Jeremy Chan and Iremae Adeyeri's West African-influenced tasting room on the Strand in London, opened 2017 and Michelin two-starred, on the World's 50 Best list.
Must order: Plantain with raspberry-scotch-bonnet salt, the dish that has stayed on the menu since opening.
Tip: Counter seats look directly at the pass; book the corner for two and watch every plate go out.
Address: 180 Strand, London WC2R 1EA
Heston Blumenthal's historical-British research kitchen inside the Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park in London, opened 2011 and Michelin two-starred, plates dishes from 1300 to 1850.
Order: The Meat Fruit (chicken liver mousse in a mandarin-orange shell), unchanged from 2011.
Tip: Lunch a la carte at £55 for two courses is half dinner. Sit at the open kitchen counter to watch the mousse-shaping.
Helene Darroze's three-Michelin-starred dining room inside The Connaught hotel in Mayfair London, opened 2008, runs ingredient-led French-British cooking with a long wine list.
Order: Cep risotto in autumn, or the langoustine course at any time of year.
Tip: Lunch (Tue-Sat) at £75 for three courses is the most accessible route. The Connaught Bar next door is one of the world's great cocktail rooms.
Claude Bosi's two-Michelin-starred dining room on the first floor of the 1911 Michelin Building in Chelsea London, opened 2017, runs ingredient-driven French cooking.
Order: Cornish turbot with Champagne sauce, or the wood pigeon with foie gras.
Tip: Sit by the iconic stained-glass Michelin Man windows. Lunch is half the dinner price and just as well-staffed.
Marcus Wareing's one-Michelin-starred dining room inside The Berkeley hotel in Knightsbridge London, opened 2014, runs a seasonal British tasting menu across six courses.
Order: Whatever Scottish lobster preparation is on, and the chocolate pudding for two to close.
Tip: Pre-theatre at 17:30 to 18:30 runs a £75 three-course; the kitchen is the same as later sittings.
Aji Akokomi and Ayo Adeyemi's West African tasting-menu kitchen on Berners Street in Fitzrovia London, opened 2020 and Michelin-starred since 2022, on a deeply seasonal menu.
Order: The Suya-spiced lamb course and whatever the smoked-jollof preparation is on the night.
Tip: Sit at the counter to watch the open kitchen. Wine pairing leans into Lebanese, South African and English wines.
Tomos Parry's Soho London second restaurant on Beak Street, opened 2023 above a wood-fired open kitchen, runs Welsh-Spanish cooking and has held one Michelin star since 2024.
Order: Smoked sardine flatbread, the wood-roast lamb shoulder and whatever pudding is on the chalkboard.
Tip: Counter seats around the pass take walk-ins from 17:30. Bookings open six weeks ahead through Resy.
