The best restaurants in Notting Hill, London

Handsome pastel-hued terraces, Hollywood rom-com depictions and a rich multicultural history that shines bright at Notting Hill Carnival have all helped make this west London neighbourhood one of London’s most popular neighbourhoods. Fast forward to 2024, and a new generation of chefs are putting Notting Hill on the map from a culinary perspective, too.

Innovative restaurants, cafes and bistros are serving up creative menus that honour the history of Notting Hill, using exciting techniques and flavours from different corners of the world to bring a fresh and invigorating air to the heart of W11. Whether you’re seeking a ritzy fine-dining restaurant or a no-frills bistro, there’s sure to be something that tickles your taste buds in our guide to Notting Hill’s top restaurants.

16 best restaurants in Notting Hill

Straker’s

Best for: Mediterranean-style food and excellent martinis  
Location: 91 Golborne Road, London, W10 5NL
Price: Small plates from 9 GBP

Chef and social media sensation Thomas Straker cut his teeth at some of London’s finest restaurants, including Michelin-starred hotspots Dinner by Heston Blumenthal and Elystan Street, before opening this 40-cover restaurant on Golborne Road back in 2022. Here, a pared-back palette sees velvet green banquettes and whitewashed walls as the setting for no-fuss Mediterranean-style food and a playful martini-centric cocktail menu – the salted sbagliato made with sweet martini rubino vermouth is a highlight. The menu changes seasonally but fan favourites such as chilli-infused crab taglioni and flatbread topped with tomatoes and parmesan are sure to be in arm’s reach.

Dorian

Best for: Modern British food cooked over fire 
Location: 105-107 Talbot Rd, London, W11 2AT
Price: Small plates from 3.50 GBP; large plates from 9 GBP

This neighbourhood bistro has been the talk of west London since Aussie owner Chris D’Sylva billed it an “anti-Notting Hill” establishment at its launch in 2022. Max Coen steers the kitchen using produce sourced from top British suppliers, including Cornish butchers Phillip Warren and D’Sylva’s neighbouring Notting Hill Fish + Meat Shop, to create modern British sharing food cooked over a wood-fire grill. Dorian was awarded its first Michelin star in 2024 for its monthly changing menus featuring dishes like lobster salad with grilled sweetcorn and kohlrabi, and lamb ribs with a refreshing shiso relish, paired with an excellent wine list curated by the team at Noble Rot. Interiors are classic with white tablecloths, reclaimed wood panelling, chequered flooring and leather counter seating attracting a star-studded crowd (don’t be surprised if you rub shoulders with an A-lister or two during your visit).

Gold

Best for: Mediterranean sharing plates, boho interiors
Location: 95-97 Portobello Road, London, W11 2QB
Price: Small plates from 9 GBP 

It’s impossible to miss Gold thanks to the striking white and gold mural painted across its facade by Portuguese street artist Alexandre Farto. Inside, the decor is just as eccentric with interiors inspired by Notting Hill’s multicultural heritage, featuring plaster walls, dusty coral banquettes, potted plants and rattan chairs. Theo Hill’s modern European menu focuses on open-flame cooking with sharing plates organised by vegetables, salads, charcuterie and cheese. The wood-roasted aubergine with fresh goat’s curd works well with the beef carpaccio and zucchini. There’s also a selection of larger plates including chargrilled prawns in a fiery chilli. On the second floor, an intimate private dining room is set up for special occasions with its banquet-style table and mood lighting.

The Pelican 

Best for: Elevated pub grub 
Location: 45 All Saints Road, London, W11 1HE
Price: Small plates from 6 GBP; large plates from 8.50 GBP 

This buzzy gastropub occupies a prime position on the corner of All Saints Road in a historic building that has served as a neighbourhood boozer since 1870. Restaurateurs James Gummer and Phil Winser (also behind The Bull in the Cotswolds and The Hero in Maida Vale) reimagined the space with reclaimed wood, raw plastered walls, dried plants, tan leather banquettes and a roaring open fire. The kitchen sources from regenerative farmers to elevate ordinary pub grub to soul-warming comfort dishes such as leek and potato soup and braised lamb with anchovy. Classic cocktails and an excellent bottle list feature skin-contact wines from Georgia and Italy, and brilliant bar snacks include pork scratchings, flaky sausage rolls and spider crab on toast. Don’t miss the dry, bubbly pilsners courtesy of neighbouring independent Portobello Brewery.

Holy Carrot

Best for: Plant-based food 
Location: 156 Portobello Road, London, W11 2EB
Price: Small plates from 11 GBP; large plates from 17 GBP 

Irina Linovich’s Holy Carrot has been turning heads for its plant-based pop-ups and intimate supper clubs over the last few years, but summer 2024 marked the official opening of a permanent space on Portobello Road just opposite the Electric Cinema. Vegetable-led menus are headed up by Daniel Watkins (co-founder of Acme Fire Cult), and fire and ferment-focused dishes are based upon produce sourced from local farmers and foragers. Bold plates like the smoked beetroot, hazelnut cream and sweet and sour dill, and the grilled pineapple and miso butterscotch soft serve are flavorous and refreshingly light. Decor reflects the nature-rich menu with earth tones and tables decorated with custom ceramics from various independent UK ceramicists and Copenhagen-based studio The Table Project. Expect an edgy crowd and a blissed-out atmosphere thanks to the feel-good techno playlist hand-picked by Linovich.

Caia

Best for: Feel-good vinyl, wild-card wines
Location: 46 Golborne Road, London, W10 5PR
Price: Small plates from 6 GBP; large plates from 13 GBP 

Hip restaurant and wine bar Caia has two entirely different vibes across its two floors. At street level, lime washed walls, marble tables and velvet seating all centre around an open kitchen where Chris Denney and his crew grill pork chops, Ibérico ribs and monkfish over flame. Downstairs, a low-lit setting combines plants, dark woods, turntables and a stellar retro vinyl collection featuring jazz, funk and disco classics handpicked by various London-based record stores. There’s a strong veggie menu here, too, with crowd pleasers like coal-roasted beetroot, sweet potato agnolotti and chocolate toasted rice cake. Wine is the beating heart of Caia with a bottle list spotlighting coastal, classic and wild card wines carefully collated and rigorously updated by founders Tim Lang and Rishabh Vir.

Sumi 

Best for: Flavour-packed sushi, brilliant sake 
Location: 157 Westbourne Grove, London W11 2RS
Price: Small plates from 8 GBP; large plates from 21 GBP 

On a quiet stretch of Westbourne Grove, this slick 60-cover restaurant received such a warm welcome when it launched that it expanded just one year after opening. Sumi is an exquisite showcase of fresh, flavourful Japanese fare from sushi mastermind Endo Kazutoshi, who first made waves on London’s food scene for his fine-dining concept Endo at the Rotunda in White City. The à la carte menu is inspired by Kazutoshi’s storied family recipes and is split between nigiri, sashimi and a stellar selection of temaki (hand-rolled cone-shaped sushi) including minced fatty tuna with fermented radish, chives and soy and a diced red tuna marinated in soy and served with wasabi. The restaurant has a more casual vibe than its Michelin-starred sibling with exposed wood and rattan finishes, and a long bar decorated with paper lanterns and bottles of premium sake such as crisp, clear and difficult to source Dewazakura.

Akub

Best for: Modern Palestinian food 
Location: 27 Uxbridge Street, London, W8 7TQ
Price: Small plates from 7 GBP; large plates from 16 GBP 

Franco-Palestinian chef Fadi Kattan launched this restaurant as a love letter to his homeland in Bethlehem, something that is traced in everything from its name (Akub is a thistle-like Middle Eastern vegetable) to the Palestinian suppliers that he celebrates in a series of biweekly supper clubs. The spiced and seeded breads are perfect for mopping up homemade shatta and baba ganoush, and larger plates such as slow-cooked fava beans in a tomato and garlic dressing and spiced dumplings filled with pine nut studded beetroot tahini are complemented by floral-toned cocktails. The fluffy hilbeh baba – a light cake spiced with fenugreek and cardamom and topped with cream and pistachio – is a great choice to round off the food. Smaller details like the handmade tableware by Jaffa-based ceramicist Nur Minawi and candlelit nooks flanked by potted olive trees make for a romantic atmosphere.

Julie’s 

Best for: Brasserie classics in a ritzy setting
Location: 135 Portland Road, London, W11 4LW
Price: Small plates from 5 GBP; large plates from 10 GBP 

Interior designer Julie Hodgess of the legendary Biba fashion boutique opened this champagne bar and restaurant in 1969, and it quickly became one of London’s most glamorous hangouts, counting the likes of Mick Jagger, Tina Turner and a fair few royals as regulars. In May, Julie’s reopened with a shiny new look flaunting patterned wallpapers, antique mirrored walls, bespoke chandeliers and a glazed volcanic bar top courtesy of interior designer Rosanna Bossom. The all-day menu showcases French brasserie classics with a seasonal twist including lobster souffle with buttered leeks and gruyere cheese, crab and scallop tortellini with spinach, and a Reine Claude and almond tart with crème fraîche. The cocktail menu is a nod to the restaurant’s playful roots with a negroni and hugo spritz served on draught and an old-school martini trolley offering tableside refreshments.

Mazi

Best for: Authentic Greek fare 
Location: 12-14 Hillgate Street, London, W8 7SR
Price: Sharing plates from 14 GBP 

Stepping inside this light-filled restaurant is like being transported to a family-run taverna in Greece – whitewashed brick walls are clad with canvas scribbled with daily specials and simple wooden tables and chairs spill onto a sunny outdoor courtyard. Mazi (meaning ‘together’ in Greek) revolutionised London’s Greek food scene when it opened in 2012 with small plates so delicious they remain almost the same over a decade later: feta tempura with lemon marmalade, tiger prawn risotto, spiced lamb rump and honey roasted tomatoes, we could go on. On weekdays, a three-course lunch menu sees fish roe mousse tarama, wild cod with artichokes and caramelised pineapple at reasonable 29.95 GBP per person. Mazi has outposts in Morocco and Abu Dhabi, and husband and wife team Adiren Carree and Christina Mouratoglou look after next door bistro and cocktail bar Suzi Tros, too.

Orasay 

Best for: Line-caught fresh seafood
Location: 31 Kensington Park Road, London, W11 2EU
Price: Small plates from 4 GBP; large plates from 8 GBP 

Orasay – Jackson Boxer’s first solo venture – centres around seafood, caught fresh from the Scottish Western Isles where Boxer holidayed in his youth. You might find a fried haddock bun with sriracha or cod and scallop sausage with black garlic on the seasonal menu, or even a lemon sole served with jalapẽno pesto and redcurrants. One certainty, though, is the pudding and wine pairing menu – think honey toast with English plums and white chocolate accompanied by a biodynamic Tuscan orange wine with a zesty finish. As for the interiors, a natural palette of wood, rattan and terracotta-hues is made cosy with cone pendant lights and dried plants.

Ria’s 

Best for: Detroit-style pizza, natural wines 
Location: 29 All Saints Road, London, W11 1HE
Price: Pizza by the slice 4.90 GBP; whole pizza 16 GBP 

At Ria’s, pizzas come Detroit-style:  pillowy, cheesy slices with crisp crusts made from dough which is fermented over three days before hitting the oven. The concise menu counts six pizzas, which can be ordered by the slice or whole. You won’t find the classic margarita here; instead, elite meat and veg combos like the pepperoni and soppressata with housemade marinara sauce, aged parmesan and hot honey, or the roasted king prawns with a parmesan crust and salsa macha are plate-licking delicious. There’s a selection of sides including fried potatoes with garlic-infused whipped feta and Ria’s haggis pops (a nod to Scottish-born owner Ria Morgan-Ratcliffe’s roots), plus a sweet and crunchy chocolate cookie dough crumble. Ria’s doubles up as a wine bar and has a rotating natural wine list starring silky reds, fresh oranges and fruity whites.

The Counter

Best for: Upscale Turkish food with a Levantine edge
Location: 108 Golborne Road, London, W10 5PS
Price: Small plates from 6 GBP; large plates from 12 GBP 

This unassuming restaurant at the buzzy intersection of Golborne and Portobello Road is easy to miss with its dark exterior, but step inside and a buzzy space is filled with a crowd draped over leather banquettes and wishbone chairs. The upscale Turkish menu has a Levantine twist and is cooked over an open-fire grill and served mezze-style. Salty olives and za’atar flatbread is followed by white chocolate baba ganoush, while saffron and crab orzo and minty lamb skewers marry well with mashed fava beans. There’s a welcome selection of sorbets or a pistachio and chocolate sponge cake for something more indulgent. The bar and open kitchen have the same energy as a pub, where friends catch up over wines and house cocktails such as the kazandibi – an unconventional but extraordinary take on the classic Turkish dessert made with hazelnut fat-washed bourbon, salted caramel and cinnamon.

Caractère 

Best for: French-Italian fare, build your own cheese board
Location: 209 Westbourne Park Road, London, W11 1EA
Price: Three course set menu from 95 GBP per person 

The menu at Caractère plays on the name with headings swapped for personality attributes, including “curious” for starters, “greedy” for desert and “robust” somewhere in the middle. (Diners might be somewhat disappointed to learn that the curious starters arrive in the form of roast Orkney scallops and bluefin tuna instead of an unknown creation, but there’s something to be said for the originality). The French-Italian menu is a reflection of chef-owners Emily Roux and Diego Ferrari’s heritage, combining saffron risotto and red Sicilian prawn with roast squab pigeon with blackberries and beetroot. There’s an option to build your own cheese platter served with homemade seed crackers and apple and prune chutney, while hazelnut crisps and a salted caramel brownie are on hand for those with a sweet tooth. Whimsical interiors feature a soothing, large-scale cloud painting, chandelier clusters and terracotta-hues.

Empire Empire 

Best for: A disco-style Indian 
Location: 16 All Saints Road, London, W11 1HH
Price: Small plates from 7 GBP; large plates from 14 GBP 

You can smell the spice from this Indian restaurant well before you spot its illuminated exterior down All Saints Road. Empire Empire has the same approach to unfussy Indian food as founder Harneet Baweja’s Gunpowder restaurants, but with a 1970s disco-inspired setting: picture an old-school jukebox playing feel-good dance music and a vintage photo booth lined with polaroids. The crispy prawn fritters with chutney and lamp chops with a tandoori salad are a great place to start before checking out the curries and biryanis. The paneer makhani in a cream tomato sauce pairs perfectly with laccha paratha bread (a fried, layered flatbread), while the signature lobster biryani, served with the crustacean head sticking out is essential for larger groups. On the drinks menu there’s a couple of cocktails including a fermented rhubarb and rose vodka fizz and a crisp lager from Dalston-based 40ft brewery alongside a solid wine list. Be sure to leave room for the galub jamun (a sweet, sticky dessert) and meringue cheesecake laced with ginger biscuit crumble.

Kuro Eatery 

Best for: Brunch, Japanese-style coffee 
Location: 5 Hillgate Street, London, W8 7SP
Price: Brunch plates from 12 GBP

Technically a cafe, Kuro Eatery’s brunch menu is too good not to list. Crispy fried eggs with sumac chilli oil, French toast with cheesecake cream, chicken schnitzel with tarragon sauce, and a handful of sides such as warm, olive oil-smothered sourdough from neighbouring Kuro Bakery and a nutritious granola bowl with fresh berries are a handful of the highlights. Greek chef Andrianos Poulis (previously Clos Maggiore, Cornerstone and Mazi) draws on ingredients from the Med combined with global favours like chimichurri and anchoïade to craft seasonal menus. The 30-cover space has large windows pouring in natural light, wood finishes and dried plants. The beauty of Kuro is its commitment to producing food that is genuinely loved by locals, right down to their specialty coffee and pastries.

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