5 London Restaurants Worth Booking In August 2025

Where to eat in London this month

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Summer’s not usually known as a great time for restaurants in London. Chefs leave town, diners go limp in the muggy, muggy weather, and menus fill up with burrata masquerading as “specials”. This month, however, the capital’s kitchens are properly switched on.

Whether you’re hunting for the best new London restaurants or simply a hotspot worth sweating through the tube for, these are five tables where the cooking is sharp, the sourcing matters, and the bookings are worth making.

See: a refined chef debut in Mayfair with wild-island seafood and a 1,000-bottle cellar, a coastal collab that knocked my proverbial socks off, a Michelin-starred Indian institution reborn with new swagger, and a fried chicken drop from New York that somehow lives up to the hype.

So, here to have it. A foolproof guide on where to eat in London this month. Book them before everyone else does.

1. The Cocochine, Mayfair

Larry Jayasekara’s first solo project might sit behind a discreet black door in Mayfair, but there’s no denying The Cocochine has the introverted ambition of a three-Michelin-starred memoir. It’s a culinary jewel box with strong global influences. Produce is grown at the Sri Lankan chef’s own regenerative farm in Northamptonshire; seafood’s line-caught off a remote Scottish island; and the plates are tight, technical, and deceptively simple—think banana leaf BBQ native lobster with tomato and tamarind, finished at your table.

The wine cellar is stacked like an old-money Bond villain’s dream: over 1,000 bottles, big on rare Burgundies and Old World precision. It’s refined, restrained, and unmistakably authored.

Address: 27 Bruton Pl, London W1J 6NQ

2. Holborn Dining Room x Faber, Holborn

A seafood collab between a grand central London brasserie and a low-intervention seafood darling shouldn’t work, but Holborn Dining Room’s summer link-up with Faber is the sleeper hit of the season. While the rest of the dining room maintains gasto business as usual, the collaboration’s small counter space is powered by produce from Britain’s best day boats. Spoiler alert: it might just be the best meal I’ve had all year.

There’s Maldon oysters with rhubarb mignonette, trout tartare dressed in soy and keta, and a devilled crab that quite literally defies adjectives. If you’ve been craving shellfish without fanfare—or a sourdough glazed lobster that makes no sense on paper but all the sense in your mouth—book it now.

Address: 252 High Holborn Rosewood, London WC1V 7EN

3. Counter 71, Shoreditch

Counter 71 is nothing like the endurance-test chef’s tables of yesteryear. Rather, Joe Laker’s debut delivers a short, sharp, seasonal tasting menu that feels both supremely personal and sincerely British. Each dish has the energy of a love letter to said Kingdom’s produce, albeit the kind often sealed with yuzu, truffle, or a well-placed sliver of raw wasabi.

Laker’s cooking is light on ego but heavy on intention, from his wild garlic-infused beef donut to an impossibly brilliant fig leaf ice cream sandwich. After dinner, you’ll want to head downstairs to Lowcountry— the sister bar— to indulge in a bacon-fat Old Fashioned or two. It’s Shoreditch, yes, but it’s also one of the best date nights in the city.

Address: 71 Nile St, London N1 7RD

4. Quilon, St James’

There aren’t many restaurants in London with a Michelin star older than TikTok, but Quilon has not only held onto its own since 2008, but just pulled off a rare feat: a full-blown redesign that feels familiar to long-time patrons and exciting for those yet to indulge. Still rooted in coastal south-west Indian cuisine, the new space is all slatted ceilings, hand-painted palms, and warm terracotta tones, with a tweaked menu to match.

Chef Sriram Aylur still serves up the Seafood Moilee and Malabar biryani regulars dream about, but adds new plates like baked black cod and oysters three ways—all spice-rich, coconut-laced, and plated with poise. Quilon is, quite simply, a timeless dining experience.

Address: 41 Buckingham Gate, London SW1E 6AF

5. Pecking House, King’s Cross

Eric Huang—a fine dining vet turned fried chicken king—has brought his pandemic-born Pecking House to The Standard’s Double Standard, and it’s well worth the transatlantic hype.

His signature chili oil-slicked fried chicken is a perfect storm of crunch, spice, and ducky depth. The Chinatown Chicken Sandwich adds smoky mayo and pork floss, while vegans can get in on a little saucy fun with the MaPo tofu (it’s got just enough vinegar to cut through the heat). Go hungry. Leave sticky. And make sure you book before the pop-up ends on September 14th.

Address: Ground Floor, The Standard, 10 Argyle St, London WC1H 8EG