London in the 21st century is the restaurant capital of the world. British chefs vie with the most famous names on the international food scene to secure the primest sites for their new ventures. Here you can find almost any cuisine on the planet, often made with seasonal British ingredients, whether organic meats, sustainably caught fish, and regeneratively farmed vegetables, but the food is only half the story: chefs collaborate with designers to ensure that the surroundings look every bit as enticing as what’s coming out of the kitchen.
Each month, we visit some of the city’s buzziest openings to discover the most exciting new menu items and locations across the capital.
The Wallpaper* guide to new London restaurants
March 2026
Impala
Impala
Is Meedu Saad the best chef you’ve never heard of? The London native was head chef of Kiln for six years. For his debut solo restaurant Impala, he’s staying in Soho but expanding his repertoire beyond Thai to take in everything from North Africa to north London.
The mood: Named after the cherry-red Chevrolet Impala that Saad drove during family holidays in Egypt, the restaurant combines the concrete pillars of its skylit 1960s building with a site-specific lighting project by Joe Armitage, inspired by Carlo Mollino’s designs at Casa Orengo in Turin.
What to order: Try the dish that inspired Saad to open Impala when he ate it at a friend’s house in Egypt five years ago: dry-aged duck stuffed with black limes and Aswan chillies, roasted over wood embers with molasses.
Why we love it: For offering a thrillingly individual take on Soho dining.
Impala opens in late March and is available to book from mid-March. It is located at 14 Dean Street, London W1D 3RS, United Kingdom
Sale e Pepe Mare at The Langham, London
Sale e Pepe Mare
The original Sale e Pepe opened in Knightsbridge in 1974 and, apart from a 2024 refurb by new owners the Thesleff Group, has stuck to a tried-and-trusted formula of classic Italian hospitality for over 50 years. Change is now afoot, however, with a seafood-focused offshoot opening in the bow-windowed dining room of the Langham hotel.
The mood: The wood-panelled surrounds should prove the perfect forum for Sale e Pepe’s flavour of elegant nostalgia, with an Italian accent courtesy of a marble bar and richly textured upholstery. Caesar salad prepared to order, and drinks and dessert trolleys doing the rounds, add a retro flourish of tableside theatre.
What to order: Take your pick from the catch of the day on the central seafood display before the finishing touches are applied in the kitchen: lobster jumbled into linguine with datterino tomatoes and basil, or whole turbot cooked on the Josper grill.
Why we love it: For reminding us that the old ways are often the best.
Sale e Pepe Mare opens on 2 March and is available to book now. It is located at The Langham London, 1c Portland Place, London W1B 1JA, United Kingdom
Teal by Sally Abé
Teal by Sally Abé
Sally Abé has headed up some of the country’s top kitchens, from hotel dining rooms (The Pem at the Conrad London St James) to the poshest of pubs (The Bull at Charlbury and Fulham’s Harwood Arms). Teal finds her in Hackney opening her first solo restaurant, championing British ingredients based on quality and sustainability (the restaurant is named after the game bird, not the Pantone colour).
The mood: A feminist take on a British bistro, designed by Abé and her sister Alice, with bentwood chairs and mustard-yellow leather banquettes, and artworks depicting women’s rights marches.
What to order: If it’s British, seasonal and nostalgic, it’s probably on the menu here, from a haunch of deer with pickled walnuts and cavolo nero to a marmalade ice-cream sandwich.
Why we love it: One of Britain’s best female chefs can finally cook on her own terms.
Teal by Sally Abé opens on 26 March and is available to book now. It is located at 52 Wilton Way, London E8 1BG, United Kingdom
February 2026
Jul’s
A long-running hit in Ibiza since 2018, Jul’s occupies a former bank in St James’s: the land of gentlemen’s clubs rather than nightclubs. Greek chef and co-founder Christos Fotos has another spin-off in Athens called Humain by Jul’s, and there’s a strong Hellenic influence here in everything from the interiors to the cooking.
The mood: Athens-based design studio Arcset has reimagined the grand heritage architecture with marble, mosaic floors, scorched wood and a moody chiaroscuro of light and shadow. A glass wine wall runs the full height of the ground floor, while below, No. 11 functions as an open bar laboratory where cocktails reflect the flavour profiles of the kitchen.
What to order: Greek-inspired but broadly Mediterranean dishes shaped by British ingredients and seasonality. Expect giouvetsi flatbread with slow-cooked lamb, and grilled fish cooked over an open fire.
Why we love it: For proving that Mediterranean cooking can feel just as at home in St James’s as it does on a sun-drenched Balearic island.
Jul’s is located at 11 Waterloo Place, London SW1Y 4AU, United Kingdom
Osteria Vibrato
Osteria Vibrato
Charlie Mellor, whose Hackney restaurant The Laughing Heart became a chef favourite before closing in 2022, returns to the restaurant scene with a Soho opening alongside fellow sommelier Cameron Dewar, most recently head of beverage at Luca. The restaurant’s name refers to the technique for producing a richer, more resonant tone: a nod both to Soho’s musical heritage and Mellor’s former career as an operatic tenor.
The mood: Mellor has designed an elegant dining room filled with cream tablecloths, candlelight, banquettes upholstered in bespoke ‘Vibrato red’ British Pasture Leather, and a Diespeker terrazzo floor. Handcrafted rosewood veneer panels the lime-plastered walls beneath Murano chandeliers, while the sound system plays Mellor’s own record collection. The Green Room cocktail bar has 12 seats for Negronis and ice-cold martinis.
What to order: The menu reflects the influence of co-creator Gaia Enria, founder of London’s first artisan pastificio Burro e Salvia, with painstaking preparation employed throughout: fior di latte mozzarella made in-house daily, fresh pasta rolled each morning, and amaretti baked to order and served warm.
Why we love it: For a triumphant return from one of hospitality’s most generous-spirited hosts.
Osteria Vibrato is located at 6 Greek Street, London W1D 4DE, United Kingdom
Read our full restaurant review of Osteria Vibrato
Temaki
Temaki
A.M. Dupee’s handroll bar, which first opened in Brixton Market in 2021, relocates to Mayfair with a new and significantly larger home. Dupee has earned a devoted following for his Californian approach to Japanese cuisine, and the move to the West End brings an expanded menu alongside the signature handrolls.
The mood: Split across two levels, with an intimate 16-seat upstairs dining room where guests sit at a counter overlooking the chefs at work. Downstairs, a 28-seat space takes inspiration from Japan's listening bars and doubles as a private dining room.
What to order: While handrolls remain central, the menu now includes crispy rice topped with premium cuts of fish, A4 wagyu sliders, and rotating sandos and toro. The drink list offers saké, wines and a snappy line-up of cocktails.
Why we love it: For delicious proof that a cult indie can make the leap from Brixton to Mayfair without losing its edge.
Temaki is located at 11 Maddox Street, London W1S 2QF, United Kingdom
January 2026
Tiella
Tiella
Chef Dara Klein was born in Italy’s foodie capital of Emilia-Romagna and grew up in New Zealand, where her parents owned a restaurant in Wellington. She first channelled her family heritage with her two-year Tiella residency at the Compton Arms pub in Islington. Now it has a permanent home in Bethnal Green, where Klein has teamed up with her childhood friend, restaurateur Ry Jessup.
The mood: Homely comfort. Klein and Jessup have retained Victorian pub features alongside reclaimed G-Plan chairs and pieces from local friends such as Walthamstow-based furniture designer Herb Palmer.
What to order: Klein’s all-time favourite dish of passatelli in brodo – pasta in broth – is on the menu here; more substantial plates include chicken Milanese with green apple and herbs.
Why we love it: Klein has created the perfect synthesis of the British pub and Italian trattoria.
Tiella is located at 109 Columbia Road, London E2 7RL, United Kingdom
Read our full restaurant review of Tiella
DakaDaka
DakaDaka
Georgia can claim to be the birthplace of wine, with a heritage stretching back 8,000 years, but the Caucasian country has an equally rich culinary history. Georgian eating and drinking both get a contemporary spin at this restaurant and natural wine bar just off Regent Street, courtesy of chef-patron Mitz Vora.
The mood: Katya Samsonadze’s design of handmade clay, limestone, carved woodwork and hand-blown chandeliers reflects Georgian craft traditions, as does the open-fire charcoal grill that forms the basis for much of the cooking.
What to order: Georgia’s signature dish of khachapuri – boat-shaped, cheese-filled bread – comes in two versions straight from the fire, while other dishes include khinkali soup dumplings and smoky grilled meats.
Why we love it: One of the world’s oldest and richest cuisines deserves a central London showcase.
DakaDaka is located at 10 Heddon St, London W1B 4BX, United Kingdom
Read our full restaurant review of DakaDaka
Cato
Cato
Cato Alexander was a slave turned freedman who owned his own bar in Midtown Manhattan in the 1840s. His legacy is being revived in 21st century Covent Garden by former Nipperkin bartender Angelos Bafas, who has created a drinks list to reflect three distinct spaces.
The mood: The ground-floor House of Julep is a New York-style tavern for daytime drinking; come evening, head downstairs to the low-lit Cato, where the 14 colour-inspired cocktails are sipped surrounded by wood, velvet and stainless steel. Cocktail masterclasses are held in Cato’s Study, a creative laboratory.
What to order: Mint juleps served in frosted cups and made with herbs grown on site demonstrate Bafas’s dedication to the freshest ingredients; the bar food is equally US-inspired, from fried oysters to a beef pastrami sandwich.
Why we love it: American bartending heritage meets British micro terroir.
Cato is located at 17 Mercer Street, London WC2H 9QJ, United Kingdom