Test Drive

• Test Driving Automat, the speakeasy restaurant hidden at the back of a Mayfair shop

  

  London's run of stealth openings continues with Automat. The American brasserie returns with a new team and a hidden-away location in Mayfair.

• Test Driving Hawksmoor St Pancras - the steakhouse feels right at home in one of London's most beautiful dining rooms

  

  Hawksmoor's latest restaurant in King's Cross might be their grandest dining room yet, as well as a destination bar. We went down to check it out. 

• Test Driving Martino's, the hot new Italian that's dramatically raising the bar in Chelsea

  

  As the follow-up to The Dover, expectations were high for Martino's (or would have been but for the stealth opening). Luckily, Martin Kuczmarski has used this to prove  he's not a one-hit wonder.

• Test Driving Bonheur by Matt Abé, where the Gordon Ramsay alum goes solo in Le Gavroche's former home

  

  Matt Abé graduated from Restaurant Gordon Ramsay to his own place, opening on the hallowed ground that used to be Le Gavroche. We went to Mayfair to see what he's done with the place.  

• Test Driving Crisp Pizza at The Marlborough, next level hype manages to live up to expectations

  

  Crisp Pizza's arrival in Mayfair at The Marlborough is peak London food scene hype. We went down to see if those pizzas live up to the sky-high expectations.

• Test Driving Poon's at Somerset House, a new chapter for the restaurant dynasty

  

  A mere five decades after her parents opened the much-loved Poon's, Amy Poon has followed in their footsteps by opening the deeply hospitable Poon's at Somerset House. We went to be coddled by Chinese home cooking. 

• Test Driving Maset - The Lurra team turn French on Chiltern Street

  

  The team behind Basque-inspired successes Lurra and Donostia have turned to Coastal France for their latest, opening on Chiltern Street. We went to one of Marylebone's fanciest streets to check it out. 

• Test Driving 74 Charlotte Street, a grown up affair for Ben Murphy in Fitzrovia

  

  Chef Ben Murphy settles down with a more refined offering in a restaurant that's really rather beautiful in an understated way.

• Trying the Winter Scene afternoon tea at Ochre , a treat too good to leave to the tourists

  

  There's a new seasonal afternoon tea at the National Gallery's restaurant, Ochre. We headed to Trafalgar Square to try it out.

• Test Driving Aki London, a glamorous new sushi spot bringing Kyoto farm-to-table food to Marylebone

  

  Marylebone has a new sushi spot that wouldn't look out of place in the heart of Mayfair. But it turns out that Aki London is more than just a looker.

• Test driving Cô Thành, the hit Vietnamese restaurant makes the trip from Hong Kong to London

  

  Inspired by a street stall run by "The Lunch Lady", who shot to fame thanks to Anthony Bourdain, the London outpost of this Vietnamese restaurant has arrived in Covent Garden. We went down to try it out. 

• Test Driving Motorino, Luke Ahearne and Stevie Parle team up for an Italian follow-up to Town

  

  For his Town follow-up, Stevie Parle lets Lita's Luke Ahearne take the lead in new "London Italian" Motorino. We went to Fitzrovia to take a first look. 

• Test Driving Carbone, the American import that quickly became London's hottest restaurant

  

  Carbone has landed in London with a bang, immediately becoming the hottest restaurant in town. But what's it actually like to dine there? We went in to find out. 

• Test Driving Kudu, this Peckham by way of South Africa restaurant's warmth and creativity blossoms in its move to Marylebone

  

  Could popular Peckham restaurant group Kudu Collective maintain their neighbourhood vibes in the move to buzzy Marylebone? We popped in for a weekend lunch to find out.

• Test Driving Rosi, a modern British hit for The Beaumont in Mayfair

  

  The arrival of Michelin-starred chef Lisa Goodwin-Allen has given this Mayfair hotel dining room a shake up. We went to get a taste of her Modern British cooking.