The best restaurants in Kensington and Chelsea

Hunan is rated as one of London's best Chinese restaurants, loved by chefs and critics alike. It's a "no menu" restaurant where you're served about 12-18 courses. As the name suggests, you can expect Hunanese cooking here - so there's going to be plenty of heat, but you can also warn them just how much heat you can take. After that - you're in their hands.

Jacuzzi comes from the Big Mamma group, also known for the hugely popular Circolo Popolare and Gloria. Here in Kensington it's an opulent three-floored affair decked out with trees and flora throughout. As for the food, expect Italian cuisine in huge portions and a few high-end items like caviar that are better priced than you might find elsewhere.

Housed in an architecturally eye-catching pavilion on Duke of York Square, Vardo is the Caravan Group's Chelsea outpost. The menu takes a more global approach to suit the area's international audience but you can obviously enjoy a top-tier coffee here too.

Chicama is a seafood restaurant in Chelsea with a menu inspired by the coastal food of Peru and the bold flavours of Peruvian cuisine. As for the fish itself, that's delivered daily from Cornwall with punchy Peruvian takes making the most of our local produce

Budget and Chelsea don’t appear in the same sentence very often but this perennially popular Vietnamese spot has long been a good place to grab a bowl of tasty noodles. Everything is made from scratch and the laksa is also worth a try.

Richard Caring’s South Ken Italian has been in operation since the Sixties and has been serving classic, seasonal Italian dishes to the well-heeled SW3 residents since then. The conservatory is the perfect Insta-friendly backdrop and the terrace tables are much-coveted.

A Chelsea stalwart, No Fifty Cheyne sits in a picturesque position on the river, serving up a modern British menu which plunders the UK’s larder for seasonal inspiration. Brunch is a particularly big thing here.

Chef Patron Anna Haugh is a TV regular, but here in Chelsea just off the King’s Road is where her heart is. Myrtle restaurant serves up modern European food but with a focus on Irish influences and using the best of Irish produce.

Billed as London’s oldest family-run restaurant, Il Portico is run by siblings James and Francesca Chiavarini and specialises in Italian specialities from Emilia Romagna. Much of the produce comes from the family's farm in Kent.

Sourcing from top quality suppliers, the aim of this South Ken pub is to make you feel like you’re in a country pub in the heart of the city. But this is SW3 so obviously there’s caviar on the menu alongside chicken and leek pithiviers.

For decades Maggie Jones has been a favourite spot for a first date, now it’s just as likely to be thronged with social media types who go crazy for its ‘more is more’ aesthetic. Dishes are as old school and classic as the place itself.

Set across the ground floor of the Polish Hearth Club on Museum Mile in South Ken, this popular family restaurant serves up classic Eastern European staples with brio alongside flavoured vodkas and more. The terrace at the back is one of London’s loveliest alfresco spaces.

A glossy take on the Japanese izakaya, this Chelsea restaurant uses the very best of British ingredients for their amazing sushi dishes. It’s a real fusion of taste, technique and influence between Japan and Europe.

Founder Roaya was inspired by childhood summers on her family’s farm in Bahrain to set up a restaurant celebrating the produce and food of that area. Expect to find a modern marriage of gulf state dishes finessed for a London audience.

When the team behind a new pub includes those with top Mayfair credentials, the mighty JKS restaurant group and Michelin starred chef James Knappet, it all augurs well. They’ve given this King’s Road pub a new lease of life without tearing the heart out of the place.

Inspired by the vibes and produce to be found in an English country garden this Chelsea restaurant focus is on its alfresco courtyard. The mix of owner Hugh Stanley’s social connections and MasterChef The Professionals contestant chef Olivia Burt means it’s always humming.

From the same stable as Goodman and Burger & Lobster, Wild Tavern made its name on serving up an elevated combo of top drawer seafood, fresh pasta and USDA steaks.

Launceston Place has been a mainstay of the high-end Kensington dining scene for some time. And now it's had something of a rejuvenation with new head chef Ben Murphy at the helm. Expect a tasting menu with more than a few twists taken from Murphy's background.

Of all his restaurants the world over, this is Gordon Ramsay's flagship restaurant, based on Hospital Road. Matt Abé is the man in the kitchen here, in charge of retaining Gordon's three Michelin stars.

This is a joint venture between top chef Philip Howard, best known for Elystan Street, and his business partner Rebecca Mascarenhas. The chef here is Mark Kempson, who worked with Howard at The Square. This has slowly become a Kensington institution, a laid-back neighbourhood restaurant, but one that has a Michelin star.

This independently-run Chelsea restaurant is the brainchild of Chef Joe Mercer Nairne and manager David O'Connor. It serves up impeccable French food and strives successfully for 'perfect neighbourhood gem' status.

Opened by Corbin & King and now part of The Wolseley Hospitality Group, this all day cafe restaurant on Sloane Square was inspired by some of the best Parisian grand cafes. The all day menu is a love letter to French classics from onion soup to Sole Meunière.

This fine dining restaurant in Chelsea has racked up some serious accolades, led by Chef Patron Taylor Bonnyman and Head Chef Marguerite Keogh. Produce-driven (they have their own kitchen garden to supply much of what they cook), the 40-seater restaurant has a team with a huge amount of experience at the top end of British, European and American dining.

If you could bottle the English countryside and transport it to the streets of Chelsea then you'd have Rabbit. From the Gladwin Brothers, this restaurant uses produce from their family's Sussex estate in a celebration of British seasonal produce.

The chef and GM who headed up London's top Indian restaurants including Gymkhana and Jamavar are behind this Chelsea venture. Housed in a townhouse just off the King's Road, it serves up Ghai's modern take on a range of Indian classic dishes.

This is the main London home for chef Philip Howard, and he's earned it a Michelin star too. They pitch themselves as serving "pure, seasonal, ingredient led, gimmick free" food and is showcases a more casual dining approach than his previous restaurants.

Top French chef Claude Bosi's main London restaurant is at the classic Bibendum building. Being in the Michelin building seems a very good fit for Bosi whose fine-dining French style has already won him two stars. He's also in charge of the downstairs seafood restaurant.

This addition to Chelsea's Pavilion Road sees the co-founder of Bonnie Gull opening a fishmonger and deli which transforms into a seafood bar in the evening. And Leo Carreira is in charge of the menu.