Dining solo in London

[daisy17]

Will be traveling to London on business the first week in August. (Does London shut down in August the way Paris does?) Haven't remotely looked into hotels or flights - I'm focusing on the important stuff here first. The last time I was in London was 13 years ago as a poor student, so London dining is completely new to me. I'd really like to try a wide variety of restaurants and want to eat some excellent food. I'll hopefully be dining alone for some if not most of my dinners, and I love to eat at the bar at restaurants here in New York. Easy to do in London?

Have always wanted to try:

St. John

River Cafe

Fat Duck (Is it easily accessible by public transportation from London?)

Can I eat alone at these restaurants at the bar?

Lindsay House, Chez Bruce, Club Gascon, Admiral Codrington, Ladbroke Arms, The Eagle have been suggested to me - should these be on my list? What others should I consider? Any specific recommendations for gastropubs would be very much appreciated.

Many thanks in advance.

Edited to add: do any of Marco Pierre White's restaurants lend themselves to dining alone, and are they worth going to?

Edited July 4, 2006 by daisy17 (log)

[Jamsie]

Bentleys on Swallow Street, Picadilly & J Sheekeys on St Martin Court, Covent Garden are couple of very good fish restaurants where you can sit at the bar and enjoy some pretty decent food

[Andy Lynes]

Arbutus, Frith Street, Soho is a great place to dine solo at the bar. I did so recently and had a whale of a time chatting to a fellow lone diner and the staff. The food was also terrific and very good value.

[naebody]

All the Caprice Holdings chain -- The Ivy, Caprice and J Sheekey -- do barside tables which allow the single diner a good opportunity to get into places that would normally require some serious forward planning. Likewise The Wolseley, and most of Shirtless Ramsay's eateries. There's also barside dining available at Arbutus, which I think has been been mentioned here in the past ...

The "G" word has been a seriously devalued by a thousand me-to ventures, all microwaving their catering packs of seabass fillets. For pub-based dining, the Thomas Cubitt is a current foodie favourite, although you'll have to go upstairs to the more formal room for the serious menu. The Eagle, while historically important, has been scarily quiet the last few times I've passed. If it doesn't pull your chain, then Moro round the corner has pavement tables and faultless meze.

Other good options include the Anchor & Hope (British) and Tapas Brindisa (Spanish) -- both don't take bookings and get insanely busy, meaning the lone diner will stand a better chance of getting a seat. St John is ok alone, but you may be more comfortable at St John Bread & Wine, its more relaxed offshoot.

If you want The Fat Duck for August, book yesterday. And yes, expect the travelling to be a pain: one hour by rail to Maidenhead, then 10-minutes in taxi to Bray Village. (Note that while London will be open in August, its public transport system will remain a shambles.)

[gethin]

Arbutus, Frith Street, Soho is a great place to dine solo at the bar. I did so recently and had a whale of a time chatting to a fellow lone diner and the staff. The food was also terrific and very good value.

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Fellow lone diner really enjoyed himself too !

You may not be lucky enough to find Mr Lynes sitting next to you , but you can rely on the excellence of the food and the staff are always pleasant.

Gethin

[daisy17]

Many thanks for the info. I'm likely to be in London for two whole weeks; please, please keep them coming! I'm looking for some really good food . . . any other suggestions on recent favorites would be very much appreciated.

All the Caprice Holdings chain -- The Ivy, Caprice and J Sheekey -- do barside tables which allow the single diner a good opportunity to get into places that would normally require some serious forward planning. Likewise The Wolseley, and most of Shirtless Ramsay's eateries. There's also barside dining available at Arbutus, which I think has been been mentioned here in the past ...

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Naebody, is it possible to actually sit at the bar and dine at the places you've mentioned, or are barside tables the only option? And are Ramsay's places worth going to? (I can't stand him on tv . . . . )

[Champagne Sadie]

  And are Ramsay's places worth going to?  (I can't stand him on tv . . . . )

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Oooohhhh, there's a can of worms.

[battleofthebulge]

Le Caprice has seats at the bar which are usually free if you turn up on spec, except at weekends. I've squeezed in there a couple of times and had a good meal. Only problem is you have your back to the room so it's more difficult to people watch. Though they do have cute barmen

Sarah

[naebody]

Naebody, is it possible to actually sit at the bar and dine at the places you've mentioned, or are barside tables the only option?  And are Ramsay's places worth going to?  (I can't stand him on tv . . . . )

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You sit at the bar at Sheekey, Caprice and Arbutus, all of which are highly recommended (for food, atmosphere and value respectively). As for Sweary Gogs, I think Maze, Boxwood Cafe and The Savoy all do settings at the bar, while Petrus has informal bar-side tables. You may want to phone ahead to check though -- it's a while since I've been to the latter three.

As for whether Ramsay's worth the trouble ... well, in New York terms, probably not: Maze is an anaemic version of WD-50, Boxwood would disappear in the streets around Union Square, and Savoy-like dining can be found quite easily in mid-town. Petrus is okay, but tends to be arse-clenchingly formal on a school night.

One final caution: remember that while NYC has joined the 20th century, almost all London restaurants still allow smoking in their bars. You therefore run the risk of finding yourself next to a cohiba.

[Jon Tseng]

Bar at Nobus non-booking right?

Naebody, is it possible to actually sit at the bar and dine at the places you've mentioned, or are barside tables the only option?  And are Ramsay's places worth going to?  (I can't stand him on tv . . . . )

←

You sit at the bar at Sheekey, Caprice and Arbutus, all of which are highly recommended (for food, atmosphere and value respectively). As for Sweary Gogs, I think Maze, Boxwood Cafe and The Savoy all do settings at the bar, while Petrus has informal bar-side tables. You may want to phone ahead to check though -- it's a while since I've been to the latter three.

As for whether Ramsay's worth the trouble ... well, in New York terms, probably not: Maze is an anaemic version of WD-50, Boxwood would disappear in the streets around Union Square, and Savoy-like dining can be found quite easily in mid-town. Petrus is okay, but tends to be arse-clenchingly formal on a school night.

One final caution: remember that while NYC has joined the 20th century, almost all London restaurants still allow smoking in their bars. You therefore run the risk of finding yourself next to a cohiba.

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[naebody]

Bar at Nobus non-booking right?

Shared table is, as is the Berkeley branch ***. But why on earth would anyone want to travel from New York to London, then end up at Nobu?

( *** Edit: just been told Nobu II has changed that policy and it's booking with a two-hour turnaround now. Also told that the food has been bobbins of late.)

Edited July 7, 2006 by naebody (log)