London Chelsea Restaurant Guide

Just off the King’s Road, this two-year-old courtyard bar and restaurant (with outside booths) is a “lovely” venue in partnership with the nearby Chelsea Gardener. The straightforward British seasonal food is consistently well-rated, but no-one suggests it’s going to set the earth on fire.

“Unique, authentic and to a high standard” – the tasty Vietnamese and Singaporean bowls at this street noodle bar present some of the best eating value in expensive Chelsea. A South East Asian counterpart to the ‘dirty burger’, the name apparently means ‘happy Buddha’ – and you can buy the T-shirt or cap to prove you’ve eaten here.

“You wouldn’t go for ‘haute cuisine’, but as a jolly place to eat comfort food in a spectacular setting, it is hard to beat” – that’s the upbeat view, anyway, on this now-“ubiquitous” brasserie chain. Eight years and 40 openings later, the spin-offs increasingly eclipse the Theatreland original (see also), whose Edwardian features provide the style-guide for its nationwide ‘roll out’. “Even if the unchallenging food reaches no heights, there’s a consistent buzz”, which makes them a “posh”, “fun” choice for a get-together, if not a particularly foodie one. This is particularly the case at the landmark London off-shoots: at ‘Chelsea Garden’ (“gorgeous greenery”); Kensington (“slick”, with a “pretty glitzy crowd”); and on the Thames (“great views over Tower Bridge”). But while it’s always been acknowledged that the mass offering is “a shadow of the mothership’s” – with “average grub at not-so-average prices” – the feeling that the brand has become just “a chain that does not excite” is gaining ever-stronger currency. Service seems more “stretched” nowadays, and a sliding ambience rating is making the whole offering seem ever-more “overrated, for all its modern art and perky décor”.

“Great fun … despite lots of Instagram poseurs hanging around” – that’s the most common view on Richard Caring’s latest Ivy sub-brand: a mashup of “stunning” OTT interiors and a Pan-Asian menu which by-and-large totally avoids dishes from China to throw together Thai curries, wagyu beef and lots of fish and seafood (much of it presented as sushi or sashimi). Even fans would concede that “the food is secondary here – for entertainment value, this place has ‘got it’, but the menu is somehow lost in the mix”. And there are those who discern “crazy levels of cultural appropriation (a floor-to-ceiling, fake banyan tree? Seriously?), stirred in with a menu that’s less Asian-fusion than Asian-confusion, all creating a bit of a Caring-inspired mess”. This year saw the addition of a Mayfair branch to the original one (in the shadow of St Paul's) and last year’s opening in SW3 (where “very loud music can add to the already-high noise level”).

This quirky, faux-rustic venture in Chelsea was the second in the Gladwin family’s nowadays fast-growing farm-to-fork group. Its sustainable small-plates can be “very good”, but there are also a few gripes in reports, including service that can be so-so and a feeling that “tables are too close together”.

The “surprisingly delicious and wide-ranging menu” combines sushi with yakitori skewers (the so-called ‘sticks’) at this extremely popular Japanese-inspired group, whose “bustling” branches betray the Scandi style of their Copenhagen-based owners. It’s “a perfect choice if not everyone wants sushi” (even if it’s “expensive and portions are a bit on the small side”). A tenth branch is promised in late 2022 in Westfield W12.

This diminutive but “highly enjoyable” Venetian trattoria off Chelsea’s King’s Road (named in honour of the Doge who laid out Venice’s Piazza San Marco) is “really popular with the locals” for its “great buzz”, led by the “loud and funny waiters”. Founder Roberto Colussi died five years ago, but it has carried on in the way he intended, and will celebrate its 40th anniversary next year.

“Really interesting Malay/Chinese combo” cuisine sets this smart, if low key, Chelsea venue apart, minimally decked out with painted black walls. Spun off from an original in Oxford, it is named after the Chinese admiral who explored South East Asia 600 years ago. “Staff are very friendly and helpful” in navigating the menu, with its collision of Chinese, Malay and Indian food cultures.

“Rustic décor, friendly service and great pizza” win recommendations for this long-running duo, whose Chelsea branch boasts a heated roof terrace. They make their own fresh cheeses at a factory in Battersea, and their “burrata heart on a pizza is a creamy delight”.

These “busy and bustling fusion restaurants” offer a “wide choice” of East Asian dishes, headed by “Japanese-style favourites” – including various sushi or sashimi options and miso black cod – that are “competently and surprisingly well prepared”. Israeli-born founder Ohad Kastro celebrates the 10th anniversary of the original launch in Primrose Hill this year; branches in Soho, Marylebone, Chelsea and Barnes have followed.

“Hopping Chelsea local” (overlooking Chelsea Green), whose owners George Bukhov-Weinstein and Ilya Demichev also play a part in other casual luxury brands such as Beast and Burger & Lobster. Here, a vaguely Alpine interior hosts an offering whose menu incorporates a raw bar and pastas, plus prime steaks and fish grills sold by the 100g. Results are generally good, but whether they represent fair value is debated (“such an exceptional bill should not be presented to anyone with a weak heart…”)

Since it was “gussied up” last year, this “beautiful and comfortable” old Chelsea pub (built in 1838) hasn’t made waves, despite a PR push and a laundry list of influential backers (including the owners of JKS Restaurants and Kitchen Table’s James Knappett). Its slick gastropub fare can be “excellent”, but is not reliably so; service sometimes strikes an “entitled” note; and it can appear “sad to see an institutional Chelsea boozer become a self-conscious eatery”.

Phil Howard – “in a former life, the chef at The Square, where he held two Michelin stars” – continues to deliver “sophisticated, precise and light” ‘flexitarian’ cuisine at his “quietly situated” Chelsea HQ, where he has been ensconced for the last six years now. It’s rather “grown up” in style – “the atmosphere is very much of understated wellbeing” and the room “spacious”. As at some other establishments, though, the pressures of the era dent its ratings this year: “post Covid, the previously first class service is not quite as slick as it was: still professional, but just missing a beat every now and then”, and this can sometimes lead to a “lacklustre” overall impression. Many fans, though, still feel “you can’t go wrong” here. Top Tip – “fair wine prices”.

An “impressive wine list” is the undoubted highlight of this small group, with branches in the West End and Chelsea – the newest branch is a 120-cover site near Oxford Circus. No-one has terrible things to say about its food selection, though, which is judged “passable…”, “OK…”, “…tasty if a little pricey”.

“You could be in Paris… except the staff are nicer” at Didier Garnier’s stalwart “absolute old favourite” in a quiet Chelsea backstreet. For its silver-haired Francophile following, it ticks all the boxes for “a proper French restaurant”, serving ultra-classic bistro fare (“the menu changes rarely”), “wonderful desserts” and a “fabulous Gallic wine list at very reasonable prices”. More sceptical reporters feel it’s “delightful”, but that “it’s a pity they don’t put a bit more effort into the cuisine”. They are drowned out, though, by the proportion who feel that “for a very relaxing meal, there’s nowhere better”. Top Tip – “try and get a table under the awning”.

Fans do rave over the “beautiful cuisine from wonderful Matt Abé”, “exceptional” service and “memorable” all-round experience created by the f-word chef’s original HQ. And there’s little question that the classical-ish cuisine here is highly “technically accomplished”, service “friendly and well-informed” (“too much of it, if anything”) and the overall impression “classy”. But it continues to struggle against diners’ sky-high expectations, often inspired by Michelin’s somewhat unfathomable continuation of its three-star rating promoting it as being at the very pinnacle of UK dining. A relatively small venue in deepest Chelsea, “the dining room has the air of an art deco cruise ship, with its neutral tones and carpet”, all of which creates a setting that’s “tranquil”, but too “cold” or “bland” to some tastes. And when it comes to gastronomy, a typical critical report of the cuisine would be that it’s “not bad, some of it very good, but… frankly I was expecting outstanding… and it was a far cry from that… to the extent it was my biggest disappointment of the year”. It doesn’t help that it’s “hugely expensive, which always puts on the dampers”. (Footnote – a number of reporters wish ex-maître d’ Jean-Claude Breton well: “thank you JC, enjoy your very well-deserved retirement!”)

With its “authentic Thai food” (the mother restaurant is in Bangkok), this international group is still a “go-to Thai brand in the capital” for many reporters, especially if you want an experience “more up-market than at many of its competitors”. Restaurateur Khun Patara Sila-On opened her first London branch in South Ken 33 years ago, and has added five more in central London, Hampstead and Wimbledon.

This gorgeous-looking brasserie in the heart of Old Chelsea is “always busy”, with chef Iain Smith (a former associate of Jason Atherton) presiding over high-quality but rather pricey surf’n’turf grills and “Sunday roast to die for”. Proprietor Jenny Greene, the theatre impresario who restored the Old Vic and owns Ronnie Scott’s jazz club, upgraded the premises several years ago; it is now a licensed wedding venue with an upstairs bar and salon boasting impressive views over Albert Bridge.

“Big, bold and brassy, with lashings of tasty American food” – a meal in this BBQ and crabshack is “like having a holiday in the southern USA”. And you don’t have to battle through Heathrow to get there: a King’s Road, Chelsea fixture for more than 30 years, it now has spin-offs in Covent Garden and Canary Wharf. “Our grandsons loved this place. We enjoyed it too, and the cocktails were nice”.