The best restaurants in Shoreditch

Chef Tom Brown, best known for the Michelin-starred of Cornerstone, is behind this Shoreditch restaurant and oyster bar. It's a seafood-centric menu, featuring UK and Irish-sourced oysters, and you can even get crispy buffalo oysters here. A must-have dish is the cuttlefish lasagne and take note of the cocktails, which are created by Max Venning from Three Sheets.

Cycene is the restaurant inside Blue Mountain School in Shoreditch, with chef Theo Clench in charge. Here you can expect a tasting menu-only experience, with its influences in Japan and Australasia, that takes place throughout the building - from the bar to the kitchen and the dining room.

Chef Tomos Parry's restaurant remains one of the hottest in the area and still manages to attract a celeb or two to the upstairs room that's a little removed from the Shoreditch masses. Up here, you'll find a menu that features a mix of cooking on fire, Welsh and Basque cuisine, and a big focus on wine. It doesn't hurt that the dining room is quite lovely.

Sister restaurant to Kiln, this is the second version of Smoking Goat and a huge hit. Whether you're sitting up at the counter or enjoying a group meal with friends, enjoy a range of Thai dishes that change depending on produce and a lot of Thai BBQ as well.

One of the best restaurants in town and one of the few to make it into the World's 50 Best list, The Clove Club is now a London institution, on the must-try lists of all good gastro tourists. Head into the main restaurant for a regularly changing set menu which is at the heart of things here.

This is the original Rochelle Canteen, from chef Margot Henderson and business partner Melanie Arnold, and has been held up by almost every chef in London as one of the best places to eat at in town. Henderson serves up classic, seasonal cooking. It's a little on the hard side to find - but well worth searching out.

Originally big in Soho and now David Carter (Smokestak) and Chris Leach's Manteca moved to Shoreditch. Designed around an open kitchen with plenty of open-fire cooking. The food is described as a nose-to-tail "Italian with a British accent" with both seasonality and a whole-animal approach to cooking the name of the day (alongside some great pasta).

This is a French-style bistro in the heart of Shoreditch that comes from the same people behind Crispin and Bar Crispin. Here, they're serving up their own take on bistro-style dishes, backed up by an all-French wine list.

Llama Inn originated in Brooklyn from chef Erik Ramirez (finalist in the James Beard Award for Outstanding Chef). The NYC twist on Peruvian cuisine has proven to be just as successful in London as in New York. Here, the restaurant is on the roof of the Hoxton Hotel in Shoreditch and in good weather, you definitely want to be on their terrace with a pisco sour.

This restaurant in Old Street comes from chef Joe Laker, previously at Fulham's Fenn. Here in East London, he's opened an all-counter dining restaurant which has just one dinner sitting a night, serving 16 guests. It's all ultra seasonal as well as making the most of bottling and preservation techniques to use some ingredients out of season. Downstairs, the cocktail bar Low Country is also well worth a visit.

Opened in 2015 and since expanded to restaurants in Soho and Tower Bridge, this original Gunpowder serves Indian small plates with an inventive twist. The dishes are inspired by those that the team grew up with and the Kashmiri lamb chops are a must.

The original Hawksmoor, and for many the best. Known as the group that transformed steaks in British restaurants forever for the better, this is a perfect place to come to for a meat-fest. And expect some cracking cocktails too - head to the bar downstairs for those and extra snacks not on the main menu.

If you're after great Vietnamese food in London, then one of the places to head to is Kingsland Road with a huge selection of restaurants. This one stands out though, as the sister restaurant of Cay Tre and with something of a more laid-back vibe.

One of London's biggest success stories, Dishoom seems eternally popular. Serving up all manner of Indian small plates, there's just as big a focus on the bar here as the food. Expect to wait for your table at peak times.

James Lowe's restaurant at the Tea Building in Shoreditch proved that a restaurant in Shoreditch could gain a Michelin star. This all-day restaurant showcases his food with a regularly changing menu. Look out for special guests popping in from time to time. And they serve a damn fine coffee throughout the day.

Serving up some of the best Thai food in London, the trio behind this is Andy Oliver, Mark Dobbie and Tom George. They originally gained a huge following at a Climpson's Arch residency before crowdfunding their own spot. "Regional Thai food with uncompromising flavours" is what they promise.

David Carter's smoky, steampunk room in Shoreditch shows that there is real innovation and creativity behind the macho 'cue look. There's a huge range of smoked delights like the brisket and pickled chilli bun, while there are also some gorgeous dishes for vegetarians.

Small plates, sharers and snacks are on the menu here, at this venture from the team who were originally in Hackney. Now they're Shoreditch-based with a more laid back venture that features their own Vermouth and wines.

The Shoreditch outpost of the St John empire is almost like a finishing school for London chefs. This restaurant is the beating heart of seasonal British cooking in London and has spread that influence all over the UK.

This is the Shoreditch outpost of the Blacklock group - which has become famous for its piles of chops, cooked over fire. It's also great value for money - and that includes the cocktails. This East London branch also has a large bar area.

Just off Kingsland Road, in an area with some excellent Vietnamese cooking, Cay Tre is held out to be one of the very best in London. Their pho is an obvious attraction here, but there's a broad menu of authentic Vietnamese cooking. (And you can pop across the street to try their Banh Mi shop Keu too.)

From their simple start on a Maltby Street stall to their permanent digs on Bethnal Green Road, Lahpet are introducing Londoners to the delights of Burmese food.

Previously Burger and Beyond were at street food markets all over town before they settled down in Shoreditch. Their best burgers are on offer here, all covered in excellent toppings like marrownaise and more. Their small plates action is pretty good and the truffled tater tots are some of the best in town.

The Big Mamma group in Paris have had huge hits with their trattorias and Gloria was their first London opening, in a big space in Shoreditch. It serves up Italian food in a classic looking space (as well as a hidden 80s-set dining room) and a buzzy vibe.

The original Padella is a London sensation, with its affordable fresh pasta winning friends far and wild. It's hugely popular, which led to this second outpost in Shoreditch. Expect the same great value, high quality pasta and more.

This is the Old Street restaurant for Richard Corrigan, the top Irish chef who's also behind Bentley's in Mayfair. Expect a menu that has a modern European base mixed in with various Irish influences. There's an excellent pub downstairs too, in the shape of Gibney's.

This Italian restaurant is from chef Jonathan Lawson, who worked with Theo Randall for five years before opening his own place, with cuisine described as Italian with a touch of Moorish and Spanish.

Santo Remedio at London Bridge has established itself as one of London's top authentic Mexican restaurants. This is their second restaurant (but also where they originally started out some years back). They call the cafe "an ode to the bustling cafés of Mexico" with hits from the original Santo Remedio - like the tacos and guacamole - as well as Shoreditch-only dishes. Expect great margaritas and there's a handy takeaway hatch.

BAO have mastered the art of the bao bun - now they've moved onto noodles, with beef noodles being the key draw at this Shoreditch restaurant. But worry not - bao buns are available too.

Part shop/part restaurant, Shoreditch’s Burro e Salvia makes incredible pasta on site every day. You can take it away to cook yourself at home or take a seat up at the pasta counter and let them do the work for you. There’s a small menu of fresh pasta and antipasti that changes regularly, and if you fancy learning the secrets of great pasta making for yourself, they also run regular workshops.