A fascinating addition to the London culinary scene, Tartine offers French open-faced sandwiches, the contents of which are wilfully rich and tempting beyond reason. Think bruschetta, add indulgence and you have it. Here they use poilâne; a sort of bucolic sourdough bread toasted using olive oil, it is then served with a wide variety of fillings with minute steak and caramelised onions as a typical winner, but be sure not to ignore the combination of shredded duck, ginger, cucumber and plum sauce

Whether the Earl of Sandwich, the inventor of that very English piece of cuisine, would be amused at the price of nearly £10 is open to question. But then he would have reckoned it's without the elaborate touches that accompanies each carefully tuned offering. Main courses like roasted cod, borlotti beans, chorizo and tomatoes, and puddings rate well too. Innovation, as opposed to meddling, is always to be welcomed and as such Tartine deserves to prosper.