Whether you’re married with kids, or swiping left and right, looking for the one, there are few questions more enduring and important than: Where to go for a date?
Maybe the two of you want to keep it low-key, in which case, Passione Vino would be nice. Or you’re craving pasta and a bottle of something delicious? There’s always Dalla. Whatever your preference, we’ve helpfully broken out our guide to London’s best restaurants and bars for a date by category, to help you fine-tune to suit your mood. Right this way.
Bar Lina
Soho
Start or end your evening in this seductive little cocktail bar hidden beneath Lina Stores, one of Soho’s historical Italian delis, now revamped for the Instagram age. Sip a Negroni or two, along with some salumi, arancini, or sea bream crudo to steady your first date nerves. Seating is at the marble counter or deep red velvet banquettes that line the room. A real find.
Hacha Brixton
Brixton
Introduce your new love to your true love at Hacha, the dedicated tequila and mezcal bar in Brixton. The crystal-clear Mirror Margarita, as at the Dalston original, is the signature tipple, with stiff competition from the Honey Bee Margarita, Chilli Corn and Maple Old Fashioned and a rotating list of 25 agave spirits. Tasty Mexican snacking comes courtesy of current kitchen residency Nopalito.
Leroy
Shoreditch
If bars are reflections of their owners, it’s clear that this Shoreditch wine bar and bistro has plenty of co-owner Ed Thaw’s influence. A slinky dining room with red leather-clad booths and a gleaming bar (the pro move) make quite the impression, before factoring in a superb wine list. Excellent bistro-plus dishes like French charcuterie and cheese, steak tartare and shoestring fries, and a smoked eel Caesar salad with shoestring fries.
Peckham Cellars
Peckham
Popular with trendy Peckhamites without veering into seriousness, this buzzy neighbourhood wine bar and bistro is superb for knocking back a bottle or two while sharing a few snacks. Wines range from on-trend low-intervention, classic, and obscure – ask co-owners Luke, Ben, or Helen what’s good, and they won’t steer you wrong. Equally good for the get-to-know-each-other phase, or more involved conversations.
Mr Ji Camden
Camden
Mr Ji has returned to Camden after a successful sojourn in Soho that introduced it to a new audience (including some of the best chefs in the world). The pared back eating and drinking den dances to its own tune, slinging ingenious salted plum negronis and lime leaf margaritas with snacks from your wildest dreams. How about lamb ribs, chilli vinegar and anchovy or handmade mapo tofu wontons?
A TOUCH OF SCENE
Dalla
Hackney
The flattering lighting, the single stem vases, the magnums of Italian wine, conspire to make this bijou restaurant one of London’s most romantic. Here’s a place to cosy up with your beloved over plates of handmade tagliatelle, seasonal salads, ripe fruit, or tiramisù. Note the tables are tightly packed so a little light footsie is inevitable.
Trattoria Brutto
Farringdon
A Hollywood set designer couldn’t construct an Italian trattoria more tipico, more timeless, than the late great Russell Norman’s Trattoria Brutto in Farringdon. The red-checked tablecloths, wax-dripped Chianti flasks and mood lighting are note-perfect, but it’s the culinary details that complete the mise-en-scène, from the retro curls of cold unsalted butter with the toast and anchovies to the long, slow-cooking of the beef peposo. The star, however, is the bistecca alla Fiorentina, sourced direct from Smithfield, and available in limited numbers. Brutto feels like it’s been here for ever.
Pidgin
Hackney
The menu at Sam Herlihy and James Ramsden’s big-hearted neighbourhood restaurant changes every week. In eight years, not one dish, not a single dish, has been repeated. Even the wines change weekly, so however many times you’ve been, you’ll find yourself falling in love again. The menu’s great value at £49, with paired wines another £39. Hispi cabbage pancake, gurnard with squid ragu, lamb navarin, and white chocolate and miso choux are among the never-to-be-repeated dishes.
Firebird
Soho
That a skinny site in central Soho can so somehow capture the feeling of dining beneath the olive trees on a summer’s day is down to the warm-hearted hospitality of St Petersburg restaurateur duo Madina Kazhimova and Anna Dolgushina. They’ve filled the room with plants and terracotta and stocked the cellar with the choice natural wines they love. Cooking is done over open fire, including specials such as T-bone steak and whole plaice.
Sette
Knightsbridge
When you’re in the fireworks stage, you need somewhere you can put on a show. Sette at Bulgari Hotel London is the one, a designer dining room filled with beautiful people – like you! – twirling spaghetti, sipping Champagne, and gazing into each other’s eyes. The London outpost of New York’s Scarpetta group, it majors in dolce vita delights like red prawn carpaccio with sliced kumquat and Szechuan pepper, creamy polenta with truffled mushrooms, and lobster tagliolini with aquapazza.
Rochelle Canteen
Shoreditch
With an idyllic garden, confident seasonal cooking, and a location hidden away in a Shoreditch square, it’s little wonder that this small-but-perfectly formed restaurant is so popular. As experiences go, summer nights here are bettered by very little in London. The sort of place one takes a keeper.
‘SOMEWHERE FUN’
Mambow
Peckham
Credit its elevator pitch, “Malaysian heat and juicy vibes”, for the buzz that’s built around Abby Lee’s Mambow in Hackney. Lee, who grew up in Singapore and Malaysia, cooks a short menu of modern Malaysian with a focus on Nyonya dishes including her bestselling lor bak (pork and prawn rolls in bean curd skin). Don’t miss the otak otak prawn toast, the tripe kerabu or the sensational sambal-stuffed mackerel.
Rita’s
Soho
Let Gabriel Pryce and Missy Flynn of Rita’s (once a Dalston pop-up, now a Soho destination) feed you things you didn’t know you needed. Starting with jalapeño popper gildas, mini Martinis, and hot bean devilled eggs. Pryce’s open-hearted, outward-looking Americana has no match in London. Where else can one find saltfish taquitos, ox cheek and grits, clams with creamed celery and fried Idaho scones, and mezcal-laced Oaxacan affogatos? Ace cocktails and natural wines too.
Donia
Soho
This contemporary Filipino restaurant in Kingly Court is the Maginhawa Group’s most culinarily ambitious opening to date. The cooking’s terrific, with much of the talk centring on the prawn and pork dumplings with white crab, the lechon and liver peppercorn sauce, and the pretty mauve-hued ube choux. Jimi Famurewa in the Evening Standard’s described it as a “prolonged loop-the-loop of pure, unbridled pleasure” and if that isn’t what you’re looking for in a date, we can’t help you.
Bambi
Hackney
Playful food, wine, and music share top billing at newcomer Bambi at Netil House. The wine bar, founded by James Dye of Frank’s Café and the Camberwell Arms, has a vast record collection and state-of-the-art sound system, so you can nod your head and tap your feet as you scoff cauliflower cheese arancini with a glass of pet nat. At 10pm, Bambi morphs into a bar with music and dancing until late.
Chet’s
Shepherd's Bush
A ‘Thaiami Vice’, a sharer cocktail for two with a half bottle of Champagne on the side, is one way to start your night at Chet’s, the vibey Thai-meets-American diner at the Hoxton, Shepherd’s Bush. Alternatively, you can take it easy with some cold beer, larb fritters, and hot sticky wings, and see how things unfold.
Top Cuvée
Finsbury Park
This isn’t the number one reason to book Top Cuvée for dinner but it’s worth mentioning that if the date’s a dud, at least the wine will be good. Better reasons to book: the uncomplicated French wine bar tucker (chips, oysters, pâté en croûte), the upbeat vibe, the cool crowd, and the cheery service. Excellent natty wines from star producers.
Gunpowder Tower Bridge
Tower Bridge
Hard by an iconic London landmark, this south-of-the-river outpost of Harneet Baweja’s three-strong Gunpowder group serves modern Indian flavours in cool, contemporary style. Regional and family recipes are styled up into showstoppers like the spicy, spiky venison and vermicelli doughnut, crispy soft-shell crab, and blackened lamb chops. Follow with a walk along the Thames.
Bar Kroketa
Soho
One for the commitment phobe, this. A friendly tapas bar on Kingly Court where you can stay for as little as a plate of squid ink croquetas and a drop of chilled fino, or acquaint yourself with the kitchen’s full repertoire of modern Iberian snacking, from Guinness and chorizo popcorn to spiced lamb brik parcels.
KEEP IT CASUAL
Sune
Hackney
Honey Spencer and Charlie Sims have drawn inspiration from the liveliest neighbourhood joints in New York, Sydney, and Copenhagen, to create the local restaurant of dreams. Spencer’s a sommelier by training and the wine list is a doozy, with whole sections devoted to magnums, skin contact wines, and some rarities by the glass. As to the food, the croque monsieur with dairy beef tartare and oscietra caviar is the move.
Saltine
Highbury
Like the good neighbourhood restaurant that it is, chic newcomer Saltine leaves the guest to set the pace. They can take it easy, snacking on small plates of crab and pomelo or peppered venison carpaccio from the bar with a shiso martini. Or they can let loose on the full menu and three courses of modern European cooking with something special from the natural-leaning list.
Ombra
Hackney
One of East London’s most popular Italian restaurants for a reason, this Venetian-inspired spot even has a pretty deck overlooking the Regents Canal, while there’s a proper neighbourhood vibe inside. Most diners come for Mitshel Ibrahim’s standout pastas, antipasti (wild garlic ravioli and Roman-style fried artichoke are stunning), and tiramisu, but in truth, all of his desserts are excellent. A restaurant to put anyone at ease.
‘LADY AND THE TRAMP’-STYLE
Tiella at the Compton Arms
Islington
The latest kitchen residency in at vintage Islington boozer The Compton Arms is chef Dara Klein’s Tiella. Klein draws deep on her Italian heritage to reinvigorate classic regional dishes such as boquerones ‘in saor’ from Venice, pork and fennel sausages with Pugliese-style cime di rapa, and tomatoes and ricotta with a drizzle of 34-year-old balsamic.
Eline
Shoreditch
When it isn’t some flash in the pan thing, make it known at Eline, a cosy and quietly confident new bottle shop and restaurant in Hoxton. Husband and wife team Alex Reynolds and Maria Viviani, who met working at Pophams, pride themselves on an offering that’s simple and approachable but with hidden depths. Here’s a place to return to repeatedly, to discover another new winemaker or to discover the happy marriage of lemon tart and sake ice cream or duck boudin blanc and orange.
Café Deco
Bloomsbury
At sweet, serene Café Deco in bookish Bloomsbury, Anna Tobias cooks a daily menu drawn from across Europe. Her food is too special to share with just anybody, so choose your partner wisely. Will they split the spätzle and chanterelles? Share the radicchio and farro risotto? Let you you stick a fork in their pheasant and trotter pie? And will they appreciate the beauty of the anchovy-draped egg mayonnaise? The wine list, as you’d expect of a co-production with the 40 Maltby Street team, is enlightened.
Trullo
Highbury
This understated Italian (and older sibling to the wildly popular Padella) is about as poised as they come. Tim Siadatan’s food is pared-back, intensely seasonal, and wildly delicious, while an elegant dining room laden with white tablecloths and cosy booths offers romance without hubris. An excellent but unshowy, subtle flex of a restaurant.
Brunswick House
Vauxhall
In possession of one of the most arresting dining rooms in London, Brunswick House is set within the grandeur of an antique-filled Georgian mansion in Vauxhall, flanked by skyscrapers on all sides. Broadly British plates arrive with playful twists (don’t miss the potato bread), while the room comes alive at night when the dining room’s chandeliers light up like a canopy of fireflies. Grown-up and sophisticated, but fun.
Pique-Nique
Bermondsey
A chic, intimate French bistro with the kitsch dialled down, this restaurant has been a well-kept secret of Bermondsey locals for years. Inside, there’s a stylish interior with acres of marble and wood panelling, while dishes come written up on a chalkboard each day – shared mains (from a signature seabass en croute with lobster sauce, to chateaubriand with ceps) are perfect for leaning into the occasion. Share a bottle of natural fizz and a souffle for dessert, while you’re at it.
Campania
Hackney
As restaurant experiences go, an evening at this cosy Hackney local is about as transportive as it gets. A warren of charming dining rooms – all exposed brick, refurbished furniture, and modern touches – plays against a deceptively sophisticated menu of Southern Italian fare. Pastas and anything slow-cooked is guaranteed excellent, while a room full of regulars and candlelight provide all the atmosphere necessary.
GETTING SERIOUS
Quo Vadis
Soho
Where more intimate, more stylish, and yet more carefree and fun than Quo Vadis? This classic restaurant on Dean Street continues to ascend to greater heights under the care of beloved chef Jeremy Lee, and with its newly expanded ground floor dining room, it’s even better than ever. Don’t skip pud; the île flottante is a dream.
Seabird
Southwark
The rooftop restaurant at The Hoxton Southwark is one of London’s most ravishing rooftop restaurants, boasting multi-storey seafood towers and views from the terrace for the days. Go for broke with oysters, lobsters, and caviar, accompanied by Martinis made at your table. You must really like this person!
Barrafina Adelaide Street
Covent Garden
This magnetic, best-in-class tapas bar and restaurant (modelled on Barcelona’s finest) has been a go-to for swish dates for years. Grab a seat at the curved marble counter, order a bottle of cava or Albariño to share, and order from the daily-changing specials board – ingredients are stunningly fresh. Impressive but casual in feel, it wears its glamour lightly.
Kitty Fisher’s
Mayfair
Named for a prominent 18th century courtesan, this slinky Mayfair restaurant resembles a smart private club in feel – but with much better food. True to its namesake, it’s far from stiff; perfectly-formed British dishes pair well to a good wine list and excellent cocktails – a couple of Bad Kittys has loosened many an evening in the past.
NoMad London Restaurant
Covent Garden
Woo them like you mean it with a magical night at The NoMad Restaurant. The atrium setting, tasselled velvet cushions and tumbling foliage everywhere, makes it one of London’s most dramatic dining rooms. There’s drama tableside too, in the theatrical presentation of the signature roast chicken with black truffle and foie gras; in the towering fruits de mer platters; and luxurious truffle risotto. Taking advantage of the option to add on a “Night at the Nomad. Price Upon Request” is a flex.
Elystan Street
Chelsea
A shiny Michelin star is the nearest you’ll get to bling in this elegantly appointed Chelsea restaurant from acclaimed chef Philip Howard and restaurateur Rebecca Mascarenhas. It’s a fine art, balancing the needs of the locals with those of destination diners, but Elystan Street manages it with an astute offering of seasonal flavours, first class wines, and life’s little luxuries. The hand cut strozzapreti with black truffle, chicken stock, and parmesan with a glass of fine Valpolicella gives you the flavour.
Caravel
Islington
It’s not a bateau mouche on the Seine, but it is twice as romantic and half as corny aboard this vintage barge moored on the Regent’s Canal. The Spiteri brothers are London restaurant royalty (their mum co-founded Rochelle Canteen; their dad, Sessions Arts Club) and they’ve brought all their chops to this floating project. Crisp white tablecloths and cute brass lamps set the scene for a special night of Fin’s cocktails and Lorcan’s modern British cookery. Start with a Paper Plane then swoop down on onglet with pickled walnut and watercress or Cornish mussel tagliatelle.
Eataly Terra
City of London
Hidden amidst the bustle of Eataly, this intimate Italian restaurant is known for a show-stopping artisanal grill at its heart, with seasonal plates designed to pair with botanical cocktails and one of the largest selections of Italian wines and spirits in town.
Cora Pearl
Covent Garden
Perfect for an occasion while still relaxed enough to actually enjoy, this dreamy Covent Garden restaurant offers a hit of old-world sophistication. Finessed comfort dishes offer thrilling takes on time-honoured combinations, while a beautiful dining room – all crushed velvet banquettes, dark wood, and esoteric artwork – is a fitting place for an evening of amorous banter.
WINE BARS
Cadet
Newington Green
The creation of charcutier George Jephson, chef Jamie Smart, and wine importers Beattie and Roberts, Cadet on Newington Green is one of London’s essential addresses for wine lovers. Sit at the bar to explore the daily changing blackboard menu of new bistro cooking and life-changing wines, not forgetting to order a slice of Jephson’s pâté en croûte.
Little Cellars
Camberwell
Whether this is your first date or your umpteenth date together, the team at Little Cellars will find the wine to suit the mood. Maybe a quaffable, carefree, Portuguese fizz, an unhinged orange, or a luscious red; you can stay for just one glass or commit to the whole bottle. Candlelit and cosy, but not too ‘romantic’.
Bar Crispin
Soho
The Soho sibling to Spitalfield’s original Crispin, Bar Crispin is the ultimate ‘there’s this little place I know’. Tucked down Kingly Street, it opens all day, progressing from coffee to natural wine as the day goes by. Small-but-mighty sharing plates such as lamb sweetbreads with Café de Paris butter, burrata with Le Coste olive oil and brown crab toasts, glittering with trout roe, cry out to be paired with rare wines, wild wines, and some particularly impressive bubbles.
Lady of the Grapes
Covent Garden
Friendly and convivial, this Covent Garden wine bar possesses plenty of atmosphere, with a smooth zinc bar, exposed pendant lamps, and shelves of bottles dominating the interior. It can be popular with groups – so perhaps not the best for a high-stakes tryst, but it works well for a casual drink or a second date. Notably, all of the wine on the premises comes from female-owned vineyards and producers.
Passione Vino
Shoreditch
Behind the blue shopfront lies a labyrinthine world of wine, helmed by impassioned Italian wine buff Luca Dusi. It’s a quirky place to uncork a bottle, adding a few Italian plates such as deep-fried Venetian meatballs with mustard mayonnaise or fresh casarecce with rabbit ragù when hunger strikes. There’s no list as such, so leave it to Luca who’ll introduce you to your new favourite wine.
Naughty Piglets
Brixton
A French bistro with an English accent, Brixton locals adore this Parisian-style wine bar and bistro with excellent contemporary dishes and knockout natural wines. Perch at the upstairs bar with a date for a casual hang, and retire to the downstairs wine cellar – all atmosphere and candlelight – when the conversation gets interesting. Don’t miss the croquettes.
COCKTAIL BARS
Common Decency
Covent Garden
The slinky subterranean bar beneath NoMad London has the smarts of a New York bar and the swagger of a London one. And the drinks are out of this world, from the disco lights of Taste The Rainbow and the good looks of Cool as a Cuke to a Szechuan Gibson that will make you go all tingly. Don’t forget to eat: the bar menu’s an epicurean’s edit of sumptuous snacks like potato rösti with caviar and chicken croquettes with black truffle aioli. Last call midnight.
Three Sheets
Dalston
Officially one of the best bars in the world, this intimate cocktail bar on the Kingsland Road proffers old-world style and contemporary know-how in equal amounts. The Martinis here are among London’s best, and the bartenders’ riffs on classics are truly delicious, while the tiny room’s atmosphere is buoyed by a strong local crowd looking to get loose. One for all occasions.
Little Mercies
Crouch End
Who knew one of London’s best cocktails bars was in Crouch End? Sister to the award-winning Three Sheets, a sexy, laid-back vibe – think louche leather booths, plenty of foliage, and exposed brick – is backed up by world-class cocktails from clued-up staff. Grab a table by the front, or perch at the gleaming marble bar for an evening to savour.