Hit the Spot: The best places to eat tonight
RESTAURANTS OF THE WEEK
The best places to eat tonight
Everyone loves a good meal surrounded by beautiful surroundings, so to save you some time we’ve teamed up with online restaurant booking service toptable.com to choose our top four weekly recommended restaurants to try around the UK.
Bon appetit!
1. FOUR O NINE , LONDON
Tucked away from Clapham’s bustling high street with only a discreet brass plaque to guide you, Four O Nine restaurant is a hidden gem specialising in simple but sophisticated modern European cuisine. You enter speakeasy style by buzzing the buzzer then make your way up the narrow stairs into a fabulous, Manhattan loft-style space full of bubbling conversation. The vibe at Four O Nine is warm and inviting, with a fairy-lit garden at the top of the stairs and stunning photographs of the local area on the walls. Chef Chris Sutherland creates French cuisine in beautifully presented dishes using seasonal produce and top-notch ingredients, while the wine list is a real treat for connoisseurs. Start with the foie gras and chicken liver parfait before moving on to the roast cod with olive oil mash and sweet pepper compote. Just be sure to save room for decadent desserts like pear and almond tart with Jersey cream and the classic crème brûlée.
2. OPUS ONE, MANCHESTER
Manchester’s Radisson Edwardian is home to a new kind of hotel restaurant, Opus One. Appealing to the young and trendy as well as those simply after good food in attractive surroundings, the theatrical, almost oriental, interior boasts high ceilings, sumptuous seating and glamorous wall coverings in red velvet and antique gold. Always lively and buzzing the restaurant is a place to see and be seen and the wonderful modern British food puts paid to any ideas that Opus One might be all style over substance. Head Chef Neil Armstrong blends exciting new flavours with traditional ingredients to make a familiar but exotic menu with true panache.
3. CUCINA, EDINBURGH
Perfect for the design junkie or fashionista in your life, Hotel Missoni is a luxe boutique hotel on Edinburgh’s exclusive George IV Bridge and tucked away inside you’ll discover the sexy Cucina restaurant, which has the look and feel of a chic and impossibly glossy modern Italian family dining room. All the china, cutlery and artworks are bespoke Missoni designs, and, as expected, the overall effect is bright, bold and glamorous. The menu at Cucina is light and elegant, and all the delicious Italian dishes are simply and authentically prepared. Star dishes include the ricotta and spinach ravioli with butter and sage; the veal escalope with Marsala sauce; and the warm Scamorza with tomato and rocket.
4. LE GAVROCHE, LONDON
Holder of two Michelin stars and, more importantly, winner of the Toptable Best Food award, Michel Roux Jr’s Le Gavroche is among London’s most well loved restaurants. An unimposing doorway in the heart of Mayfair leads in to a temple of gastronomy. Whet your palate with an aperitif in the cosy bar with its country house atmosphere before moving in to the classically designed main restaurant where crisp white linen meets heritage paint colours and tasteful artwork. There may be a dress code here but Le Gavroche is nonetheless unpretentious and comfortable – sink in to a comfortable chair and be spoilt for choice by some of the finest French food the UK has to offer and the pick of a 60,000 bottle wine cellar.
