At the end of the year, besides all the turkey and Christmas chocolates (and there were a LOT of both of those) we managed to visit some excellent new places, from a top new Mayfair Sardinian restaurant to a very promising new pub in Islington.
Gallery at The Savoy (Strand) - Charcoal-grilled organic chicken tikka pie
From the extremely glamorous new all-day space in The Savoy, Gallery, we tried a number of their newest dishes for dinner including this marvellous pie served with a vegetable ribbon salad.
William IV (Islington) - Guinness-glazed beef short rib
On a cold winter’s night, the arrival of this plate of beef short rib, cooked so low and slow that it practically fell off the bone was a real moment of joy. The superb mash it came with also helped.
Oblix (London Bridge) - Crispy buttermilk chicken
A happy hour meal (or It girl dinner) up on the 32nd floor of The Shard culminated in this pyramid of truffled fried chicken pieces, served up with quite the view.
Delamina Townhouse (Covent Garden) - Kohlrabi carpaccio with feta and pistachios
Perceived by some (OK, ourselves) as the duff option in the vegetable box, the humble kohlrabi was elevated to don’t-miss dish status by the genius at work in the kitchen at Delamina’s elegant new Townhouse restaurant in the heart of Covent Garden.
The Dover (Mayfair) - Vesper Martini
The Dover has been one of our happy places throughout 2024, so we couldn't end the year without one of their excellent martinis up at the bar. It's still one of the best bars in the area (plus you might get the odd star spot or two).
The Dreamery (Islington) - Gingerbread ice cream
It was hard picking a favourite from all the flavours we tried at the gorgeous new gelataria/wine bar from the Goodbye Horses team and we’re still thinking very fondly of that scoop of Oolong tea with prunes. But for festive flavour, it was hard to beat the gingerbread ice cream studded with bits of crystallised ginger and topped with caramel sauce.
Pinna (Mayfair) - Veal Milanese on the bone
Billed as a Sardinian restaurant, we didn’t mind that chef Achille Pinna allowed himself to roam around Italy for certain dishes on the menu at this new Mayfair restaurant. And we definitely preferred his take on a traditional veal milanese served all juicy on the bone rather than wafer thin.
The Red Lion and Sun (Highgate) - Dorset crab Basque style
Every year we head up to Highgate for a proper Christmas dinner at one of London's best pubs, The Red Lion and Sun. It never disappoints and in addition to the excellent turkey with the trimmings, this was one of the best crab dishes we've had in recent times (it was huge too).
The Devonshire (Soho) - Bread and butter Christmas pudding
Hand on heart, Christmas pudding is not our favourite festive dessert, but somehow the team at The Devonshire managed to transform it into this heavenly treat. A thin layer of Christmas pudding is sandwiched into a bread and butter pudding that’s then bruleed on top before being served in a pool of Pedro Ximinez custard.
The Brave (Islington) - Jerk spiced chicken scotch egg
Two of chef James Cochran’s signature dishes come together in this genius iteration of the Scotch egg at Cochran’s new Islington pub. There’s a great kick, both in the minced spiced chicken and from the sweet and savoury Scotch bonnet jam that it comes with.
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