The new Michelin star restaurants in London, as well as the rest of Great Britain and Ireland were announced last night, and what a night it was for the capital, with 11 new one stars, three new two stars and one new three star restaurant to celebrate. Australian chef Brett Graham took home the biggest prize of the lot, winning – deservedly, and at long last – a third star for his world-class Notting Hill restaurant, The Ledbury. The win makes it one of an elite group of just nine three Michelin star restaurants in the country.
If it was a big night for Graham, it was arguably even bigger for Nigerian-born chef Joké Bakare of Chishuru in Fitzrovia, who became the first black woman to win a Michelin star in the UK (and only the second in the world). Since the news broke yesterday evening, my social media feeds have been dominated by the image of an absolutely radiant, beaming Joké raising a glass in her crisp white Michelin-issue chef’s jacket.
It’s a historic victory for her and for West African cuisine in London more generally. How fitting that Chishuru’s Fitzrovia neighbour Akoko, another West African restaurant, should also win its first Michelin star this year. In another first, A-listed favourite Gymkhana became the first ever Indian restaurant to win two stars, an epic achievement for the team. Congratulations to all the winners of new Michelin stars, and to all of you who have already secured reservations. For those who haven’t, it’s not too late to get booking a table at the new Michelin star restaurants in London.
The Glossary Edit
New Michelin star restaurants in London
The Ledbury
When it comes to Michelin stars 2024, The Ledbury took home the top prize. Only Michelin knows what separates a three star from the rest but here, you’d have to credit Australian chef Brett Graham’s sourcing for much of the restaurant’s success. He rears his own animals, grows his own mushrooms and operates his own deer parks. The ingredients, per Michelin, are “stunning”; the tasting menus “balanced and harmonious”. Menus, from £165 at lunch and £210 at dinner, might involve wild sea bass, nashi pear, smoked eel and N25 caviar, or veal sweetbread, parsnip, vin jaune and jus noisette.
127 Ledbury Road, Notting Hill, London W11 2AQ
theledbury.com
Gymkhana
Gymkhana’s promotion from one star to two stars is huge news. Michelin doesn’t typically reward restaurants that are this much fun! The Michelin inspectors aren’t the only ones to love the popular Indian restaurant and its signature lamb chops; celebs do too, and a roll call of A-list stars including David Beckham, Oprah Winfrey and Taylor Swift has been sighted there in the 11 years since its 2013 launch. Michelin praises the traditional-style Northern Indian dishes for their “balance, sophistication and depth”. Good luck getting a table, though.
42 Albemarle Street, Mayfair, London W1S 4JH
gymkhanalondon.com
Brooklands by Claude Bosi
Well, wow. Claude Bosi only opened Brooklands, his new restaurant at the Peninsula London, in October and it’s gone straight into the guide with two new Michelin stars (he has another two from Bibendum, of course). The rooftop restaurant is jaw-dropping to behold, with a scale-model of Concorde suspended from the ceiling and a 1930s Napier Railton in the lobby. The food is the rich and elegant French cuisine for which Bosi is known. Don’t miss the signature Exmoor Caviar, Roscoff onion and duck jelly.
The Peninsula, 1 Grosvenor Place, Belgravia, London SW1W 0EJ
peninsula.com
Trivet
Trivet is a co-production by chef Jonny Lake and master sommelier Isa Bal, two industry veterans with 12 years apiece at the Fat Duck. The two Michelin stars are well deserved; here’s a restaurant that respects classic thinking but often goes against the grain. Check out their new Monday evening sessions, their members’ club and Bal’s myth-busting wine list, that follows viniculture from its roots in Armenia, Turkey and Greece onto Italy, France and beyond.
36 Snowsfields, London Bridge, London SE1 3SU
trivetrestaurant.co.uk
Mountain
Anglesey-born chef Tomos Parry’s new Soho restaurant has won every award under the sun; its first Michelin star is just the latest. Fans of Parry’s cooking from Brat will know what to expect: first-rate British ingredients, many Welsh and cooked in the Basque style over a wood grill. Key dishes include the spider crab omelette, the mutton chops and the whole lobster calderata to share. Bookings are hard to come by, so try for an early walk-in at the counter.
16-18 Beak Street, Soho, London W1F 9RD
mountainbeakstreet.com
Restaurant 1890 at the Savoy
Gordon Ramsay’s intimate restaurant within the Savoy draws inspiration from the dishes first created by legendary French chef Escoffier during his own time at the iconic hotel. The £175 tasting menu views classic French cuisine through a contemporary lens, in such dishes as bouillabaisse à la Marsellaise, burnt Brie de Meaux with black truffle cheesecake and Cornish red chicken with pomme Dauphine and sauce Albufera. Old-fashioned elegance for the modern diner.
Savoy Hotel, Strand, West End, London WC2R 0EZ
gordonramsayrestaurants.com
Pavyllon
French chef Yannick Alléno can add one more Michelin star to his existing 15 for Pavyllon, his first London restaurant. I had my dish of 2023 there when I went to review Pavyllon for The Glossary – a steamed cheddar soufflé with watercress coulis and bacon butter – and not a day has gone by since when I haven’t thought about it. Alléno’s cooking is highly technical, refined and admittedly expensive, but for anyone with a passion for haute cuisine and rare ingredients, it’s worth it. Dip a toe in the water with the £55 lunch menu.
Four Seasons Hotel London at Park Lane, Hamilton Place, Mayfair, London W1J 7DR
pavyllonlondon.com
Humo
Reviewing Humo for The Glossary soon after its launch, I praised the “astounding level of nerdery” that Colombian chef Miller Prada applies to his wood-fired culinary concept. With the exception of a blackened, blistered chicken thigh speared on pine twigs, this doesn’t taste like ‘caveman cooking’. It’s as refined as it gets, using best of British ingredients including ike jime Hampshire trout, Scottish langoustines and Cornish lamb, aged and smoked for different times and at different temperatures to create something utterly unique. A truly modern Mayfair restaurant.
12 George Street, Mayfair, London W1S 2FB
humolondon.com
Akoko
Chef Ayo Adeyemi joined restaurateur Aji Akokomi’s West African restaurant Akoko in the September of 2022 and has taken it from strength to strength. I was in last week and was delighted to see the place absolutely buzzing on a grey weekday in January. Exemplary service supports a menu of focused cooking drawing on culinary traditions of Ghana, Senegal and Nigeria. The ox tongue suya and Herdwick lamb with jollof rice are stand outs. Catch the bargainous £55 lunch menu while you can.
21 Berners Street, Fitzrovia, London W1T 3LP
akoko.co.uk
Dorian
One can hardly describe a restaurant favoured by Victoria Beckham as under the radar, but this tiny Parisian-style neighbourhood “bistro for locals” in Notting Hill remains one of the 2024 Michelin star list’s smaller players. The buzz has been building and building, and Dorian now ranks among the city’s hardest-to-get tables. Chef Max Coen (ex-Ikoyi and Kitchen Table) cooks with fun and flair. Think Dover sole with ‘nduja and cockles and deep-fried guinea fowl and scallops, with hot sauce and N25 caviar.
105-107 Talbot Road, Notting Hill, London W11 2AT
dorianrestaurant.com
Chishuru
The unstoppable rise of Joké Bakare from supper clubs to a Michelin star in the space of four short years has been a joy to witness. The self-taught Nigerian-born chef got her break in 2020 with the opening of a three-month pop-up in Brixton, from which word spread of her breathtaking West African cooking. Chishuru moved into its new Fitzrovia home in September 2023, where it’s still possible to get lunch for £40 (dinner is just £75), qualifying it – surely? – as London’s best value Michelin-starred restaurant.
3 Great Titchfield Street, Fitzrovia, London W1W 8AX
chishuru.com
Humble Chicken
Young talent Angelo Sato, Tokyo-born and raised, never stops challenging himself. In 2021, he opened his Frith Street counter restaurant as a yakitori joint, only to reimagine it two years later as an exciting, contemporary omakase restaurant. Sato’s worked at some of the world’s most famous restaurants, including Ryugin, Eleven Madison Park and Restaurant Gordon Ramsay. And it shows in every meticulously executed plate of mussels with avocado and citrus koshu ponzu, or shokupan with butter, winter truffle and parfait. This is fine-dining at its youthful best.
54 Frith Street, Soho, London W1D 3JA
humblechickenuk.com
Sushi Kanesaka
Sushi master Shinji Kanesaka holds two Michelin stars already for the original Sushi Kanesaka in Tokyo, and can now add another to his collection with a first (and surely not last) for his follow up at 45 Park Lane. Sushi Kanesaka represents Japanese hospitality at its pinnacle, with just 13 guests a sitting seated at the hinoki counter, for a 20-course menu of traditional edomae sushi at £420 per person. An unforgettable, exclusive experience.
45 Park Lane, Mayfair, London W1K 1PN
dorchestercollection.com
Aulis London
A rackety alleyway in Soho might be the last place on earth you’d expect to find a chef’s table and farm-to-fork cuisine of the highest order. But then Aulis, the London offshoot of chef Simon Rogan’s three Michelin star restaurant L’Enclume, is nothing if not surprising. Having first opened in 2017, it reopened last May with increased capacity (from eight to 12 covers) and a new lounge. Executive chef Oli Marlow’s £185 tasting menu showcases exceptional British produce from Rogan’s Our Farm and beyond.
16 St Anne’s Court, Soho, London W1F 0BF
aulis.co.uk
Ormer
Opulence and flair are the watchwords at Ormer, the velvet and mirror-adorned dining room within Flemings Mayfair, a luxury hotel converted out of 13 Georgian townhouses. Moroccan-born chef Sofian Msetfi came on board in 2021, bringing with him years of experience at some of the British Isles’ most renowned restaurants (Midsummer House, Adare Manor, The Hand and Flowers). His five and seven-course tasting menus include such captivating ideas as Scottish langoustine, yuzu and saffron sabayon, and preserved English cherries with buttermilk and pine.
Flemings Mayfair, 7-12 Half Moon Street, Mayfair, London W1J 7BH
flemings-mayfair.co.uk
