London Takeaways

12 Upper Saint Martins Lane Covent Garden, London, West London, WC2H 9FB

Dishoom at 12 Upper St Martin's Lane in Covent Garden WC2 is the original Dishoom — the restaurant that started in 2010 and launched what became London's most commented-on restaurant group. Hardens confirms it as consistently the most-discussed restaurant in their annual diners' poll across all seven London branches. Cousins Shamil and Kavi Thakrar created a homage to the Irani cafes of Bombay — the Parsi-owned teahouses that fed Mumbai from the 1920s until they gradually disappeared. The formula is distinctive: 24-hour slow-cooked black daal, bacon naan roll for breakfast, sizzling house black pepper chicken, chilli cheese toast, unlimited chai — "a novel variation from what you get in a typical curry house," writes Hardens. The Covent Garden branch expanded in 2020 into the neighbouring former Jamie's Italian. Queues form every evening. Open from 8am daily for breakfast.

Available for dine-in at 12 Upper St Martin's Lane, Covent Garden WC2H. Phone 020 7420 9320. Own website: dishoom.com. Open from 8am daily.

11 Langley Street Covent Garden, London, West London, WC2H 9JG

Hawksmoor at 11 Langley Street in Covent Garden WC2 is one of the most celebrated branches of Will Beckett and Huw Gott's steak group, which Hardens consistently rates the best steakhouse in London and which has been called the best steakhouse in the world by some critics. The group opened its first branch in Spitalfields in 2006 and now has 13 locations. The Covent Garden site uses a converted 1930s brewery. Hardens 2025: "the standard has not slipped over nearly 20 years of trading — the beef is still outstanding." The menu focuses on dry-aged British beef: porterhouse, T-bone, bone-in sirloin and rib-eye, aged 28 to 55 days. The Sunday roasts are consistently cited as the best in central London — bone marrow gravy, dripping roasted potatoes, giant Yorkshire pudding. The cocktail bar at Hawksmoor is one of London's finest.

Available for dine-in at 11 Langley Street, Covent Garden WC2H. Phone 020 7856 2154. Own website: thehawksmoor.com. Book ahead.

17 Neal's Yard Seven Dials, London, West London, WC2H 9DP

Story Cellar at 17 Neal's Yard in Covent Garden WC2 is a spin-off from chef Tom Sellers' acclaimed Story restaurant in Bermondsey, housed in an intimate cellar space in the charming pedestrianised courtyard of Neal's Yard. Hot Dinners describes it as "a Parisian-influenced restaurant with a rotisserie chicken as its centrepiece alongside riffs on French classics." The menu includes snail bolognese, soufflé, French onion soup and other bistro classics reimagined with Sellers' technical skill. A strong wine list of mostly French and natural bottles. Neal's Yard is one of London's most distinctive small spaces: a cobbled courtyard of brightly coloured buildings behind Covent Garden, home to the Neal's Yard Remedies herbal shop and surrounded by independent food businesses including Neal's Yard Dairy — arguably London's most important specialist cheese shop.

Available for dine-in at 17 Neal's Yard, Covent Garden WC2H. Phone 020 7101 8102. Own website: restaurantstory.co.uk/cellar. Book ahead.