Best of London food shops , restaurants and wine establishments for 2018

Here is my list of best of London food shops , restaurants and wine establishments for 2018.

Best Restaurant(s) in London : Hedone , The Square , The Clove Club , Bibendum , The Ritz  and The Ledbury

Best Sourcing and Ingredients : Hedone

Best Restaurant Wine Lists : Social Tapas , Chez Bruce  , The Greenhouse , Noble Rot , MASH, Hunan , Hedone and Taillevent 110

Best New Openings :  St Leonards , Kym's and Neptune

Best Argentinian : Zoilo

Best Italian Restaurant (Southern) :  Gola

Best Italian Restaurant (Northern) :  Novikov , Locanda Locatelli

Best Pan Italian :  , River Café  ,  Enoteca Turi , (Francesco Mazzei 's) Sartoria and L'Amorosa

Best Trattoria : Mele e Pere  , Radici and L'Amorosa

Best Indian : Jamvar

Best Casual Indian :  Chai Ki , Darjeeling Express

Best Indian delivery : Motu

Best Indian (Modern) : Roti Chai and Gymkhana

Best Pakistani :  Saloos 

Best Chinese : Hunan , Kai , Silk Road and A Wong

Best Dim Sum :  A Wong  and Royal China (Baker St)

Best Thai :   Som Sa

Best neo BBQ  : Pitt Cue

Best Fusion : Novikov 

Best Japanese : The Araki

Best Vietnamese : head to Paris or Vietnam

Best Lebanese/Syrian : Ishbilia  Knightsbridge

Best Israleli : Bala Baya

Best Greek :  Opsos , Meraki and Horvada

Best "Politiki Kouzina " Peckham Bazaar 

Best Turkish : Gökyüzü

Best Sushi : The Araki

Best French :  Gauthier Soho , Club Gascon, The Square , and Bibendum

Best Modern British/European : The Ledbury , Kitchen Table and The Clove Club

Best Spanish : Cambio de Tercio , Rambla and  Pizarro 

Best Tapas : Tendido Cedro , Rambla and José

Best English : St John's , The Guinea Grill , Parlour

Best Fish/Seafood : One - O - One , Knightsbridge (CLOSED)

Best Gastro Pub : Parlour , Harwood Arms , Anchor and Hope and Great Queen St

Best Service : Galvin's Windows and Cambio de Tercio

Best Sandwich : Kappacaseins Cheese Toastie

Best Pub : The Guinea and The Cleveland Arms

Best Selection of Craft Beer :  The Rake 

Best Wine Bar : 40 Maltby St , Antidote Wine Bar, 10 Cases and Noble Rot

Best Brasserie : Bob Bob Ricard

Best Neighbourhood Restaurants : L'Amorosa , Peckham Baazar and Chez Bruce

Best Mavericks : Morito Hackney Road , Pitt Cue and 40 Maltby St

Best French Bistro/Bourgeois Cooking :  Casse Croûte  

Best Burger :  Little Social 

Best "joint" Burger :  Patty & Bun and Meat Liquor 

Best Chain Burger : Patty & Bun

Best Steak : Guinea Grill , Zelman Meats and Goodman

Best Steak Restaurants : Zelman Meats ,  Hawksmoor , Flatiron , MASH and Goodman

Best Pizza :  Santa Maria and Pizzicotto

Best Street Food : Mr Falafel ( Shepherds Bush )

Best Value for money Wine List : MASH ,Noble Rot, Bonhams , Hunan and Andrew Edmunds

Best Value for Money Restaurants : Koya Bar ,   Flatiron and Peckham Bazaar

Best Breakfast : Koya Bar and The Ritz

My best meals in London 2018 . Hedone . Gauthier Soho , The Ritz,  The Clove Club and Peckham Bazaar.

My best meals outside London in 2018 : The Sportsman (Kent) and The Crown Burchetts Green and The Kitchin.

My best meals outside the UK in 2018 : Chez L'Ami Jean, Paris , Table , Paris ,  Le Calandre , Rubano and Le Calandre , Paris

Best Bakery/Bread :  Hedone

Best  Chocolatier : William Curley

Best Patisserie :  Hedone 

Best Coffee : Prufrock Coffee

Best Coffee Roaster : Difference Coffee and Square Mile

Best Tea : Lalani & Co

Best Croissants : None

Best Gelato :  Oddono's 

Best Fishmonger : The Chelsea Fishmonger (Rex Goldsmith), Chelsea Green

Best Fish and Seafood Wholesale : Pesky Fish

Best Butchers : O'Shea's , Provenance and HG Walter.

Best Greengrocer : Andreas Veg , Chelsea .

Best Cheese Shops : La Fromagerie , Androuet , Buchanans and Neal's Yard 

Best Purveyor of French Charcuterie  : The Ham and Cheese Company

Best Purveyors of Italian Salumi : The Ham and Cheese Company 

Best Purveyor of British Charcuterie : Cannon and Cannon

Best Wine Merchants Retail :  Bottle Apostle , Hansen Hayes and Clark and Handford

Best Wine Merchants Wholesale : Liberty , Fortyfive 10 ,  and Fields , Morris and Verdin

11 Park Walk , London

I was intrigued when I heard that Roberto Pisano (Edera) and his business partner John De Stefano ( Chairman of The London Fine Dinning Group where reopening the former site of Aubergine, a restaurant that in it's lifetime produced superb French inspired cuisine under both Gordon Ramsay and then William Drabble . Furthermore John De Stefano decided to name it 11 Park Walk the very name of the pre Aubergine restaurant.

John De Stefano a very successful property developer and owner of London Fine Dining Group already has the excellent Alloro and Zafferano in his portfolio. Roberto Pisano co owns 11 Park Walk as well Edera with John De Stefano and recently became General Manager of London Fine Dining Group.

Pisano was practically born in a restaurant in his native Sardinia and his experience spans both the kitchen and front of house. In London you may have come across this consumate professional at Edera, but he has in the past charmed customers at both San Lorenzo and the excellent Teca.

Edera's Giancarlo Usai also from Sardinia has now become Executive Chef of both Edera and 11 Park Walk and the kitchen hit the ground running producing pan Italian delights.

Roberto Pisano like me shares an addiction to the finest quality Bottarga as well as Truffles and I'm happy to say both feature strongly on the on and off menu dishes at 11 Park Walk.

On my various visits to 11 Park Walk I have had outstanding Bottarga centric dishes like Carpaccio di bottarga di muggine con carciofi e pomodorini (Mullet roe carpaccio with fresh artichokes and cherry tomatoes) , Malloreddusu con carciofi e bottarga (Malloreddusu with fresh artichokes and bottarga) and what is the finest Spaghetti a la bottarga that I have had outside Sardinia, the concentrated taste of finest Cabras bottarga blended with spaghetti that has been cooked in fish stock, coated in a foamy emulsion created in the pan where the dish is finished is simply phenomenal.




Other highlights include perfectly executed Branzino al sale (whole Baked Sea bass for two baked in salt) served table side. Truffles not only feature in a number of pasta dishes but also in deserts including the perverse but wonderful Zabaglione topped with Black Truffles.






Cleverly the owners are making 11 Park Walk all day dinning so for me it will become my pre or post match restaurant of choice for home games at Stamford Bridge.

11 Park Walk is not just a great addition to this part of Chelsea but will surely become a destination restaurant for those seeking fine Italian cuisine.

Sardo , London

I recently returned to Sardo after not having been for about a year. On this occasion it was a lunchtime walk in with my business partner who was over from LA.

Returning to Sardo was like running into a a very dear old friend who for one reason or another one has not seen for a while. Nothing had really changed much be it the simple decor or olives and the perfect Pane carasau, or carta da musica, the traditional flatbread from Sardinia.

Sardo and Primrose Hill sister Sardo Canale remains in my opinion the best Sardinian restaurant in London . To check standards were high I could not resist the Spaghetti a la Bottarga to start and it was truly sensational made with a generous quantity of top class Sardinian Grey Mullet roe not the cheap pulvarised stuff often used in inferior restaurants. My companion joined me on both the Spaghetti and to follow a simple but beautifully executed grilled medium rare dish of Yellowfin Tuna with asparagus , cherry tomatoes and rocket.

We shared a portion of Sebadas (Sardinian puff pastries with honey) with our espresso's before heading off to our next meeting.

I need to return soon for a longer meal and to revisit the excellent Sardinain and Italian centric wine list.