French

172 Piccadilly, St James, London W1J 9EJ

There’s been a Richoux on Piccadilly for 100 years, so the prospect of it becoming a casualty of the pandemic was worrying. Thankfully it now has new owners and hot new chefs breathing life into the old institution. The menu of brasserie classics is fairly well-priced for the location.

The Berkeley, Wilton Pl, London SW1X 7RL

Cedric Grolet is often described as the best pastry chef in the world and this is his London outpost (the first outside France). Here he's in charge of the main pattisserie at The Berkeley hotel where you can both have his pastries in the cafe or sit at the pattiserie counter for a cake and pastry tasting experience like no other.

The Dorchester, Park Lane, London W1K 1QA

Alain Ducasse is one of France's most celebrated chefs and he's done pretty well over here too. This restaurant at The Dorchester hotel, serving up fine French food, is one of a few restaurants in London to be awarded three Michelin stars.

The Connaught, Carlos Place, Mayfair, London W1K 2AL

One of the main restaurants at prestigious London hotel The Connaught, this is run by French Chef Hélène Darroze. Expect high-end French dining that has won the restaurant three Michelin stars. After a recenti-ish major refurbishment, it now has an impressive chef's table. Make sure to finish with the signature rum baba.

53-54 Brook's Mews, London W1K 4EG

Part of an international group of restaurants, eating here - particularly if you've scored an outside table - should be like eating somewhere very luxe on the Cote d’Azur. The food is light French Mediterranean and Niçoise cuisine. A recent addition has been a new oyster bar.

104 Chepstow Rd, London W2 5QS

This is one of the smallest fine-dining restaurants in London, run by chef Richard Wilkins (ex-Petrus and Waterside Inn) fitting in just six tables for a maximum of 12 diners at any time. If you manage to grab one of those precious seats, you can expect a modern French menu.

6 Clarges Street, London W1J 8AE

This Mayfair restaurant is inspired by the legacy of the late and hugely influential chef Joel Robuchon. Le Comptoir Robuchon is designed to both be inspired by and build on the Robuchon legacy - and you can still order the amazingly buttery pommes puree here.

16 Albemarle St, London W1S 4HW

Cyril Lignac is A Big Deal in France where he has several restaurants and puts in regular appearances on French TV. This is the London outpost of his Bar des Pres concept which sees sushi made with Label Rouge salmon and his signature crunchy crab with avocado galette. The wine list is suitably French as are many of the clientele.

9 Islington Green, London N1 2XH

Originally launched by Corbin and King, this is a revived Islington grand cafe which now offers a menu that's more of a traditional French brasserie. It's one of the largest restaurants in Angel and there's a very handy bar in here too.

16 Cavendish Square, London W1G 9DD

The people behind Parisian restaurant Taillevent brought this spin-off Les 110 de Taillevent to London. It focuses on food and wine pairings and is named after the 110 wines available by the glass. Each of the 30 dishes is matched by one of four selected glasses.

55 Marylebone High St, Marylebone, London W1U 5RB

One of the jewels in the crown of the D&D restaurant empire, The Orrery offers classic French food in a rather opulent first floor dining room. If you're in Marylebone and in need of cosseting, this is the place to go. Just don't forget to order the cheese trolley.

34 Drayton Park, London N5 1PB

Owners David Gingell and Jeremie Cometto-Lingenheim also run nearby Primeur and Jolene, both also excellent. Here, there's a distinct focus on seafood and the menu changes every day, although if the cuttlefish croquettes with aioli are on there, make sure you order those. In the summertime, you can take a glass of something cold out on the front courtyard and if you're really pushing the boat out, ask for the leather-bound, handwritten, ‘black book’ of fine wines.

21 Romilly Street, London W1D 5AF

Alexis Gauthier brings his own take on French cuisine in the marvellous setting of this Georgian townhouse. The menu is now entirely vegan, making this one of the best fine dining vegan spots in town.

48 Greek St, Soho, London W1D 4EF

This classic French institution has been in Soho for more than 100 years, serving up classic French cuisine. And, as you can imagine from the name, it serves the very best snails in London. A wonderful institution that still has great life in it.

49 Dean St, Soho, London W1D 5BG

The French House is mainly known as a classic Soho pub - but it also has a dining room upstairs. It's a small affair - it almost feels like a private dining room - but it's hosted some great names. It's now home to chef Neil Borthwick who's very much at home here serving up French classics.

9 D'Arblay St, London W1F 8DR

Blanchette is from three brothers Maxime, Yannis and Malik Alary who are behind this "French bistro serving simple, classic and inventive French food". It's primarily based around sharing "French tapas" plates.

19-21 Monmouth St, Covent Garden, London WC2H 9DD

Mon Plaisir is billed as London's "oldest French restaurant" - with its current owners keeping it in the family since the 1940s. As you might imagine from such a traditional establishment this does the classic dishes very well.

4-6 Russell Street, London WC2B 5HZ

Keith McNally has been big on the New York restaurant scene for years where Balthazar is a go-to place for both tourists and locals in the Village. This is the London version, just off the Covent Garden piazza, serving brasserie style food in an impressive dining room. It's worth popping into the bakery here if you're just passing.

8-10 Neal’s Yard, London WC2H 9DP

This wine bar comes from the same people behind the hugely popular Experimental Cocktail Club and this bar's sister site in Paris. Expect the wines to steer clear of the mainstream and the food to be a mix of seasonal British and French cuisine.

322-324 Acton Mews, London E8 4EA

Taking two railway arches in Haggerston, Planque is a wine bar, restaurant, members' club and store, with a key focus on natural and low intervention wines. And most importantly it has Seb Myers (ex P Franco and Chiltern Firehouse) running the kitchen and serving up a modern take on French food.

120 Fenchurch St, London EC3M 5BA

14 Hills is from the D&D Group and it's quite, quite beautiful. With views over the City across to the Shard and Tower Bridge it's spectacular at night. Inside there are full-grown trees and every inch of the ceiling is dripping with foliage. It was already nicknamed ‘the forest in the sky’ for a reason, such is the floral foliage vibe, and the food champions British produce with a French flair.

13-15 West St, Covent Garden, London WC2H 9NE

Louie is a venture from the Paris Society, which has several big restaurants in Paris and they've brought similar opulence to London. For this restaurant, they've teamed up with American chef Slade Rushing who's brought in a taste of the Deep South.

60 St John's Wood High St, St John's Wood, London NW8 7SH

This is from Corbin and King, the team behind The Wolseley, Bellanger, The Delaunay and more. This time it is an all-day restaurant serving French food with Russian influences.

49 Brixton Station Rd, Brixton, London SW9 8PQ

Run by the Raclette brothers, this shipping container in the middle of Pop Brixton offers up a short, seasonally changing menu. Melted raclette is scraped at your table on to potatoes, pickles and crispy pancetta and there's also tartiflette with wild mushroom and gungy rebloucon, fondue with a choice of either gruyere or Lincolnshire poacher and more. Let's face it, you aren’t going to walk away hungry. All that and an informed wine list too.

34 Dover Street, London W1S 4NG

With restaurants in all the key globetrotting hotspots - NYC, Miami, Dubai etc - a London branch was way overdue for this upscale international chain.

29 Romilly St, London W1D 5HP

Nearly 150 years ago, Auguste Kettner opened Kettner’s, which was one of the first restaurants in London to serve French food. Now after a brief lull, it’s reopened with more French food, bath loads of Champagne and looking more gorgeous than ever. Eyes peeled for the stunning 18th century spiral staircase...

Tanner Street Park, London SE1 3LD

This Bermondsey restaurant comes from Hervé Durochat, the man behind another restaurant in Bermondsey, the ever popular Casse Croute. Here alongside a small selection of French dishes, the star attraction is the chicken - or the Poulet de Bresse to be precise.

39 Whitfield St, Bloomsbury, London W1T 2SF

Pied a Terre's GM heads out on his own with this neighbourhood spot where it's all about ultra personal treatment and giving the customer what they really want. Expect classic French food.

The Mandrake, 20-21 Newman Street, Fitzrovia, London W1T 1PG

After enjoying Michelin-starred success in Hong Kong, two of the chefs behind Serge et Le Phoque have brought their ingredient-led French cuisine to London.

Four Seasons Hotel at Ten Trinity Square, 10 Trinity Square, London EC3N 4AJ

The main restaurant at the Four Seasons has French chef Anne-Sophie Pic in charge, and she's won two Michelin stars for this restaurant too. It's very much a modern French fine dining affair set in very luxe surroundings.