Frommer's best bets for dining in London

updated 12:23 p.m. ET July 17, 2006

St. John, 26 St. John St., EC1 (tel. 020/7251-0848): In a former smokehouse north of Smithfield Market, this is the major venue for serious carnivores in London. Chef Fergus Henderson is England's biggest devotee in ofal cuisine -- meaning "nose-to-tail cookery." This earthy food obviously will not appeal to vegetarians, but it would delight a reincarnated Henry VIII.

Fifteen, 15 West Land Place, W1 (tel. 0870/787-1515): In Shoreditch, the author of The Naked Chef, James Oliver, takes "disadvantaged" young people and trains them from scratch. In just 4 months, they are tempting you with their modern British cuisine as chefs of the day. Amazingly, the food you're served is praiseworthy, even attracting some of London's Michelin-starred chefs.

Simpson's-in-the-Strand, 100 The Strand, WC2 (tel. 020/7836-9112): At least once forsake London's trendy restaurants and dine as Sir Winston did back in the post-war '50s when he was prime minister. It's partaking of "The Deadly Sins" to dine here: roast sirloin of beef; steak, kidney, and mushroom pie; and roast saddle of mutton with red currant jelly.

Gordon Ramsay at Claridge's, Brook Street, W1 (tel. 020/7499-0099): We'd cast our vote for Gordon as the hottest and most talented chef in London today. In the city's swankiest luxe hotel, he dazzles the most serious international foodies with his take on a modern continental cuisine using, for the most part, British products. Close your eyes, take your finger, and point at any item on the menu. Chances are, you'll be delighted.

Complete London Guide Frommer's dining in London Frommer's Best places to Stay in London Frommer's museums in London Frommer's Favorite Experiences in London

Sketch, 9 Conduit St., W1 (tel. 0870/777-4488): Hailed by the British press as a "camp wonderland," this is a restaurant, tearoom, art gallery, bar, and patisserie. There is no more chic joint at which you could be at night. The Continental and modern British cuisine is divine as well.

Club Gascon, 57 W. Smithfield, EC1 (tel. 020/7796-0600): Chef Pascal Aussignac is all the rage, bringing a corner of southwestern France to London -- and that spells Armagnac, foie gras, and duck confit. This bistro stands next to the famous meat market in Smithfield, and it's the best place in town for a foie gras pig-out.

MORE BEST BETS

Best Spot for a Celebration: There's no spot in all of London that's more fun than Quaglino's, 16 Bury St., SW1 (tel. 020/7930-6767), which serves up Continental cuisine. On some nights, as many as 800 diners show up at Sir Terence Conran's gargantuan Mayfair eatery. It's the best place in London to celebrate almost any occasion -- and the food's good, too. There's live jazz on Friday and Saturday nights.

Best for Value: Called the market leader in cafe salons, Veronica's, 3 Hereford Rd., W2 (tel. 020/7229-5079), serves not only some of the best traditional British fare, but also some of the most affordable. Many of the chef's recipes are based on medieval or Tudor culinary secrets, and some even go back to the days of the conquering Romans.

Best Modern British Cuisine: In a former smokehouse just north of Smithfield Market, St. John, 26 St. John St., EC1 (tel. 020/7251-0848), serves a modern interpretation of British cuisine like none other in town. The chefs here believe in using offal (those parts of the animal that are usually discarded) -- after all, why use just parts of the animal when you can use it all? Although some diners are a bit squeamish at first, they're usually hooked once they get past the first bite. Book ahead of time.

Best Traditional British Cuisine: There is no restaurant in London that's quite as British as Simpson's-in-the-Strand, 100 The Strand, WC2 (tel. 020/7836-9112), which has been serving the finest English roast beef since 1828. Henry VIII, were he to return, would surely pause for a feast here. This place is such a British institution that you'll think they invented roast saddle of mutton.

Best for Kids: The owner, the Earl of Bradford, feeds you well and affordably at Porter's English Restaurant, 17 Henrietta St., WC2 (tel. 020/7836-6466). Kids of all ages dig Lady Bradford's once secretly guarded recipe for banana-and-ginger pudding, along with the most classic English pies served in Central London, including such old-fashioned favorites as lamb and apricot; and ham, leek, and cheese.

Best Continental Cuisine: Le Gavroche, 43 Upper Brook St., W1 (tel. 020/7408-0881), was one of the first London restaurants to serve the modern French approach to cuisine, and it's lost none of its appeal. If you want to know why, order pigeonneau de Bresse en vessie aux deux celeris: The whole bird is presented at your table, enclosed in a pig's bladder; the pigeon is removed, and then carved and served on a bed of braised fennel and celery. Trust us -- it's fabulous.

Best Indian Cuisine: London's finest Indian food is served at Café Spice Namaste, in a landmark Victorian hall near Tower Bridge, 16 Prescot St., E1 (tel. 020/7488-9242). You'll be tantalized by an array of spicy southern and northern Indian dishes. We like the cuisine's Portuguese influence; the chef, Cyrus Todiwala, is from Goa (a Portuguese territory absorbed by India), where he learned many of his culinary secrets.

MORE FROM 24-HOUR LAYOVER: LONDON

24-Hour Layover: London Section Front

Live it up in London Best museums in London Favorite experiences in London Accomodations for every style and budget   Slide show: London calling 24-Hour Layover: London Section Front   Add 24-Hour Layover: London headlines to your news reader: