Story & Photography by Susan McKee
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Once upon a time, England was a culinary wasteland, a place where the epitome of London cuisine was a bit of roast beef with Yorkshire pudding. The occasional foreign restaurant (remnants of the Empire, don't you know) provided the only exotica.
My, how things have changed.
There are many really good places to eat in London these days, and few of them offer bangers and mash or baked beans on toast and there's not a jar of Marmite in sight.
Here are a handful of my favorites (in alphabetical order):
The first time I ate here, it was purely by chance. My husband and I were hungry on Midwestern time (a couple of hours earlier than Londoners typically dine). It
was a little after 6 p.m. on our first night of a week in London.
We were wandering SoHo, and came upon Arbutus (63-64 Frith Street, London). It wasn't yet as crowded as it would be later in the evening, and they found us a table for two in one of the small and spare dining rooms. The Pre-Theatre menu fit both our budgets and our appetites.
The menu here (like so many of the good places everywhere) is subject to seasonality in general and what's available that morning in the market specifically. Here are two of the offerings on today's menu (as posted on their website): slow-cooked beef ragu with potato gnocchi and a squid plus mackerel burger.
Roast
The reason for Roast is no surprise. This place is a carnivore's delight. The delectable scent of roasting pork, beef, chicken, trout and whatever-else-is-on-order permeates this airy restaurant on the second floor of the Borough Market 
(The Floral Hall, Stoney Street, London).
They're open for breakfast, but the restaurant comes into its own for lunch and dinner. Want a grilled brace of pheasants? This is the place! Last time I was there, I dined on "native breed saddleback pork. Next time? Who knows! The menu changes with the seasons.
Save room for dessert. Rice pudding is an English classic, but grandma never made it glazed with sugar and studded with prunes soaked in Earl Grey tea.
Don't miss the restrooms. No, I'm not kidding - each has a mini-lawn. Planted in a narrow trough between the sinks and the mirror is grass -- real, actual, green, growing grass. And the hand dryers are those new Dyson Airblade models that (surprise!) actually dry your hands.
Umu
There's more to Japanese dining than those familiar stalwarts: sushi, sashimi and teriyaki. Umu (14-16 Bruton Place, London) bills itself as the only Kyoto-styled restaurant in the United Kingdom. I've not been to Kyoto, but I must admit that Umu is a knock-out of style, both in design and offerings.
Being Japanese cuisine newbies, my husband and I settled on the Kaiseki Tasting Menu. Fabulous choice: each of the seven course was exquisite in its own way. We enjoyed elegant mixes of unexpected flavors, each new course accompanied by a different kind of sake. Because the selection for the tasting menu varies by market availability, it's not possible to predict. But, that's the fun of a tasting menu in an unfamiliar cuisine, isn't it?
Veeraswamy
Said to be the oldest Indian restaurant in the United Kingdom, Veeraswamy first opened its doors in 1926 (Mezzanine Floor, Victory House, 99 Regent Street, London). I've been there several times now and have yet to run out of new delights to try. This is not a curry house, but an elegant restaurant furnished with authentic touches such as a collection of vividly colored turbans belonging to the Indian Maharajas who frequented the restaurant in its early years.
On my most recent visit, I was in the mood for an aperitif without alcohol. My waiter suggested a combination of sparkling lemonade and lychee juice that was just exotic enough to pair well with my samosas appetizer.
I especially like the Kashmiri Rogan Josh (a lamb curry) but they also do very well with poultry baked in a tandoor oven. If you don't know what to order, consider a reservation for Sunday, when there's a special menu consisting of a mix of Indian family favorite dishes.
© January 2011 LuxuryWeb Magazine. All rights reserved.
Issue:
January
2012