Hotel restaurants used to be afterthoughts. Today they’ve become destinations in their own right.
Over the years, they’ve become sought-out places to try the cooking of some of the world’s finest chefs, many of them with Michelin-stars. As well as a global feast of exquisite food, the settings for these restaurants are spectacular too, which only adds to their appeal.
From the grand and historic to the earthy and plant-filled, there’s one for all tastes and style of get together: date night dinner for two, catching up with a group of friends, or a power lunch – with or without the overnight stay. Here’s our pick of some of the best in London we’ll be adding to our London Fashion Week to-visit list.
Mauro Colagreco, Raffles London at The OWO
Traditional interiors and theatrical dishes meet at Mauro Colagreco’s eponymous restaurant that opened in September 2024 at Raffles London at The OWO, one of the capital’s splashiest hotels – where stately high-ceilinged rooms start from £1000 a night. It’s the fanciest of nine restaurants in the £1.4bn development and overseen by the legendary Argentinian chef of three-Michelin-star Mirazur in Menton. Buttercup-yellow sofas, chairs, drapes and carpets, soft tablecloths, and low lamps depart from the masculine wood-panelled Old War Office setting where Winston Churchill once worked. Multi-course tastings menus begin with warm bread – made to Mauro’s grandmother’s recipe – and Menton olive oil infused with geranium. Colourful bite-sized amuse bouchés hide in beds of verdant wheatgrass. Artful main dishes come with illustrated postcards singing the praises of the star ingredient and a poem. It might all sound a little pretentious and formal, but friendly staff ensure the experience is relaxed and fun.
Pavyllon At Four Seasons UK
Chef Yannick Alléno’s first London venture at the Four Seasons Hotel opened in summer 2023 and gained a Michelin star soon after, firming up his position in the London dining scene. Discovering this plush haven of experimental French fine dining off the hotel’s somewhat dated lobby is a delight. In terms of design, the carpeted dining room is formal, but has a chic, 60s lounge feel: oval-shaped tables dressed in white, low lighting, statement pillars, waves of copper bead curtains, and voluptuous blue velvet seating. Nab a stool at the bar overlooking the open‑kitchen counter for a front‑row view of the chefs in tall white hats – all surprisingly unflustered – in action. Reimagined classics made using innovative techniques are Alléno hallmarks. Expect to let out an audible gasp when your steamed Comté cheese soufflé drizzled in vivid green watercress coulis is delivered, and when the poached ‘Badaboum’ egg is sliced in half tableside revealing golden egg yolk brimming with caviar. Red, white and rosé French labels are wine list mainstays and dining on sweet French pastries during afternoon tea here is a luxurious daytime treat.
Charlie's at Brown Hotel
London’s oldest luxury hotel was established in 1832 by James and Sarah Brown – former staff of Lord and Lady Byron. Now it’s the setting for this landmark restaurant the heart of Mayfair, named after the late Lord Charles Forte, who bought the hotel in the 1970s. Inside the spacious historic dining room, creaky oak floors and rich wood panelling are comforting reminders of its heritage. Teal velvet banquet seating and statement botanical wallpaper added by Sir Rocco’s sister and Design Director of the group, Olga Polizzi, add the family stamp and bring it up to date. Staff in black trouser suits serve British plates like thick-cut toast, steamed Cornish turbot, and grilled new season leeks, presented on fine porcelain. When it comes to wine, these folks know their stuff, so take the sommelier’s steer on the best pairings – you won’t be disappointed. Weekdays and nights buzz with locals and business diners, while Friday and Saturday nights are surprisingly quiet. Come Sunday, tables fill up again when roast is served and the restaurant heats up for jazz night.
Berners Tavern
What’s particularly special about the Berners Tavern at the London EDITION in fancy Fitzrovia is its surroundings. Curved wooden khaki-leather-clad booths line walls crammed with framed art, under the stately gaze of an ornate Baroque ceiling hung with dazzling chandeliers. It’s a hint that you’re sitting in what was once a ballroom at the former Berners Hotel which opened here in 1908 across five Georgian townhouses. Led by powerhouse British chef, Jason Atherton, ‘the defining restaurant of the decade’ opened here in 2013 – the same time as the EDITION – and is still going strong, churning out winning contemporary British dishes from breakfast through to dinner. Highlights include the velvety Berners Tavern mac and cheese and succulent grass-fed steaks – and, of course, the Champagne trolley. It’s well stocked with big-name labels like Veuve Clicquot and Dom Perignon, and Bloody Mary ingredients come Sunday brunch service. Finish on the raspberry Alaska, a decadent whiskey-laced sugar-fest to share.
Dovetale
A London hotel restaurant with a Knickerbocker Glory trolley is worth a few hours of anybody’s time – watch as the deluxe, nostalgic British dessert served in a sundae glass is whipped up at your table, exactly how you like it. If you’re not a sundae kind of person, the salted caramel tart and white miso ice cream offers a ‘lighter’ sugar fix. Compared to its low-lit, plant-filled 1 Hotel setting, Dovetale – which opened in 2023 – channels a different, similarly stylish but more business-like aesthetic. Natural light streams in from roof lights in the lofty ceiling, and furnishings have a mid-century Scandinavian, rather than cream-toned earthy feel in the rest of the hotel. It all works to complement Michelin‑starred chef Tom Sellers’ modern European à la carte menu, rooted in sustainable, seasonal ingredients from British growers and fishermen. Starters include a raw bar of Orkney scallops and Cornish crab. While comfort food lovers will adore the English Wagyu pappardelle bolognese. Vegans are well catered for, too. Make sure you start with a cocktail and a spot of people watching at the hotel’s stylish Dover Yard bar next to the restaurant.
Lead image credit: Pavyllon, Four Seasons
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