The factors that make a good date restaurant: reliably good food and drink. A feeling that you've made a bit of an effort without going over the top. Not so much noise you can hear what your date is saying. (Side note: always listen to what your date is saying. Ask good questions. But listen to the answers). And then the potential for decent places nearby to go on to if the mood takes you. All of these restaurants are ideal. The rest is up to you. And your choice of date.
Plus, after a year of lockdowns, we want destinations that will help create a memorable backdrop, and outdoor date restaurants to visit now and romantic indoor options for when the restrictions ease on 17th May.
The Garden Room at The Lanesborough
This space is hidden below ground through the many weaving, opulent hallways of The Lanesborough hotel. The covered terrace bar is decked out with plush leather chairs and low candle-lit wooden tables, walls are shrouded in a foliage of bromeliads and ferns.
Bag a spot by the fireplace for the warmest seat in the house. There are plenty of whiskies and wines on the menu, along with hand-crafted cocktails including our favourite, the creamy Ramos in the Garden made with Bombay Sapphire gin shaken with St Germain elderflower liqueur, lime juice, lemon juice, double cream and simple syrup. When it comes to food, everything’s made to share – try the lobster tacos, Atlantic cod goujons and baba ghanoush.
Duke of Wellington Place, London SW1X 7TA
BOOK A TABLE AT THE GARDEN ROOM AT THE LANESBOROUGH
May Fair Kitchen
The newly-refurbed May Fair Kitchen is a sunny delight full of Mediterranean goodness: sharing plates that are made for dates. There's a rustic charm to the decor and the menu reads like one you might find down a quiet street in San Sebastian, but don't let that fool you — this is high end, high quality food and service, offered in a refreshingly friendly way. Make sure you have the King crab ravioli with sage butter, rich primrose-yellow parcels that glisten with herb-scented oil, and the gremolata-crusted lamb cutlets, specked with lemon zest. Dinner here is a like a mini-holiday, a moment of relaxed refinement that comes with a stellar wine list. Sit back and enjoy.
The Terrace here is also open and offers a relaxed, open-air option nestled in a secluded and heated setting.
The May Fair Hotel, Stratton St, London W1J 8LT
BOOK A TABLE AT MAY FAIR KITCHEN
Wild Honey St James
Wild Honey St James is the new restaurant from chef Anthony Demetre, whose original Wild Honey enjoyed 12 successful years in Mayfair. formerly The Balcon restaurant, this new offering serves distinctive modern European cuisine in a low-lit romantic setting. Think velvet, marble and flickering candles, while a cosmopolitan crowd soak up the relaxed, intimate atmosphere. Dishes at launch might include warm smoked eel and rillettes; bouillabaisse; slow-cooked and crisp tripe with sweet spice, fried egg and raw cream; roast saddle of rabbit with slow-cooked shoulder cottage pie; Tarte Tropezienne; classic English custard tart; and London wild honey ice cream.
8 Pall Mall, St. James's, London SW1Y 5NG
BOOK A TABLE AT WILD HONEY ST JAMES
Dalloway Terrace
Tucked into a little side street in Bloomsbury (surely London's most romantic neighbourhood, with all that historic bohemia), as the name suggests, this restaurant is a terrace. A heated, twinkly, cosy terrace, with candlelights and blankets and a cosseted feel. The food is all date night specials: great steaks, calamari to share, creme brulee. A menu you can't go wrong with, for when you just want to huddle under the stars. Oh, and there's an even cosier cocktail bar downstairs. And a hotel attached, for if the date goes really well.
16-22 Great Russell St, London WC1B 3NN
BOOK A TABLE AT DALLOWAY TERRACE
Osteria
Anthony Demetre's brand new Italian-inspired restaurant on the second floor of the Barbican centre is prime date real estate. The iconic building sets the tone, and the windows stretching across the whole side capture the view with all its romantic potential. The lights are low, the food a well-sourced romp through southern Italy (expect fine pastas, salads laced with salty anchovies, slow cooked meats that fall apart on sight. And oh, what a cheese board!) Plus you sound cultured for suggestion the locale. Bonus points.
Barbican Centre, Silk St, EC2Y 8DS
Scarfes Bar
Not technically a restaurant, but worth a mention anyway (and filling bar snacks from club sandwiches to aromatic samosas will keep you going), Scarfes is dating gold. Fireplaces, armchairs, and live music every night of the week it's pretty impossible not to fall in love with the person who brings you here.
Rosewood London, 252 High Holborn, WC1V 7EN
Seabird at the Hoxton
You don't get much more romantic when it comes to date restaurants in London then watching the sunset from your sky-high vantage point at the Seabird.
You’ll find Seabird on the fourteenth floor of The Hoxton’s Southwark hotel. The stunning bar and restaurant is the proud home of the longest oyster list in London, as well as some pretty breahtaking views over the city
If it wasn’t clear, seafood is the main focus at Seabird— including an impressive ‘raw bar’ in the centre, and an extensive list of crudo and many other dishes, including sardines on toast, Octopus roll, and a Basque-style bouillabaisse. All the food is deliciously fresh, highlighting the restaurant’s sea-to-table commitment.
And if seafood isn't your thing, we recommend going for a drink at least, the stunning vistas make it worth the trip to the top.
40 Blackfriars Road, London SE1 8PB
45 Jermyn St.
You'll seem like you put in a lot of effort if you take a date to this restaurant behind Fortnum and Mason's, but actually the experienced staff help keep the vibe relaxed. Booths are low and comfortable, and there's a whole separate Afters menu full of alcoholic floats for when the conversation is really flowing.
London, SW1Y 6JD
Blixen
Ideal for a brunch or dinner date, Blixen is one those places that looks nice (leather booths, exposed brick, clever ways with a hanging house plant), but where actually the prices are very reasonable. So it feels like you're somewhere fancy but without having to pay for it - in other words, this is good for first dates when you have low expectations. Plus the food is always good: smoked trout on avocado toast makes particularly good Saturday mid-morning date sustenance.
65A Brushfield St, London E1 6AA
Primeur
Primeur prides itself on honest cooking and a good wine list, which really are the backdrop to any decent date. There's a slight Spanish bent to this neighbourhood restaurant: expect jamon and squid and the tremor of excitement that always comes from fast-moving tapas and sharing plates. Oh, and the chairs used to sit in the Savoy, so there is a subtle whiff of glamour. Nice.
116 Petherton Road London, N5 2RT
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