London Restaurants - Shoreditch, Clerkenwell

The Big Mamma group in Paris have had huge hits with their trattorias and now they're in London with Gloria, in a big space in Shoreditch. Expect Italian food in a classic looking space (as well as a hidden 80s-set dining room) and a buzzy vibe.

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

Macellaio RC have a few sites across London where the main event is the steak, and you'll see plenty of this hanging in the restaurant. It's all Italian-style steak from a female Fassona breed. There is some pasta available too - but you'll really need to be trying as much from the grill as possible to do the place justice.

The team behind The Clove Club are behind this restaurant, helping American chef Chase Lovecky open his first solo venture. American cuisine is at the heart of the menu - but with a specifically modern take.

This neighbourhood cafe in Clerkenwell is blessed with a hidden courtyard terrace which is a good-to-know alfresco option in this area. As for the food, they serve up ethically-sourced organic produce taking inspiration from both European and Californian cafes and a small regularly changing menu.

This Clerkenwell pub has a long history in Clerkenwell and may only be second in line to The Eagle when it comes to pubs that went "gastro". Settle in downstairs for more traditional pub fare, or head to the upstairs restaurant if you're after something a little more fancy.

The Eagle in Clerkenwell is often credited as the first modern gastropub - with restaurant-quality food being served inside a pub. Many years down the line, it's still a reliable spot for a good meal, serving up a seasonal menu in a faintly ramshackle pub. The steak sandwiches are some of the best in town.

Hammer and Tongs specialises in serving up South African braai(aka barbecue). So expect meat, fish and vegetables cooked on a wood-fired grill, not to mention some local specialities including biltong, Cape Malay curry fish, braaibroodjie and more. And yes, there will be a lot of South African wine on the menu.

This is an offshoot of Josh Katz's Berber & Q, and is something of a cut-down version of the main restaurant. Here you can find a combination of mezze, hummus and plenty from the grill - including the lamb shawarme of course - as well as rotisserie chicken. And make sure to hang around for their desserts.

In a quiet part of Clerkenwell, The Green comes from the same people who also run The Culpeper in Shoreditch. Either take it easy in the pub downstairs or head up to the first floor restaurant and you'll find the pub serving modern British food from an ever changing menu. Also look out for a Sunday lunch where they concentrate on Beef Wellington and one key roast dish.

You'll have seen Burger and Beyond at street food markets all over town, and now they've settled down in Shoreditch. Expect all your favourite burgers and a lot more new additions too.

The team responsible for The Culpeper in Aldgate have a new project - they've opened this pub and hotel on Brick Lane which has a residents-only rooftop terrace.

If you're a fan of Flat Iron's steak great value steak, then you'll be very pleased to hear they're opening a new branch in Spitalfields - which will be very handy for city-folk.

Jackson Boxer and his chef and partner Andrew Clarke have a fire and ice focus for their new Shoreditch restaurant with an ice bar for raw fish and shellfish and open hearth cooking for meat and vegetables.

Former Kitty Fisher's chef Tomos Parry's solo venture features a mix of cooking on fire, Welsh and Basque cuisine, and a big focus on wine. It became an instant hit - and it doesn't hurt that the dining room is quite lovely too.

Forget your greasy local frier - Clerkenwell’s fish and chip restaurant United Chip’s all about the millennial pink, Bangkok prawn burgers and complimentary aioli. But there's fisn and chips too - with traditional or Belgian fries.

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. Expect classic, seasonal cooking from Henderson. It's a little on the hard side to find - but well worth it.

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.

The team behind Foleys and the Rum Kitchen have come to Old Street with a pretty sizeable new restaurant, serving Italian-via-LA cuisine from 7am to midnight all week long.

Award-winning chicken street food trader made its move from street food to bricks and mortar with the opening of this, their first place, in Shoreditch. Their fried buttermilk chicken sandwiches are the bomb.

We're not sure which bit of Rascals to tell you about first. There's the waterproof room, the bottomless pizza, or the Wheel of Misfortune with wooden stocks for the "losers"... plus creative cocktails, a mad menu and more for all your tableside flamb-ing needs.

?We want to keep pushing boundaries,? said Mr Lyan about his concept bar and restaurant. No problem there then - his new restaurant uses very (and we do mean *very*) creative ingredients in a special all-in-one kitchen and bar, reducing waste and keeping guests on their toes. Expect ambergris, Japanese knotweed and smoked compost carrot on the weekly changing menu.

The first Smoking Goat in Soho, and the follow up Kiln have both been huge hits so it was only to be expected that the larger Shoreditch branch would do well to. 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 too.

This is the latest Camino, offering up a mix of Spanish tapas, a bar and more.

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.

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.)

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. A cracking place for a weekend breakfast too.

Marcus Samuelsson's New York restaurant is hugely popular, and it's arrived at the Curtain Hotel in Shoreditch. The legendary yardbird fried chicken and Helga's meatballs are making it over here 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.

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