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<\/p>\nSummer\u2019s 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 \u201cspecials\u201d. This month, however, the capital\u2019s kitchens are properly switched on.<\/p>\n
Whether you\u2019re 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.<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
So, here to have it. A foolproof guide on where to eat in London this month. Book them before everyone else does.<\/p>\n
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The Cocochine, London<\/p>\n
The Cocochine<\/p>\n
1. The Cocochine, Mayfair<\/p>\n
Larry Jayasekara\u2019s first solo project might sit behind a discreet black door in Mayfair, but there\u2019s no denying The Cocochine<\/a> has the introverted ambition of a three-Michelin-starred memoir. It\u2019s a culinary jewel box with strong global influences. Produce is grown at the Sri Lankan chef\u2019s own regenerative farm in Northamptonshire; seafood\u2019s line-caught off a remote Scottish island; and the plates are tight, technical, and deceptively simple\u2014think banana leaf BBQ native lobster with tomato and tamarind, finished at your table.<\/p>\n The wine cellar is stacked like an old-money Bond villain\u2019s dream: over 1,000 bottles, big on rare Burgundies and Old World precision. It\u2019s refined, restrained, and unmistakably authored.<\/p>\n Address: 27 Bruton Pl, London W1J 6NQ<\/p>\n Holborn Dining Room x Faber’s Seafood Counter, London<\/p>\n imeyarchive<\/p>\n 2. Holborn Dining Room x Faber, Holborn<\/p>\n A seafood collab between a grand central London brasserie and a low-intervention seafood darling shouldn\u2019t work, but Holborn Dining Room\u2019s summer link-up with Faber<\/a> is the sleeper hit of the season. While the rest of the dining room maintains gasto business as usual, the collaboration\u2019s small counter space is powered by produce from Britain\u2019s best day boats. Spoiler alert: it might just be the best meal I\u2019ve had all year.<\/p>\n There\u2019s Maldon oysters with rhubarb mignonette, trout tartare dressed in soy and keta, and a devilled crab that quite literally defies adjectives. If you\u2019ve been craving shellfish without fanfare\u2014or a sourdough glazed lobster that makes no sense on paper but all the sense in your mouth\u2014book it now.<\/p>\n Address: 252 High Holborn Rosewood, London WC1V 7EN<\/p>\n Counter 71’s Brioche Doughnut with Beef Tartare and Wild Garlic, London<\/p>\n MDRNLOVE Counter 71<\/a> is nothing like the endurance-test chef\u2019s tables of yesteryear. Rather, Joe Laker\u2019s 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\u2019s produce, albeit the kind often sealed with yuzu, truffle, or a well-placed sliver of raw wasabi.<\/p>\n Laker\u2019s 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\u2019ll want to head downstairs to Lowcountry\u2014 the sister bar\u2014 to indulge in a bacon-fat Old Fashioned or two. It\u2019s Shoreditch, yes, but it\u2019s also one of the best date nights in the city.<\/p>\n Address: 71 Nile St, London N1 7RD<\/p>\n Quilon, London<\/p>\n \u00a9johncarey2025
\n3. Counter 71, Shoreditch<\/p>\n
\n4. Quilon, St James\u2019<\/p>\n