The December Hit List: Darjeeling Express, Café Deco, St John Smithfield, and More

This cherished restaurant from one of London’s most inspirational figures is back with a bang. Asma Khan’s original Soho restaurant honoured her Mughlai ancestry with food to match – if you could get a reservation. Her regal new Covent Garden restaurant promises the same, and more, with a much larger 120-cover restaurant, a grab-and-go deli, and three new tasting menus crowned by a celebratory biryani feast. Reservations are going like hotcakes, so be prepared to set a Notify and hope for a bit of luck.

Dining status: Open for dine in and takeaway. More info here.

If one aspect of 2020 has been a new appreciation for the little things we used to take for granted, then Café Deco, by Rochelle Canteen and River Café alum Anna Tobias, deserves to be the opening of the year. Opened with the team behind 40 Maltby Street, there are no bells and whistles at this understated dining room; simple plates like leeks vinaigrette, a steamed fish with fennel, crunchy puntarelle and butter sauce, or a perfect steamed treacle pudding transcend their humble billings, while a room filled with London’s food cognoscenti is all but guaranteed.

Dining status: Open for takeaway at lunch Tuesday-Friday and indoor dining. Learn more here.

Those seeking the reassuring din of a busy dinner service will struggle to better St. John’s iconic dining room in Smithfield. It had remained closed through much of 2020, but those looking to feast on the restaurant’s perfectly judged menu of meat, fish, and game should move quickly. The bar is a haven for a properly poured pint of Guinness, cocktails, and plenty of snacks of greater substance than a Scotch egg.

Dining status: Open for indoor dining. More info here.

The post-lockdown period feels like an intersection of several unlikely bedfellows: festive cheer, the end of the year, and the opportunity to share a meal out. Barrafina’s Drury Lane restaurant – converted to a specialist seafood bar with flawless, seldom-seen tapas –  is an appropriately luxurious venue for an understated celebration, with gleaming marble counters and a dreamy dining room to see off the winter blues. Share a bottle of Champagne (or three) to make it one to remember.

Dining status: Open for indoor dining. Learn more here.

Based out of Flor in Borough, Pam Yung and Helen Evan’s mould-breaking pizzas have undeniably been one of 2020’s bright spots. Expect crisp bases fashioned from heritage grains, and split between classic red and white sauces; but each pie is a straight-up banger, with toppings that play on time-honoured combos like the Marg & Rita (classic margherita), or the Aloha Got Soul (mozzarella, tomato, guanciale, grilled pineapple). If there’s any time to give in to the joys of pineapple on pizza, it’s now.

Dining status: Open for takeaway and delivery, Thursday through Sunday, via Slerp or Deliveroo. 

It would be fair to say that the first lockdown cut the trajectories of many promising restaurants short, that otherwise deserved a closer look. Among these is the excellent Paradise, a Sri Lankan restaurant in Soho that pairs a cool, minimal feel (its interior was shortlisted for a Dezeen award) to bright island dishes like sizzling lamb chops, curries of mango or dayboat fish, and cocktails kissed with flavours of tropical fruit. It’s worth returning for the escapism alone, and the food is more than a match for any in central London.

Dining status: Open for dine in. More information here. 

Given we’ve given up all pretence of it being autumn, now’s a great time to embrace the joys of winter: Namely, proper comfort food in a favourite pub. The Canton Arms in Stockwell is one of London’s finest, with a glorious menu that reads like a dream – slow-cooked Dexter beef and mash, curried mussels on toast, proper puddings, and of course, a pie with buttered greens for two. While the dining room inside is cosy, there’s also a terrace as well as pre-prepared meals on offer to collect from Stockwell Continental nearby.

Dining status: Open for indoor dining, heated outdoor dining, and take away. More info here.

With the original Noble Rot hailed as an instant classic, a svelte new restaurant in Soho — in the former space of the Gay Hussar, a notorious haunt for London politicians — was always going to be big news. Here, innovation and a sense of tradition are captured in both a redux of one of the city’s best wine programs (the excellent selection by the glass includes 75ml tasting pours) and a menu of classic French-leaning plates from chef Alex Jackson, ex of Sardine. Jackson is a chef’s chef, and plates like eggs casino, baked Vacherin, and roast chicken with morels and vin jaune are about as good as it gets. Pro tip: Don’t miss the beef-shin goulash, a tribute to the old Hussar menu.

Dining status: Open for indoor dining.

Years in the making, chef Santiago Lastra’s restaurant has finally opened its doors in Marylebone, with a high-touch tasting menu of Mexican dishes reimagined with mostly British ingredients. His experience opening Noma Mexico and passion for local provenance (both inextricably linked) is evident in courses like a taco that sings with the flavours of sweet langoustine and smoked chili, or a whole braised short rib that slides off the bone, served with warm tortillas, salsa and pickles.

Dining status: Open for dine in. 

Keshia Sakariah’s Montserratian roots form the basis of her menu at this tiny restaurant in Pop Brixton, with an almost uniformly delicious array of dishes that cherrypicks from the Caribbean’s diverse cuisines. While a few dishes – say, a deeply-flavoured curry goat or crisp salt cod fritters – are mainstays, guests can expect to try less-seen dishes, like fried chicken with a remarkable molasses-based barbecue sauce, or rum cake soaked in Appleton Estate.

Dining status: Both indoor and outdoor dining are available, plus takeaway and delivery via Slerp. More info here.