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# London restaurants: dining rooms, terraces and recorded menu prices

London restaurant plans can begin with a view, a neighbourhood or a menu budget. These dining rooms and terraces have specific addresses and recorded price examples; private rooms and Michelin booking windows have their own guides.

## High up: The Shard and the City roofs

On level 33 of The Shard, Hutong serves northern Chinese and Sichuan food, including Peking duck. Window outlooks face the City or west. Recorded hours put dinner from 5pm daily and weekend brunch at 11.30am–3.30pm. The adjoining Shanghai Bar stays open until 1am for drinks with the view.

Coq d’Argent occupies the roof of No. 1 Poultry above Bank station. Hedges frame a view towards the Gherkin, with classic French cooking, seasonal set menus and a Bordeaux-focused tasting menu. Its recorded schedule is Monday to Saturday until midnight, closed Sunday.

Aviary is ten floors up at Montcalm Royal London House on Finsbury Square, where the City meets Shoreditch. It opens daily, with weekday breakfast from 6.30am and the terrace closing at 10pm. Sunday roast is another reason to choose a daytime table.

## Gardens and terraces

On the King’s Road, The Ivy Chelsea Garden offers breakfast from 8.30am and stays open until midnight on Friday and Saturday. Garden tables are especially sought after in May around the Chelsea Flower Show.

Scott’s began serving fish and shellfish in 1851 and has occupied 20 Mount Street for decades. Its Mayfair pavement terrace carries a £75-per-person minimum spend, with tables allocated in booking order. Children under six are admitted only for weekend and holiday lunches.

Wild by Tart occupies a former power station and coal store in Eccleston Yards, about five minutes from Victoria station on foot. Seasonal British food is cooked over fire; the restaurant has appeared in the MICHELIN Guide since 2022. For a Pimlico stay, it adds an option beyond the dozen or so food businesses near a typical address, compared with well over a hundred in the West End.

## By the water

Le Pont de la Tour sits on Shad Thames with Tower Bridge in front of its terrace. French cooking and an extensive wine list accompany the river setting. The recorded service ends at 10pm Monday to Saturday and 9pm Sunday.

Little Venice offers a canal-side alternative. The Summerhouse on Blomfield Road faces the Grand Union Canal, serving mainly seafood in a nautical room. Weekend breakfast starts at 9am. It can pair with a walk towards Regent’s Park, reached from Paddington or Marylebone by a short taxi ride.

An online reservation rarely settles a window or terrace request. Contact the restaurant about the actual seat, and allow for rain. Coq d’Argent, Aviary and Scott’s all have indoor rooms. Late May to mid-September generally gives outdoor dining the longer evenings.

## Breakfast to the last dance: a day of eating well in London

For a day built around Piccadilly, breakfast at The Wolseley and dinner at The Ritz provide two fixed points. The former begins at 7am on weekdays; Friday and Saturday dinner at the latter includes a dance band. Lunch and tea can fit between them.

The Wolseley’s Art Deco dining room on Piccadilly houses a European-style café. Breakfast begins at 7am on weekdays and 8am at weekends, with kippers and a full English among the choices. Specify the main room if that is the setting you want.

Behind Fortnum & Mason, 45 Jermyn St. serves weekday breakfast from 7.30am to 10.45am and weekend breakfast from 8am to 11.30am. Buttermilk pancakes with blueberry compote and lemon curd are one option in a quieter restaurant setting.

Duck & Waffle occupies the 40th floor of 110 Bishopsgate and opens 24 hours daily, including at 5am for early risers. Reservations open up to two months ahead; the bar and lounge take walk-ins. Groups of nine or more contact reservations directly. The namesake dish appears on the menu, and Sunday roast runs 11.30am–3.30pm.

Sexy Fish in Berkeley Square House combines sushi, sashimi and robata cooking with art by Damien Hirst and Frank Gehry. Its bar describes the Japanese whisky collection as the world’s largest. Recorded set lunches start at £36, Monday to Saturday, noon–4pm. The Ivy at 1–5 West Street by Leicester Square has traded since 1917, with stained glass and a central bar. It opens at 11am and lists a two-course set lunch at £28.95.

The Dorchester’s Promenade serves tea daily from noon to 5.30pm, from £95 per person or £110 with champagne. A pianist plays Liberace’s piano from 2pm, and reservations open six months ahead. Children have an Atelier Choux menu. At Rosewood London, 252 High Holborn, the Mirror Room’s Art Afternoon Tea changes its featured artist. The recorded theme was Claude Monet, with pastries referencing Impression, Sunrise and The Water Lily Pond, served noon–5.45pm daily.

The Ritz Restaurant holds two Michelin stars and won Restaurant of the Year at the 2025 National Restaurant Awards. Men are required to wear a jacket and tie; jeans and sportswear are excluded. Dinner starts at 6.30pm daily. Friday and Saturday progress from pianist to trio to dance band until midnight, with a £58 entertainment charge per person. Monday to Thursday feature a pianist. Lunch is daily, 12.30pm–2pm.

An afternoon tea at 3pm and tasting menu at 8pm leave little appetite between them. The Wolseley, 45 Jermyn St., The Ritz and The Dorchester sit within walking range along Piccadilly and Park Lane. Mayfair has well over a hundred food businesses within a few minutes of a typical address; Duck & Waffle and Rosewood require a separate Tube or taxi journey.

## London restaurants worth booking for the room alone

For interiors that are a substantial part of the occasion, start with sketch, The Ritz or HIDE. Their rooms offer very different versions of a formal London meal.

sketch occupies a Georgian townhouse on Conduit Street. Upstairs, The Lecture Room & Library holds three Michelin stars; downstairs, The Gallery is known for its photographed interior, while the egg-shaped bathroom pods have their own following. The Lecture Room generally needs more advance planning.

The Ritz Restaurant’s Louis XVI interior dates to 1906, with painted ceilings, gilding, chandeliers and windows towards Green Park. Its two Michelin stars and jacket-and-tie requirement make the formality part of the booking.

HIDE also overlooks Green Park. An oak staircase connects the floors, and the restaurant holds a Michelin star with an extensive wine list. Weekday breakfast begins at 7am for a less formal visit.

For a livelier evening, Sexy Fish on Berkeley Square combines the Hirst and Gehry works with a lit bar and aquarium wall. Park Chinois on Berkeley Street draws on 1930s Shanghai supper clubs, using red velvet, low lighting and live music. Downstairs Club Chinois runs its show from 6pm Tuesday to Sunday.

Min Jiang, on the tenth floor of Kensington’s Royal Garden Hotel, looks across Kensington Gardens towards the palace and serves wood-fired Beijing duck. For another high outlook, Duck & Waffle sits 40 floors above 110 Bishopsgate, with round-the-clock opening and reservations up to two months ahead.

A window at HIDE or Min Jiang and a Ritz banquette are specific requests, rather than an automatic part of a reservation. Earlier or later sittings may give more choice. The Food Standards Agency awards its top rating of 5 to most recorded food businesses around Mayfair.

## Food hygiene ratings for the places in this guide

Official fact Food Standards Agency Food Hygiene Rating Scheme, checked 23 September 2026. 5 is the top rating.

| Name | Registered address | Rating | Inspected |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Hutong | Level 33, The Shard, SE1 9SY | **5** | May 2024 |
| Coq d'Argent | 1 Poultry, EC2R 8EJ | **5** | Sep 2025 |
| Le Pont de la Tour | 36D Shad Thames, SE1 2YE | **5** | Feb 2025 |
| The Summerhouse | 60 Blomfield Road, W9 2PA | **5** | Jan 2025 |
| Wild by Tart | 15A Eccleston Place, SW1W 9NF | **5** | Dec 2025 |
| The Wolseley | 157-160 Piccadilly, W1J 9EA | **5** | May 2025 |
| Duck & Waffle | 110 Bishopsgate, EC2N 4AY | **5** | Nov 2025 |
| Sexy Fish | Berkeley Square House, W1J 6BR | **5** | Mar 2025 |
| The Ritz | The Ritz, 150-156 Piccadilly, W1J 9BR | **5** | Feb 2026 |
| sketch | 9 Conduit Street, W1S 2XG | **5** | Feb 2024 |
| The Ritz Restaurant | The Ritz, 150-156 Piccadilly, W1J 9BR | **5** | Feb 2026 |
| HIDE | 85-87 Piccadilly, W1J 7NB | **4** | Aug 2026 |

Ratings cover hygiene only, not food quality. Matched by name and address; a venue not shown was not found or could not be matched with confidence.

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