DESTINATION DINING

LOOKING TO IMPRESS A DINNER DATE THIS AUTUMN? THESE ARE THE HOTTEST RESTAURANTS IN LONDON RIGHT NOW

Words: Nick Savage, Innerplace Concierge

CHOTTO MATTE MARYLEBONE

Chotto Matte’s second London site was designed by the awardwinning Andy Martin architecture and sits easy among the highend boutiques and art galleries of Marylebone. The restaurant features natural lava stone and striking ceiling sculptures. The menu is the work of executive chef, and Gordon Ramsay protégé, Jordan Sclare. Particular highlights include the Pato Crujiente Con Salsa Peruana – a crispy duck served with honey orange ponzu and piquant jalapeño – and the Dragon Roll of prawn tempura, salmon, avocado and unagi sauce.

26 Paddington Street, W1U, chotto-matte.com

ALEX DILLING AT HOTEL CAFÉ ROYAL

Possibly the most exciting fine-dining destinations to launch this autumn, Alex Dilling at Hotel Café Royal represents Dilling’s first standalone restaurant, following the success of his time at the helm of a brace of two-Michelin-starred kitchens, The Greenhouse in Mayfair and Helene Darroze at The Connaught. This elegant and intimate dining space, which overlooks the iconic curve of Regent Street and across to Piccadilly Circus, seats just 34 guests. Be sure to get your reservations in early.

ST JOHN MARYLEBONE

Fergus Henderson is easily one of Britain’s most important chefs and his restaurants St JOHN in Farringdon and St JOHN Bread & Wine in Spitalfields blazed a trail for a new kind of cooking. So news that the group would be opening a fresh branch in Marylebone was met with much excitement. The resto offers excellent sharing-style plates and, as you’d expect from a name known for championing nose-to-tail dining, plenty of holistic dishes.

NW1, stjohnrestaurant.com

ROJI

There’s plenty of great Japanese joints in London, but top-class sushi isn’t quite so ubiquitous. Exciting news, then, that the team behind Sushi Atelier and Chisou have opened a 10-seater sushi counter called Roji on South Moulton Street. The intimate wooden counter is as easy on the eye as Roji’s sushi is on the tongue.

CAIA

Contemporary wine bar, music venue and open-fire restaurant, Caia was opened on Golborne Road by Notting Hill locals Rishabh Vir and Tim Lang in August and has already created a stir among both foodies and oenophiles. It offers an extensive list of wines from storied producers and young upstarts alongside a seasonally changing menu of winefriendly fare cooked on a custom-made grill. Head downstairs for a post-dinner house party.

46 Golborne Road, W10, caia.london

ISIBANI

West African food has been growing in popularity as a highend dining option for years. The latest acolyte is Isibani, launched by Anthony Douglas Chuka and Abdul Malik Abubakar, which landed in the heart of Knightsbridge Green, just behind the Bulgari hotel, in June. Expect elevated interpretations of recipes originally from Nigeria.

9 Knightsbridge Green, SW1X

Innerplace is London’s personal lifestyle concierge. Membership provides complimentary access to the finest nightclubs, the best restaurants and top private members’ clubs. Innerplace also offers priority bookings, updates on the latest openings and hosts its own regular parties. Membership starts from £100 a month. innerplace.co.uk