While Mayfair and Soho take top spots for London’s fine-dining destinations, it would be wrong to dismiss Covent Garden as being limited to pre-theatre dinners and post-show drinking holes. A stone’s throw from the culinary haven that is Chinatown, the West End is no stranger to decadent tasting menus, Michelin-starred restaurants and a variety of perfected cuisines ready to tempt even the most discerning of foodies, whether they’re heading for the stalls or not. Here are the best restaurants in Covent Garden. 

Christopher’s

Christopher’s, a Covent Garden stalwart since 1991, has just reopened following a sensitive refurbishment honouring its Grade II listed status. The sumptuous interiors sprawl across three floors: a high-ceilinged restaurant reached by a sweeping staircase, an Art Deco martini bar, and an underground private club. The former offers a refined take on American cuisine, ranging from Maryland crab cakes and USDA prime ribeye steak, to dynamite shrimp tempura tacos and whole grilled lobster with garlic butter. 

The chic Art Deco martini bar remains an integral part of the Christopher’s experience. Renowned for its extensive and varied cocktail list, highlights include the New-Fashioned, featuring bourbon, vanilla, orange marmalade, agave and angostura bitters, and the Vesper Martini: a large measure of gin, vodka and Lillet Blanc shaken over ice finished with a twist of lemon. Top tip: martini hour takes place 5-6pm from Tuesday to Friday, when serves are priced at £10 a pop. Chin-chin. 

18 Wellington Street, WC2E 7DD, visit christophersgrill.com

Town

Those with their finger on the pulse of London’s dining scene will know Town – the latest project by British chef Stevie Parle – is one of the hottest restaurants in the city right now. Bookings are equivalent to gold dust and for good reason, with the restaurant built around sustainable British produce served in design-led interiors with a 1970s feel – think lava stone countertops, a lacquered green kitchen and classic Jacobsen chairs.

Town is pioneering a new relationship with growers, by investing in farmers using progressive and regenerative approaches; for example, it is the first restaurant to serve wild-farmed beef from its own herd of 100 per cent grass-fed cows in Oxfordshire. Elsewhere, plates of perfect, peak-season fruit change daily, homemade ice creams are hyper-seasonal, and cheeses come from Ireland’s Lost Valley Dairy, which is run by Parle’s brother and sister-in-law.

This all culminates in an array of standout dishes, featuring tempura sage leaves drizzled in chilli and honey from Parle’s bees, Cornish tuna crudo with apple and soy, and a south Indian-inspired cod and clams curry to share. It would be remiss to visit Town and not indulge in a tipple at the bar, led by Kevin Armstrong – owner of World’s 50 Best bar Satan’s Whiskers in Bethnal Green – to serve a succinct menu of classics and originals. We’ll see you there.

26-29 Drury Lane, WC2B 5RL, visit town.restaurant

Story Cellar

Fans of Tom Sellers' Restaurant Story – the two Michelin-starred establishment that reopened earlier this year in Bermondsey – must visit his second outpost in Covent Garden's Neal's Yard. A stylish, more laidback little sister, Story Cellar opened in 2024 and takes its cues from Paris via London, featuring a monochrome, ruby red and navy interior palette with marble counters lining both the street-side windows and open kitchen – great for those who are always keen to get in on the action. It's one of Covent Garden's best kept secrets and has surprisingly maintained a relatively low profile – until now.

While the concepts may differ, the menu here features some of Sellers' signature recipes, such as the stand-out snail bolognese on toast with parsley butter and peach, beans and smoked almond salad. Larger plates, however, champion premium rotisserie chicken which can be ordered half or whole, served in caramelised juices (perfect for dipping crispy fries in). Also don't miss the beef fillet in the creamiest, peppery mushroom sauce, and a selection of grilled meats and fish of the day such as dry aged pork chop with brandy-pickled dates.

Desserts reflect the essence of Story Cellar’s concept, featuring well-executed favourites like bread and butter pudding that would rival your grandmother's recipe any day. Combine these decadent dishes with exceptional service, expertly-picked wine (the walk-in cellar downstairs and in-house sommelier has the answer to everything) and a relaxed atmosphere rarely found in an accoladed restaurant, and you have a meal to remember. Story Cellar is certainly one to watch – and we will keep on coming back.

17 Neal's Yard, WC2H 9DP, visit storycellar.co.uk

Café Murano

The younger, more casual outpost of Angela Hartnett’s British-Italian Michelin-starred restaurant, there are Café Muranos dotted across the capital in St James, Marylebone Bermondsey, and Covent Garden. It’s raison d'être is offering an affordable and relaxed approach to Italian cuisine, inspired by Hartnett’s award-winning recipes while taking its cues from the Italian province of Veneto, showcasing the dramatic differences between the mountainous regions on the Austrian border, and the metropolitan, coastal region of Venezia. 

Pasta is made in-house twice daily, with every meal beginning with a slab of Hartnett’s signature focaccia. Move onto the secondi slice of the menu to experience Murano’s modern Italian flair, mixing classics like chicken Milanese with seasonal specials such as Cornish hake with Umbrian lentils. Café Murano is ultimately a love letter to Hartnett’s heritage, honouring the bold, satisfying flavours of Italy without being too heavy or too rich – and is a must when in Covent Garden. 

36 Tavistock Street, WC2E 7PB, visit cafemurano.co.uk

Henri

Having opened last summer, Henri is a must-try Parisian-inspired restaurant by renowned chef Jackson Boxer. Combining the best British and French sensibilities, interior designer Dorothée Meilichzon has decked out the Henrietta Street address in tribute to the historic Covent Garden fruit and vegetable market via botanical shapes and timeless Art Nouveau accents.

Served from an open kitchen, start with Boxer’s take on Parisian classics like fried pieds de cochon (pig’s trotters) with prune and beer mustard, and grilled snails with green garlic and veal rice. Steak frites is available every lunchtime, offered alongside other large plates of Tamworth schnitzel in brown butter, anchovies and lemon and morel, comté and reginette pasta gratin. Expertly tended meat, fish and vegetables sit on the charcoal grill section, ranging from roast duck served with blood orange and green olives to Brixham cod finished in a crab and lime leaf bisque. Bon appétit!

14-15 Henrietta Street, WC2E 8QH, visit henricoventgarden.com

Oriole

You’ll find the second outpost of award-winning cocktail bar Oriole nestled within Covent Garden’s The Yards, offering a plush hideaway among the hustle and bustle of the West End. It’s the only Oriole setting to offer an á la cartè food menu, courtesy of chef director Gustavo Giallonardo who has drawn on his Argentinian heritage to create a fusion menu celebrating Latin America, Nikkei (Peruvian-Japanese), and regional Mexican traditions. Expect an array of sharing small plates ranging from pork katsu sando with kimchi and seabass ceviche to aubergine mille-feuille and coconut tres leches with fig leaf sauce. 

To accompany the food menu, bar director Samet Ali has developed a cocktail menu inspired by Oriole’s namesake: the adventure-seeking birds. Drinks draw on distinctive imbibing traditions from around the world, and include the Kalahari Julep: whisky, passionfruit wine, zalotti blossom and lime. 

7-9 Slingsby Place, WC2E 9AB, visit oriolebar.com

Frog by Adam Handling

The flagship, Michelin-starred restaurant from Scottish chef and Masterchef: The Professionals finalist Adam Handling is just as theatrical as one would hope, considering it’s situated at the heart of London’s West End. Diners are positioned directly in front of the open kitchen so they can watch the action unfold, before being served their choice of a meat or vegetarian tasting menu. All ingredients showcase the best of British, sourced from independent farmers, fishermen and growers, and presentation is second to none. The menu is kept firmly under wraps but think sea bream with tiger’s milk and white radish overflowing with wafts of dried ice, before plates of lobster with smoked chilli and roasted lemon, and pigeon, hen of the woods mushroom and black garlic. 

34-35 Southampton Street, WC2E 7HG, visit frogbyadamhandling.com

Twenty8 NoMad

Despite only opening in 2021, The NoMad Hotel has made a name for itself as a foodie haven. Comprising the Mexican-inspired Side Hustle, the Library, and, most recently, Twenty8 NoMad – the hotel's flagship resdtaurant that's buzzing every day of the week. Set in a soaring glass conservatory with hanging plants and pale-green furnishings, it opened as the hotel's signature restaurant earlier this year, combining New York nostalgia with French flair. This is also reflected in the menu that features oysters with all the trimmings, grilled bone marrow with sourdough, lobster pasta and Galician ribeye with sauce bordelaise.

28 Bow Street, WC2E 7AW, visit thenomadhotel.com

Stereo

If you’re looking for guaranteed (and good) live music, head to Stereo, located on Covent Garden’s Piazza. The restaurant-come-music-bar opened at the beginning of 2023, and takes its cues from the vibrant late-night culture of New York with undertones of Parisian chic. Its delectable cocktail and food menus – overseen by chef Andrew Clarke, formerly of Brunswick House and St Leonards – sit harmoniously alongside Stereo’s eclectic daily music programme, where an in-house band plays relaxed soul, funk and jazz tunes in the early evening before building tempo throughout the evening. 

Culinary fare fuses American classics with European influences, so you'll find plates of cheeseburgers, fried chicken sandwiches and Stereo hot wings alongside roast salmon with mardi gras slaw, loaded hot dog and spiced lamb shawarma. At the bar, pick from bottles by South Bermondsey microbrewery Partizan, Thames Distillers (creating Stereo's house vodka and gin blends), Biercraft and The Lakes Distillery, alongside an exceptional cocktail menu.

35 The Piazza, WC2E 8BE, visit stereocoventgarden.com

House of Louie

This opulent party palace on Covent Garden’s West Street has just emerged from a rebrand and refurbishment, combining Japanese cuisine at Wani Tzuki, French dining at Louie and the vibrant jazz vibes at the Alligator Bar all under one roof. Located in a historic 19th century townhouse, House of Louie is where delectable dining meets boujee nightlife experiences across three distinct but interconnected floors.

Step into Wani Tzuki, an elevated izakaya restaurant, to enjoy Japanese flavours reimagined through the lens of French-trained chefs, before heading upstairs to Louie. At the heart of the building, the chic French dining room is set to the backdrop of soulful jazz music and delicate interiors by Dion et Arles. The house is crowned by the Alligator Bar, which buzzes with live entertainment and DJ sets. Featuring a hidden outdoor terrace to sip cocktails by day, and a gilded indoor space to dance at night, this is the perfect all-day destination for catch ups, birthday celebrations and date nights.

13-15 West Street, WC2H 9NE, visit louie-london.com

La Goccia

Petersham Nurseries’ Richmond venue has long been a favourite for elegant, Italian-inspired dining in the capital and it didn’t take long for its Covent Garden outpost to emulate the same experience. Taking its cue from the slow-living and sustainable values synonymous with the Petersham brand, La Goccia serves seasonal, nose-to-tail Italian aperitivo and dishes. However, when the sun is shining, we love La Goccia’s sunny courtyard, where you can dine al fresco to enjoy plates of cured beef tartare, Tuscan dough balls filled with mortadella and gorgonzola dolce, and brown crab cacio e pepe bucatini.

1 Floral Court, WC2E 9FB, visit lagocciacoventgarden.com

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