Where chefs eat: the best meals we had in 2025
Despite economic headwinds so strong you could forgive most chefs for simply packing up their kitchens and going home, 2025 has been another vintage year for London restaurants. But which ones have made the biggest impression? We asked some of the best chefs in the land which meal they enjoyed the most.
Stevie Parle, chef-founder of Town, Motorino and Pastaio
This year I was lucky enough to eat a couple of times at Osip. For me it’s the best restaurant in the UK. Merlin’s cooking and connection to the land and produce surrounding the restaurant is always inspirational but since he moved to the new space just outside Bruton this year, everything about the experience has levelled up. They now have beautiful bedrooms upstairs so you don’t even have to worry about getting home.
Sandia Chang, sommelier and co-founder of Kitchen Table
My best meal of 2026 would be Dovetale. The execution by Tom Anglesea is nothing short of great, while the menu is accessible and the venue feels like it’s for everyone. The leeks marigold with Scottish lobster and black truffle was one of the best things I’ve eaten this year. The wine list is also amazing, with treasures from around the world.
Nathaniel Mortley, chef-founder of 2210 by NattyCanCook
My favourite meal this year was Akoko. The 12-course tasting menu was exceptional: deeply thoughtful, technically brilliant and packed with flavour. It felt purposeful from start to finish.
Ben Chamberlain, head chef of Wild at Bull
My favourite meal of the year was at Fallow. It’s proper cooking, confident flavours and no overthinking. The crispy pig’s head and octopus crumpet were banging.
Sebby Holmes, head chef of Farang
Globally my best meal was Samrub Samrub by chef Prin in Bangkok, with its seriously delicious tasting menu. In the UK, it has to be The Bull in Charlbury. It is perfect pub cooking with local produce; the whole package was spot on, from the dining room to the sides.
Max Venning, co-founder of Three Sheets
Osip was an amazing experience. Staying in the old pub, having an incredible dinner and waking up in Somerset to a breakfast produced on site or at the Farm was amazing. Merlin and the team have built something really special using truly local, seasonal ingredients, but still producing exceptional food.
Charlie Mellor, restaurateur, Osteria Vibrato
If I had to choose a highlight meal of 2025, it would be the restaurant that has thrilled me with each visit over the years, and is getting better every day. Timberyard in Edinburgh is a masterclass in hospitality. It also has the finest collection of wine you will find in the UK, and delicious, thoughtful, inspired cooking. Proprietor Joseph Radford and his whole family who operate the venue never cease to inspire me. It’s a beacon of warmth and generosity. You simply must visit.
Benjamin Zannier, chef at La Mome London
With my London opening, I barely had time to eat out in 2025 but one meal really stayed with me. Simple, honest and packed with flavour, Arroza Q in London, from chef Quique Dacosta stands out not for its complexity but for its precision. A wood-fired paella – deep, smoky, perfectly controlled – set the tone. Then comes a selection of aiolis: each one distinct and beautifully balanced, showing how far you can go when technique and ingredients are spot on. To finish, a gorgonzola cheesecake, surprising and genuinely delicious.
Tom Anglesea, Dovetale
Mine was Planque in Haggerston, without question. The lobster rice was the standout: confident, unfussy and perfectly balanced. Deeply flavoured rice, great lobster, and nothing on the plate that didn’t need to be there. It’s the kind of dish that feels effortless, but you know it’s the result of real skill.
Leonel Aguirre, head chef at Mauro Colagreco at Raffles London at The OWO
I had a memorable meal at The Eagle in Farringdon. It’s a classic gastropub and I went for the simple yet deeply satisfying menu of the day. What really stood out was a minestrone soup – it wasn’t flashy, but it immediately transported me back to the soups my grandmother in Argentina used to make for me as a child.
For my main course, I had partridge with beautifully roasted vegetables: honest cooking with excellent produce. Nothing was overly complicated, and simplicity done well is so rare nowadays. That’s what made it special to me. The food, and the relaxed, unpretentious atmosphere.
Karan Gokani, co-founder and creative director, Hoppers
A family birthday celebration at Sabor’s La Mesa, where Nieves and her team truly spoilt us. What I love about that space is the feeling of being in a Spanish friend’s dining room: the joy, generosity and effortless hospitality. The food is always exceptional, of course, but it’s the conviviality, the warmth and the glorious sense of excess that make it such a special experience every single time.
Chris Golding, executive chef of NIJU
My favourite meal of 2025 was at Bouchon Racine back in June: excellent produce, confidently cooked, refreshingly unpretentious, with attentive but never intrusive service.