Is The Killingworth Castle the best gastropub in the Cotswolds? Life&Style In these times of global turmoil, the humble British staycation holds more allure than ever, and you would be hard-pressed to find a better, more accessible option than The Killingworth Castle in the Cotswolds. This outrageously handsome 17th century inn and stables is one of those places that’s so old it would scramble the brain [...]
The 18 best pubs in the City of London – picked by experts Life&Style The City of London has some of the best old boozers in the country, from sprawling Victorian gin palaces to squat little drinking dens squirrelled away down forgotten alleyways. We asked the reporters at City AM – who know the Square Mile better than anyone – to name their best pubs in the City of [...]
Victor Garvey’s mad new MATER1A concept is a Willy Wonka-esque theatre of gastronomy Life&Style MATER1A, 115 Westbourne Grove, W2 4UP | ★★★★★ | Cuisine: Japanese, fine dining, tasting menu A benefit of having written restaurant reviews for 15 years is that you begin to see the overarching warp and weft of the business, the trends that slowly emerge and dissipate, the way hospitality gradually evolves, holding up a mirror [...]
Valentine’s Day: Fancy a romantic bowl of chocolate spaghetti? February 13, 2026 What could be more romantic than a meal out in Soho, a bottle of red wine and a nice bowl of chocolate spaghetti? Well, I can think of a few things… The ‘spaghetti bucatini’ at 27 Old Compton Street is being sold not as a dessert but a main course: thick strands of pasta slathered [...]
Bar of the week: Why Three Sheets is a little slice of old Soho February 10, 2026 Three Sheets Soho | 13 Manette St, W1D 4AP This new column celebrates the great drinking holes of London, the pubs and bars that keep the capital lubricated despite the government’s best attempts to send them crashing out of business. Last week I profiled The rising Sun, the Victorian gin palace that claimed our Best [...]
Pub of the week: Toast Award-winner The Rising Sun on Carter Lane February 4, 2026 Nobody loves a pub as much as City AM. Over the years we have campaigned for them, we have reported on their plight, and we have honoured them in our Toast the City Awards. Now we’re launching a new regular feature celebrating the best drinking holes in the Square Mile and beyond. While the exact [...]
Pay now, drink later: A beginner’s guide to En Primeur wine January 29, 2026 It’s Burgundy En Primeur season in London for the 2024 vintage. En Primeur means buying the wine before it is finished and bottled. You buy before you try. Sounds risky, so why would anyone do it? Well, it gives the buyer early access to the wines, ensuring themselves a few bottles before they hit the [...]
Alta review: Serious Spanish food amid the Carnaby crowds January 28, 2026 Alta, Kingly Ct, Carnaby, W1B 5PW | Nearest Tube: Oxford Circus With its jolly pink furniture and candy-striped awnings, Kingly Court has an air of unreality. It’s a Disneyfied version of what food culture might look like if it were imagined by a private equity firm, a place designed to house tourists grappling with their disappointment [...]
London’s top gastropub revealed: Has your favourite made the cut? January 27, 2026 Piccadilly Guinness emporium the Devonshire has been voted the best gastropub in the country, with the capital dominating the list. The Estrella Damm Top 50 Gastropubs awards saw the Devonshire usurp last year’s winner The Unruly Pig in Suffolk, which fell to second place. The Red Lion and Sun in Islington took the final place [...]
DakaDaka review: The comfort food we all need right now January 27, 2026 DakaDaka, 10 Heddon Street, W1B 4BX | Nearest Tube: Piccadilly Circus Heddon Street has developed its own culinary microclimate. Whether by luck or design, it has become a place where you can almost guarantee a decent plate of food, with its current crop of restaurants including Sabor (superlative Spanish), Fonda (respectable Mexican) and Casa do [...]