London hotels with Michelin-starred restaurants
The 2019 Michelin Guide for Great Britain and Ireland is out, with London's restaurant scene maintaining its prominence. All of the capital's restaurants in hotels retained their stars, apart from Outlaw's at The Capital, which lost its only star, and MARCUS at The Berkeley, which lost one of its two stars. Alain Ducasse at The Dorchester remains one of only three London restaurants to hold the prestigious maximum three stars, while more recent additions such as La Dame de Pic at Four Seasons Ten Trinity Square continued their reign.
La Dame de Pic at Four Seasons Ten Trinity Square
The space here is impressive, with high ceilings and an elaborate network of mirrors that create a sort of optical illusion, giving a sense of great privacy, particularly when ensconced in one of the intimate booths. Classic French gastronomy this most certainly is not. Signature dishes of burlingos to start (pasta parcels filled with criminally moreish Brillat-Savarin cheese) and a white millefeuille to finish (a dense block of creamy heaven to which pastry somehow plays second fiddle) do not disappoint. And everything is pleasingly light - you’ll leave perfectly satiated, without being overly full.
Read the full review: Four Seasons Hotel London at Ten Trinity Square
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Céleste at The Lanesborough, Hyde Park
Céleste, the Lanesborough's only restaurant, gained a Michelin star in 2016. The tasting menu at this European fine dining restaurant takes risks. A courgette flower was obscenely stuffed with a teasingly mild, semi-ripened goat cheese; a sprinkling of olives and pineapple bits went on the offensive as tiny, life-affirming bullets of salt and sour. Chef Florian Favario also knows how to cook with fish: a slab of turbot was deftly aromatised with spring onions and samphire.
Read the full review: The Lanesborough, Hyde Park
Fera at Claridge's, Mayfair
After Gordon Ramsay vacated this space in 2013, the baton was passed onto British chef Simon Rogan, of two Michelin-starred L’Enclume in the Lake District, and the restaurant received its first Michelin star in 2015. The menu takes its cue from the changing of the seasons (its name ‘Fera’ is Latin for ‘wild’), and uses all-British produce sourced from Rogan’s Cumbria farm – dishes can include crisp fried stewed rabbit and lovage and raw Cumbrian beef with smoked broccoli cream, scallop roe and apple juice.
Read the full review: Claridge's, London
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Alain Ducasse at The Dorchester, Mayfair
For memorable tastes matched with superb service, the three Michelin-starred Alain Ducasse at The Dorchester offers French cuisine served in a hushed but enjoyable atmosphere. The flamboyance lies in the dishes, such as the signature “Saute Gourmand of Lobster” and “Baba like in Monte-Carlo” dessert with its choice of five rums. Ask to see the kitchens, where 23 chefs beaver away in their smart white toques.
Read the full review: The Dorchester, Mayfair
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The Ritz London, Mayfair
The Ritz Restaurant was awarded a Michelin star in 2016. It features beautiful ceiling frescoes, large windows and Neoclassical statues. The menu, which focuses on seasonal British ingredients, offers a contemporary take on classical French dishes including terrine of goose liver paired with spiced pineapple and gingerbread followed by venison with red cabbage, celeriac and blackcurrant, and Mont Blanc with caramelised pear williams. It’s often party time at the Ritz, with dinner and dancing on Friday and Saturday nights.
Read the full review: The Ritz London, Mayfair
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Helene Darroze at The Connaught, Mayfair
Hélène Darroze was named the world's best female chef in 2015, and her two Michelin-starred restaurant at The Connaught serves fresh, ever-changing dishes. On the menu, you might find the prettily presented ‘limited edition’ wild salmon from the Adour, dotted with smoked haddock cream and Oscietra caviar, and Scottish blue lobster with lobster crumble and curry emulsion, matched with a stellar Riesling.
Read the full review: The Connaught, Mayfair
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Dinner by Heston Blumenthal at Mandarin Oriental, Knightsbridge
Though closed at the time of the 2018 awards after a fire sadly broke out at the hotel, then fresh from a multi-million refurbishment, earlier in the year, Dinner by Heston Blumenthal reatined both its Michelin stars and hopes to reopen in winter. Mandarin Oriental is spearheading a drive to get the world’s best chefs into its hotels, with a menu celebrating 600 years of British cooking, listing the year from which each dish dates. The signature dish is meat fruit, chicken liver parfait encase in mandarin jelly and created to look exactly like a mandarin orange.
Read the full review: Mandarin Oriental, Knightsbridge
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MARCUS at The Berkeley, Knightsbridge
The Michelin-starred restaurant by Marcus Wareing at The Berkeley was refurbished in 2014 after 10 years in residency (now it’s simply called MARCUS). The menu has been relaxed slightly, but still offers the same fresh, European dishes that it did before – think sweetbreads with almond and pear, dorset snails and turbot with gnocci, and quail with corn bread. It lost its second star in 2018.
Read the full review: The Berkeley, Knightsbridge
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Galvin at Windows at Hilton Park Lane, Mayfair
This hotel’s top-floor restaurant – with views over Hyde Park – serves classic French cuisine with a Korean injection (by way of recently appointed head chef Joo Won). The seven-course degustation menu (from £110) includes dishes such as scallop ceviche with Aquitaine caviar, pickled kohlrabi and sweet soy, and balllotine of foie gras.
Read the full review: Hilton Park Lane, Mayfair
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Seven Park Place, St James's Hotel and Club, St James's
One of the main attractions of the St James’s Hotel is Seven Park Place, where chef William Drabble weaves his Michelin-starred magic. With only nine tables, it is intimate and made even more so by the way the tables are imaginatively separated. The menu blends French and British influences, such as grilled red mullet with goat cheese ravioli and saddle of venison with celeriac and beetroot and juniper jus. The hands-on sommelier will recommend a different wine with each course.
Read the full review: St James's Hotel and Club, St James's
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Angler at South Place Hotel, City of London
As the name suggests, Angler, overseen by Tony Fleming – previously at One Aldwych, and on Celebrity Masterchef – specialises in seafood. Dishes favour simplicity and tried-and-tested combinations, such as halibut with brown shrimp and capers; bass with razor clams and chorizo; or cod with peas and pancetta. Meat is also on the menu – a rabbit tortellini and the pork loin with ravioli of cheek, girolles and truffle were both packed with flavour. The wine list features an impressive 250 bottles.
Read the full review: Angler at South Place Hotel, City of London
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Alyn Williams at The Westbury, Mayfair
He worked with Marcus Wareing at The Berkeley (also on this list) for eight years, so it’s no surprise that Alyn Williams’ eponymous restaurant at The Westbury has garnered such sweet success. The fine-dining menu is made up of seasonal ingredients, inspired by his father’s fondness for gardening, and includes rich and interesting combinations, such as aerated fois gras with pineapple, green tea and lime salt, and Australian black truffle risotto with spring onion and mascarpone.
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Quilon, Taj 51 Buckingham Gate Suites and Residences, St James
Is this the best Indian restaurant in London? The seafood tasting menu here is the culinary equivalent of romping through a glowing spice field on a fish-bloated stretch of Indian coast. The spicy broth, swimming with shards of coriander and plump scallops, will have you in an aromatic stupor. The two gutsy main flavours in the lobster dish — butter pepper and garlic — play tag with each other in the mouth.
Read the full review: Taj 51 Buckingham Gate Suites and Residences
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The Dining Room at The Goring
The Dining Room at The Goring was awarded its first Michelin star in September 2015. The accolade, the first star in the hotel's history, was awarded in recognition of head chef Shay Cooper's imaginative cooking, based on the best seasonal British produce. The elegant dishes complement the hotel perfectly, and sommeliers make sure that the wines are equally well matched.
Read the full review: The Goring