white photos of legendary regulars like postwar painters Francis Bacon and Lucian Freud beam down at this disarmingly charming old-school hangout that was once the unofficial London HQ for the Free French in exile and Charles de Gaulle during World War II. Set on the first floor of the eponymous pub downstairs and run by an eccentric former cabaret artist, you can sip Ricard pastis or bargains from the all-French wine list before embracing superb French bistro classics like salt cod beignets, calves brain with brown butter, or braised navarin of lamb with cheesy aligot mashed potato.

The city's wealthy flock to French virtuoso Hélène Darroze's restaurant at The Connaught for her dazzling regional French haute cuisine served up in a stylish Edwardian wood-paneled dining salon designed by Pierre Yovanovitch. Taking inspiration from the Les Landes region in southwestern France, Darroze sallies forth with a procession of magnificent dishes like turbot with rutabaga and razor clams. A great value weekday lunch is available on request at £125 per person.  

Fans of French bistro cuisine and fine wine flock to this glorious wood-paneled Georgian town house for masterful dishes like roast chicken with morel mushrooms and creamy vin jaune sauce alongside a marvelous 28-page French-focused wine list. Set in what used to be a famed Hungarian dining and left-wing political salon known as the Gay Hussar, these days diners bliss out on boudin noir and one of London's finest and most accessible wine lists, with numerous rare gems available by the glass.

The ultimate neighborhood restaurant in west London's wealthy Holland Park section draws diners with its brilliant-but-understated French and Mediterranean classics, relaxed service, and interesting, mainly French wines. Treat yourself to grilled dover sole with beurre noisette and capers, or King oyster mushrooms with sorrel risotto. With only 36 seats and a teeny bar, this is an intimate affair, which is highlighted by the white paper tablecloths and bentwood chairs. Service is friendly but not overly familiar, while wines are grower, boutique, or biodynamic. Traditional roasts served on Sunday.

Perfect butter-basted rotisserie chicken from Baserri Aldabia served with French fries and house salad epitomizes the understated Parisian-style bistrot elegance of this showstopper from chef Tom Seller. A short menu of a few quirks like snail Bolognese with wild garlic butter on toast or comforting faves like roast whole Dover sole is complemented by an electrifying wine list.

French tapas may sound sacrilegious, but Gallic gem Blanchette hits the spot at this family-run hipster bistro where jazzy French sounds complement the charming bare-brick and oak table candlelit interior. Visually feast on the eclectic Paris flea market bric-a-brac and then order a host of smaller plates to share, like the crispy frogs' legs and truffle saucisson (sausage) or baked scallops with Café de Paris sauce. The cramped tables can be a touch intimate, but desserts like chocolate tart, tonka bean syrup, and macerated cherries are a fitting Left Bank finale.

Tucked away down a pedestrianized back street, this casual French bistro is a favorite haunt for politicians based in and around the nearby Palace of Westminster. Open all day, one can only imagine the political intrigues being discussed over Gallic classics such as coq au vin or snails in garlic butter, all washed down with wines from the surprisingly extensive list.

The kind of smooth-running, welcoming all-day brasserie that is difficult to find in Paris these days, Colbert offers well-prepared bistro favorites like croque monsieur, escargot, and steak haché, along with bigger plates like pan-roasted sea trout with samphire and seaweed or confit duck. The service is professional but friendly and the atmosphere is stylish but comfortable. Although a neighborhood favorite, it's a swanky neighborhood, which is reflected in the prices, but a prix-fixe menu (two courses for £24.75 and three courses for £29.95) offers good value.

With the legend Tous Célèbres Ici ("All Famous Here") boldly etched on the front doors, the delightful LPM boasts an impressively well-sourced and balanced French Mediterranean, Ligurian, and Provençal menu based on the relaxed Riviera style of the original La Petite Maison in Nice. Try the soft Burrata cheese with a sweet Datterini tomato–and–basil spread or aromatic baked turbot with artichokes, chorizo, five spices, and white wine sauce. Dishes come to the table as soon as they're ready, and the très jolie and informal waitstaff make for a convivial rosé party vibe.

This long-standing favorite specializes in French haute cuisine done right, with an emphasis on luxurious dishes like caviar, oysters, lobster, and Dover sole (served meunière) along with bistro classics like rabbit with mustard and steak frites. Standards, like the prices, remain high, and the swanky dining room takes inspiration from the art deco liner SS Normandie. Weather permitting, grab a table on the terrace to make the most of the wonderful views of the Thames, Tower Bridge, and the Tower of London. A weekday lunch/early-bird dinner set menu (two courses for £30; three courses for £35) lets you sample this expense-account favorite with minimal damage to your wallet.

Dazzling classic French dishes mark out Les 110 de Taillevent as the city's top French brasserie de luxe. Housed in a chic former Coutts bank on Cavendish Square, diners and oenophiles delight in the exquisite cuisine and accompanying master list of 110 fine wines by the glass. Indulge from Château Latour to rarely seen Rieslings, and be sure to pair wisely with the restaurant's flawless desserts. The six-course-tasting menu is relatively good value at £125 per person, with an option to add wine pairings. 

Bringing the outside in, this café and restaurant is in the Wallace Collection's glass-roofed courtyard. It's open (daily 10–4:30) for breakfast, lunch, and afternoon tea, and for dinner on Friday and Saturday evenings (last seating is at 9:30 pm). The menu includes lamb rump, pan-roasted lemon sole, and other tasty offerings. If you don't want to strain your budget too much, you can just linger over coffee in the gorgeous surroundings.