The Montagu offers tranquil views over one of London's most picturesque gardens, yet provides a vibrant setting to relax and indulge in a wide range of modern British, seasonal dishes, all of which are prepared in a striking open kitchen. Located at the Hyatt Regency London - The Churchill - in Portman Square the restaurant prides itself on being a neighbourhood restaurant, which serves up a wide selection of wonderful, fresh dishes, with a mission to provide relaxed eating for all those whose lives bring them into contact with the hotel and its neighbourhood.

Awarded the prestigious Tea Guild's Award of Excellence 2010, The Montagu offers a full afternoon tea service from 3:00pm to 6:00pm which is the perfect antidote to the hustle and bustle of Oxford Street. The Montagu Afternoon Tea offers elegant tiered stands bearing a selection of traditionally British, thinly sliced finger sandwiches and warm fruit and plain scones with strawberry jam and Cornish clotted cream. The Patissier's selection includes pretty French pastries and fruit tartlets and mini desserts. Also served is a fine selection of exquisite teas.

In homage to Sir Winston Churchill, The Montagu has just launched The Churchillian High Tea, the perfect Winter treat. Start with smoked salmon, potted shrimps served on toast with a drizzle of lemon juice, cheese on toast, and toasted crumpets with butter. Follow with hot favourites such as a warming vegetable consommé, a mini shepherd's pie and Sir Winston's beloved traditional tender roast beef with a Yorkshire pudding and horseradish sauce.

Puddings include treats such as treacle tart, fruit cake and sherry trifle. Sir Winston's love of French food is highlighted with delicious chocolate éclairs. This is served with a fine selection of exquisite teas, all of which reflect the unique and fine qualities of Sir Winston Churchill.

The Montagu's Chef's Table is a foodie experience with a 5-course menu, prepared and delivered by the chefs, right before your eyes. An extensive wine list offers 70 labels covering mix of New and Old World wines, with numerous selections available by the glass. Until December, enjoy the Chef's Table in collaboration with the iconic winery Cloudy Bay, pairing food and wine together for an unforgettable culinary experience.

For those with time to linger at lunch or having dinner, the choice is wide and focuses on ingredients that are in season. Try the court bouillon poached prawns with cocktail sauce and avocado, or the Dover sole with roasted potatoes and drizzled with lemon butter. Or for those who prefer something meatier, choose from a stunning beef tenderloin with bone marrow crust and braised shallots, or a herbed lamb rump with celeriac mash and glazed carrots.

And for pudding, it is difficult to resist The Montagu's tempting selection. Indulge in a plum crumble with red wine ice-cream and vanilla pod sauce, a spiced hot chocolate with caramelised homemade marshmallows, or a scrumptious sticky toffee and date pudding with toffee sauce and vanilla ice-cream.

The Montagu in some ways echoes the grand style of a gentleman's club but one that is shorn of its pomposity and sepulchral silence, instead they are replaced with jollity and laughter, a real fun place to be not least because of the quality of the food and surroundings, and providing a real lift to the area.

However, the best way to find out all about The Montagu and the Hyatt Regency Hotel - The Churchill, one of the most elegant in London, is to visit their Website.

The picturesque and awe inspiring landscape of the town of Perth is home to the smart New County Hotel where the award winning Opus One restaurant continues to gather laurels and awards for their impeccable modern British gourmet cuisine. The hotel is located on County Place in the heart of Perth City Centre and is an ideal retreat whether you're there for business or pleasure. The marvellous adventure sports scene in Perth draws many an enthusiast, and at the end of the day the respite offered by the hotel is enough to rejuvenate even the most exhausted participant.

The light and airy bedrooms are furnished splendidly in stylish monochromatic colours, where white teams up with black for a classic look, and with beige for a more understated but elegant feel. The en-suite bedrooms are equipped with every conceivable comfort including flat screen TV, direct dial telephone, hair dryer and a well stocked hospitality tray.

The 2 AA Rosette awarded Opus One restaurant has garnered other prestigious awards too, such as a Silver Award from EatScotland at the end of 2008 and a Platinum Plate for their outstanding food with Hotel Review Scotland. And to add to that they were named the 'Rising Star Restaurant for 2009' and also achieved a runner-up place for Scottish National Hotel Restaurant of the Year in the Scottish Hotel of The Year Awards; while in 2010 they were 'Urban Restaurant of the Year' in the Scottish Restaurant Awards. Little wonder that the restaurant's popularity has been increasing from strength to strength and their Head Chef, Romuald Denesle from Normandy, who has worked in many excellent restaurants, most recently as Senior Sous Chef at The Ardeonaig Hotel on Loch Tay, is busy as ever trying to raise the bar even higher.

Opus One, we are told, could mean several things, such as the first masterpiece of an artist or composer or the famous wine from Napa Valley. The restaurant, which can be perceived as a magnum opus on its own, has been furnished with a contemporary taste where elegance combines graciously with modern style. The seasonal menu draws on the best of local produce and for lunch starters might include chicken liver parfait with red onion jam and oatcakes, or wholemeal blinis with thick cut smoked salmon with salad leaves and a grain mustards crème fraîche.

Main courses could involve delights such as slow roasted belly of pork with braised red cabbage, truffled potatoes and a sultana and thyme jus, or breast of corn fed chicken with celeriac and potato rösti, Savoy cabbage and Madeira jus. Dishes tend to become more elaborate in the evening, where meals could typically begin with goats' cheese pannacotta with caramelised beetroot and rocket salad, or carpaccio of monkfish cured in lime oil and a caviar dressing. Follow this with fresh market fish of the day or pan-fried fillet of beef.

Luscious and decadent, the desserts at Opus One could easily meet your calorific fantasies more than half way, for who can resist the pineapple and star anise mousse with roasted pineapple and green apple sorbet, or sticky toffee pudding with vanilla ice cream and butterscotch sauce? To ably accompany such excellent food be sure not to miss the selection of fine wines and spirits. Their signature wine is understandably the Opus One, a Napa Valley number that is produced meticulously as a result of the inspired collaboration between Baron Philippe de Rothschild and Robert Mondavi.

There's much more information about opening times, menus and drinks lists on their elegantly designed Website and a few clicks will bring you closer to this wonderful dining destination. Do note that they do not accept children under the age of ten.

Looking for interesting, seasonal and light, well-prepared food in a galleried setting with stunning views. The Bay, at Penzance, helped establish the now well-tried tradition of combining culture, in the form of a serious art gallery, with cuisine and rooms - and succeeds. The setting is chic, unstuffy, with superb views above the rooftops of Penzance to Mount's Bay. An excellent place to kick back, relax and enjoy their mix of a Modern European approach to serving seafood and other English dishes.

Throughout the whole year look forward to eating the best of the local produce, in an imaginative and attractive form and calling on an impressive list of local suppliers from Cornwall, where the environment is naturally fresh.

During the day an all day dining menu offers such dishes as prosciutto ham with herbed olive hummus and balsamic vinegar, steamed Fowey mussels in a shallot, garlic and Cornish cider cream sauce, or pan-fried rump steak with baby spinach leaf, straw potatoes and herb hollandaise. At The Bay it's always worth asking what the boats have brought in; fish does not come any fresher than this.

Try a roast Pollock fillet on braised saffron leeks and lemon cream sauce, or a local handpicked white crabmeat open sandwich on homemade granary bread with lemon mayonnaise. For vegetarian tastes there could be a baked aubergine and tomato gateaux.

In the evenings the menu expands and starters could include home smoked breast of guinea fowl, ox tongue and hazelnut salad and date purée, or pan-fried South Coast scallops, potato and vanilla cream with steamed spring onions.

Main courses follow the same pattern with a pan-fried West Country duck breast with smoked fennel, polenta cake and a preserved orange jus; roast fillet of Newlyn landed pollack, baby brown shrimps, cucumber and watercress, and roast Cornish double beef - for two to share - with pan fried foie gras and oxtail ravioli, black truffle and port wine jus.

As you watch the sun subside into the light mists of a velvet Cornish sea evening, you will find the desserts even more beguiling than usual, headed by the white chocolate mousse, sultana fancler and rice wine vinegar reduction, closely followed by the coconut crème brûlée with passion fruit madeleines and dark chocolate sorbet or assortment of miniature desserts.

Local wines, beers and an elite list offer further variety and choice, and, with at least eight available by the glass or 1/2 bottle, you can change wines with each course. Dessert wines are encouraged and include Pedro Ximenez- Jerez from Spain, and Nederburg from South Africa.

The Bay is quality eating amidst beautiful surroundings both in and out, at prices that will leave room for you to contemplate further indulgence amongst the many pictures tastefully displayed in the Gallery.

The past years have firmly established the Bay, in the diners Awards of the Region, they were named West Country Restaurant of the Year in 2002, and Restaurant of the Year 2006-8 in the Cornwall Tourism Awards. Consistently awarded 2 AA rosettes annually, and listed in the Michelin Guide, The Good Hotel Guide and The Good Food Guide.

For those of you wanting further information about The Bay, a visit to their Website would be a sensible idea.

At the very heart of the vibrant Covent Garden quarter, Tuttons has for over 30 years occupied its enviable position, offering high quality Modern European cuisine to an enthusiastic and cosmopolitan clientèle. Now refurbished and re-opened looking across to the sublimely beautiful front to the Royal London Opera House, Tuttons again takes its place in the scheme of things.

Large sliding, folding windows enable diners to enjoy some of the best views across Covent Garden's market, much enhanced by the dining terrace where alfresco rules.

In keeping with the tradition of freshness that the name of Covent Garden recalls, the menu calls upon the best of seasonal produce in the daily specials. As one might expect from a former market area the tradition of an early breakfast is maintained and at 8am daily the doors are opened and the delights of a major breakfast menu revealed. Two delightful private dining rooms are available from 8am for business breakfast meetings. What a civilised start to the day!

An à la carte menu eventually takes over with around twelve choices, of which I am happy to say four originate from the sea, with Dorset potted crab, mace butter and sour dough leading the way. Warm smoked ham hock with an Umbrian lentil vinaigrette carries warmth and recollection in its flavours, and a roulade of goat's cheese, with roasted baby beetroot, red chard, pine nuts and beetroot vinaigrette can be served as a main or starter. An attractive charcuterie board for sharing makes a pleasant change and ice breaker if needed.

The menu has been well designed by Executive Chef Darren Lock (lately of Tom's Kitchen) so that it provides lighter dishes more suitable for lunchtime to some of the more traditional brasserie style favourites such as chicken liver and Madeira parfait and confit duck leg. Children are able to enjoy their own menu with five main dishes of the sort beloved by the young (and some young at heart adults).

The grill makes a major contribution to the Tuttons scene, with steaks and Middle White pork cutlet, caramelised apple and red wine jus. Good to see Mid Shires rose veal schnitzel with lemon and caper butter sauce back on menus, including Tuttons, and also the pan fried line-caught pollock with turlu turlu, a Turkish vegetable and chickpea stew, an unusual and delightful combination; even the side dishes have received careful attention, notably the broccoli transformed by the addition of Pecorino cheese and olive oil.

Tuttons does a brisk business in Hen and Birthday packages where everything is thought about, even to disposable cameras at the table. These are frequently held in the vaults, offering a comfortable and sociable setting to a minimum of 12 guests.

For a central London venue within easy distance of main line stations and tubes, theatres and entertainment Tuttons is hard to beat and looks set to enjoy a further 30 years giving good food in pleasant surroundings to an admiring following. Do click on their Website for offers, menu changes and images.

When one of the country's most respected and leading critics says that a restaurant in this group is 'the best Italian Restaurant outside London' it is time to take them seriously. Britain's love affair with Italian food is a cause célèbre of long standing and shows no signs of waning, so it is always welcome news when somewhere like San Carlo sets out to reach for the skies.

Located in the heart of Leicester, San Carlo is well suited to catch both day and night time business, and the menu reflects this. There are a wide range of dishes, plus blackboard specials, offering snacks, meals, celebrations, all in true Italian style, dishes that bring Italy into the very centre of life in the city. San Carlo is one of a chain of similar restaurants, yet each one has its own personality.

The San Carlo at Leicester is particularly famous for having the city's only wood burning oven, ensuring that they produce the freshest pizzas in the area.

Favourite dishes include sliced prime Scottish fillet of beef with a light dressing of capers, anchovies, garlic and extra virgin olive oil, and that old favourite of connoisseurs the world over, pan fried breast of chicken with white wine, mushrooms and cream sauce, garnished with asparagus. Many of the ingredients to create these dishes are imported from Italy, and it goes without saying that the wine list is unashamedly and spectacularly of the same origin.

A combination of Italian cuisine and fish has always seemed logical - all that coastline - as well as highly attractive to the British taste. The antipasti at San Carlo includes a mixture of squid, prawns and mussels, deep-fried whitebait, and scallops in white wine and garlic. Amongst the main courses expect to find grilled whole sea bass, a mixed grill of fish, special pasta with lobster, brandy, tomato, cream and peas, or giant prawn and scallops in garlic and chilli.

It is customary to look for Italian wines in such places, nor will you be disappointed, but there are a few French inclusions also, with a rather nice Chablis in evidence. House wines, and few off the list, are available by the glass. Service is a good example of that Italian 'just make yourself at home we'll look after everything' manner, when you generally surprise yourself by taking their advice. In Britain we just say 'no problem', which may be succinct, but lacks style.

San Carlo Leicester is a real gem amongst the San Carlo collection, with its location in Granby Street, and its architecture and décor providing the best of Italian luxury. Groups are welcome at San Carlo, but to preserve the balance between groups, a limit of up to nine people applies on Friday and Saturday, and twenty to thirty on weekdays. Booking will always make for security but in general the arrangements mean there is room for everybody.

Ultimately a restaurant is judged by two main factors, each dependent upon the other. Combine quality food with life's movers and shakers in attractive surroundings and you have a sure fire record for the sweet buzz of success that permeates San Carlo.

Make sure you check out their Website to bring you up to date on special events at San Carlo Leicester.

Having served classic Italian trattoria fare for over 40 years, Taberna Etrusca in the heart of the City, continues to roll out old favourites to its loyal customers. With its unusual location, in the courtyard of St. Mary-Le-Bow church and its welcoming interiors of textured white walls, tiled floors and an open-beamed ceiling, Taberna Etrusca is a haven from the bustle of the city and in fine weather customers can take the opportunity to eat al fresco in the sunny courtyard to the rear of the restaurant. A short walk from Bank and Mansion House Tube Stations, the restaurant is also close to famous London landmarks such as St. Paul's Cathedral, the Barbican Centre and the Guildhall.

The seasonally changing à la carte menu is supplemented by daily specials, and offers starters of poached asparagus with sage butter and Grana Padano, fresh crab and avocado salad with a tomato coulis or finely sliced Parma ham with honeydew melon to begin the meal on an appetizing note. A mixed platter for sharing offers Parma ham, bresaola, salami, sun-dried tomatoes, olives and pickles.

Then continue with main course fare such as tagliatelle in a creamy smoked salmon, asparagus and dill sauce, spaghetti tossed with Scottish beef fillet slices sautéed in garlic, chilli and fresh tomatoes or penne with fresh vine tomatoes, grilled vegetables and goat's cheese.

Meat lovers will relish traditional dishes such as grilled calf's liver and bacon, served with a spring onion potato pureé and red wine reduction, chargrilled 28-day matured Scotch rib-eye, with crisp onions and grilled plum tomato or pan-fried pork fillet medallions topped with Parma ham and taleggio cheese, served with sautéed spinach.

If you prefer fish or seafood, there's choice of spicy tiger prawns with tomato, garlic and chilli served on a bed of rice, grilled scallops with lime, smoked pancetta and rocket and roasted fillet of sea bass with mixed wild mushrooms and oven baked diced potato. Set menus for lunch and dinner are also available.

BBQ set menus offer dishes such as succulent pork ribs with a caramelised BBQ sauce, 28-day matured Scotch beef sirloin steak or prime Cumberland sausages served in a roll with caramelised onion along with potato salad with chopped chives and pine nuts, plum tomato with buffalo mozzarella and basil salad with an extra virgin olive oil dressing or Russian salad and a selection of desserts and fruit.

Bring the meal to a fitting conclusion with tempting desserts of traditional tiramisu with Savoiardi biscuits dipped in espresso coffee and layered with mascarpone, baked lime cheesecake with a rum cream or warm chocolate fondant with coconut ice cream. There's also an assortment of soft and hard Italian cheeses served with biscuits and honey.

A predominantly Italian wine list features an extensive selection from all over the country, including a noteworthy selection of grappa, and a sprinkling of examples from the rest of Europe and the New World.

A well-appointed private dining room is available for up to 40 guests, with set, buffet, canapé and bespoke menus, is perfect for a special occasion or corporate event.

To gain further information, just visit their extremely comprehensive Website.

The ebullient Bill Bryce, a somewhat larger than life character, created Bryce's 19 years ago, bringing new meaning to the term 'pub grub', and revolutionising the standards of eating out in this part of Surrey, at Ockley, on Dorking's doorstep. He has always said that all he wants is to send home happy customers, and that being mentioned in the major guides is totally unimportant. However, this worthy aim has not managed to escape their attention and Bryce's has been presented with the AA Best Seafood Pub in South and South East England award and was awarded 1 Rosette, sponsored by the Sea Fish Industry Authority. It was also recognised by the Michelin Pub Guide 2009, while Harden's Guide has also commended Bryce's as 'The Best Fish Restaurant in Surrey' from diners reports.

Bill, a long time member of the Master Chefs of Great Britain, has been a tireless worker in promoting the cause of British chefs and the quality available at restaurants in contemporary Britain. Bryce's is a good advertisement for that, open all week, and for long hours, it offers everything from excellent bar food through to a full à la carte restaurant menu, specialising in fresh fish and seafood at prices that represent excellent value. This extends to the cellar as well, with a large choice of house wines at £14.50, all carefully annotated, available by the glass also.

Personally, if I'm going to heaven food-wise I prefer to do it at the start of the meal in the devout hope that further elevations may follow, which is why I commend to you Bryce's trio of Arbroath smokie offering a quail egg, fishcake and flaked smokie with crème fraîche.

Trouble is there's competition in the form of fillets of south coast mackerel with tomato, basil and goats' cheese salad, lightly spiced crab cakes or pan seared king scallops with celeriac remoulade and crispy pancetta, to name but three.

Main courses present a positive riot of choices for ardent foodies, with as much of the fish as possible, sourced from day boats landing at Shoreham. Starting with pan-fried plaice fillets on buttered spinach, light cheddar sauce and chive potato cake, or fillets of South Coast sea bream on orange braised chicory, beetroot puree and lyonnaise potatoes. A happy combination of flavours brings together fillets of fresh fish with a cardamom sauce and pea shoots. South coast sea bass and grey mullet will also vie for your attention with Moroccan spiced cod on fruit rice.

Just in case you prefer fish with fish, all dishes can be prepared without any of the sauces or ingredients, though I do think that would be missing a good part of the meal.

To finish, how about a vanilla and peach iced parfait with mango sorbet? Other choices could include apple and pear tart tatin and cinnamon ice cream or a glazed lemon and lime tart with pineapple sorbet, not forgetting an assiette of chocolate or pannacotta, summer berry compote and cinnamon shortbread. What a superb selection; no wonder Bryce's is so consistently busy.

A few concessions to those who need meat under any circumstances, even when at Bryce's, can be found in the excellent bar menu. There is full disabled access and smart, dapper staff assist in making the whole process a real delight.

Their Website is well worth visiting as a prelude to the real thing.

Situated in the Harvey Nichols store in Exchange Square, with panoramic views of Manchester's skyline, The Second Floor Restaurant, Bar and Brasserie has quickly become one of Manchester's leading destination dining - for its superb modern European food - and drinking venues. The Second Floor Restaurant, Bar and Brasserie provides three very different venues which open independently from the main store: a formal 92 cover restaurant and a more informal 102 cover brasserie, and an adjacent stylish bar.

This top floor space encompasses a number of cutting-edge design features created by award-winning architects Lifschutz Davidson to provide a stylish environment in which to eat and drink. The mood of the Second Floor Restaurant, Bar and Brasserie is dramatically transformed from day to night by an integrated lighting system using illuminated glass tanks and coloured, ceiling lighting. By day, the space takes on a cool white appearance, while at night it is transformed with more theatrical, coloured lighting.

A striking black, white and pink colour scheme with polished, black granite flooring, red 'pin cushion button' detailing on the bar, and clean white walls complements these modern design elements.

Second Floor Restaurant:

An à la carte lunch menu is served in the Second Floor Restaurant from 12.00pm until 3pm. The à la carte dinner menu is available from 6pm until 10.00pm; while afternoon tea is available between 3pm and 6 pm (5 pm on Sunday).

A Modern European menu using the finest local ingredients has been created by Head Chef Stuart Thomson. Each course carries around six choices, with starters of, say, shellfish lasagne, salad of lobster, apple and potato; pig's cheek, black pudding, pickled carrots and truffle dressing, or sweetbreads, Cheshire bacon, mushroom bhaji and onion purée.

Main courses could include Morecambe brill, pea tortellini, clam chowder and bacon foam, whilst the more traditional may feel drawn to the fillet of Cheshire beef, truffle mash and shallot purée. But for something refreshingly, in every sense, different do not lightly dismiss the compression of aubergine and red pepper, saffron risotto and balsamic jelly.

Some legendary names appear amongst the cheese selection, but with a roasted peanut parfait with rice crispy crunch and Guanaja chocolate amongst the options, it's an open field.

One of the great virtues of The Second Floor is the views from the large windows which, whilst not exactly on to open countryside, give the same sort of feeling of wellbeing that comes from riding in a well-off-the-ground 4 x 4. And that's before you even start on the pretty faultless food.

There is a separate entrance on Cateaton Street to access the Second Floor Restaurant, Bar and Brasserie, which is served by two express lifts. This allows customers the convenience of direct entry during the day and after the store has closed.

For more details please visit the Harvey Nichols Website.

Photographs - Copyright Chris Gascoigne.

A stylish contemporary restaurant, Artigiano in Belsize Terrace offers a compelling modern Italian menu in a striking setting complete with glass canopies and artful use of lighting and colour. On warm summer evenings the glass frontage folds away to open the restaurant up for an al fresco dining experience. Close to Hampstead Theatre and the Everyman Cinema, Artigiano isn't too far away from Primrose Hill or Hampstead Heath either.

The seasonally changing menu at Artigiano has many treats in store for the discerning diner. You could begin the meal with starters of crispy parmesan basket filled with goat's cheese, avocado and asparagus, topped with poached egg and herb mayonnaise; bresaola with roasted peppers and buffalo mozzarella or crab, lobster and asparagus timbale wrapped in spinach leaves.

Artigiano's delicious pasta selection includes homemade potato gnocchi with a mushroom, squid and cherry tomato sauce; linguine with fresh clams and chilli, lobster and scallop risotto as well the restaurant's signature spaghetti alla chitarra with Scottish langoustine and fennel.

For a hearty main course committed carnivores could try pan-fried breaded veal escalope with rocket and balsamic drizzled cherry tomatoes; breast of chicken stuffed with Parma ham and buffalo mozzarella, with a virgin olive oil, oregano and tomato concassé or grilled lamb chops with an aubergine and cherry tomato caponata.

Fish and seafood lovers can look forward to dishes such as whole grilled sea bream with olive oil and herbs; sautéed fillet of cod with lentils, sun-dried tomatoes and crisp pancetta or tiger prawns in a spring onion guazzetto.

Vegetarians are also well catered for with a range of dishes including cream of vegetable soup with polenta croutons; beetroot salad with feta, fine beans, toasted pine nuts and a raspberry vinaigrette; chestnut, pumpkin and ricotta cheese ravioli with a sage butter sauce and spaghetti with a fresh tomato sauce and buffalo mozzarella.

Tempting confections of vanilla pannacotta with coffee cream and coconut biscuit, lime and orange meringue parfait with a strawberry compote and peach tartlet with vanilla ice cream bring any meal to a delightful conclusion. If you wish, sample a selection of rare Italian mountain cheeses served with honey.
 
A set menu offers guests more options with dishes such as roasted beef tomato stuffed with a cheese mousse and leeks, prawn skewer with a pineapple carpaccio and wild rocket, spaghetti with a beef and basil ragù and pan-fried hake with a tomato and garlic sauce. The restaurant is open from 11am every day and serves a brunch menu with breakfast options, starters, light bites, toasted sandwiches, pasta and risotto, mains and desserts.

The wine list has a fine selection of predominantly Italian reds and whites, enhanced by a small number of old and new world wines available by the glass and bottle.

To gain further information, just visit their extremely comprehensive Website.

Housed within the iconic Blakes Hotel on Roland Gardens, Blakes Restaurant expertly combines the best of Eastern and Western cuisineenhanced by elegant service in splendid surroundings. Located in the well-heeled South Kensington area of London, it's close to well-known attractions such as Hyde Park, the Victoria and Albert Museum and Royal Albert Hall while the shops and boutiques on Brompton Road are just a short drive away.

The work of the reputed designer and London socialite Anouska Hempel, the restaurant's atmospheric setting combines classic design with luxurious furnishings and exotic artefacts to create a unique ambience in which guests cannot but relax and unwind at leisure.

Dinner could begin with starters of miso soup with silken tofu, carpaccio of beef with parmesan, tortellini of foie gras des landes or salt and peppered soft shell crabs. Add a luxurious touch to your meal with Oscietra or Royal Beluga caviar served with Balkes blini or warm potato soufflé and vanilla ice cream.

Follow with delicious mains of angel hair pasta with black truffle, black cod with miso and ginger sauce; beef fillet teriyaki with hot sake or rack of English lamb and rosemary with mint cous cous. Diners looking for a lighter bite could enjoy refreshing salad of buffalo Burrata mozzarella with tomatoes or warm chicken salad with avocado, pomelo, cashews and nam jim sauce. The lunch menu offers ginko nut curry with lime risottini, baby chicken with thyme and lemon or peppercorn fillet of beef. While the bento box selection includes miso soup with silken tofu, beef teriyaki, lobster toast and ginger rice.

The desserts menu at Blakes is a joy in itself and includes tempting gems such as the light and refreshing dessert of coconut ice cream with lime and palm sugar, a simpler tropical fruit salad or a richer dark chocolate fondant with vanilla and pistachio ice cream and finally, if you wish, coffee with cardamom or ginger tea.

The restaurant's all-day menu serves a selection of dim sums; fried prawn and yuzu sauce, soups, sandwiches and hot food; toasted poilâne sourdough chicken sandwich with avocado and ginger and Blakes burger and French fries and salads; oak smoked scotch salmon.

Breakfast is also served at Blakes with choice of a full English, continental breakfast or more exotic fare such as Changa Turkish eggs, two poached eggs served with leaf spinach, chilli oil and yoghurt; classic Scottish smoked salmon with scrambled eggs spicy Parsee eggs a dish of scrambled eggs with fresh green chilli and coriander. For a healthy alternative try Bircher muesli with Greek yoghurt and fresh berries or compôte of fruit with cornflakes and prunes.

For a delightful break during the day the afternoon tea menu at the adjoining Chinese Room or Courtyard offers finger sandwiches with fillings of beef and chilli horseradish, smoked salmon and egg and cress; fresh scones with fresh strawberries and cream; a selection of tea cakes and choice of tea from Earl Grey, Lapsang Souching and Darjeeling.

An extensive wine list with a range of whites and reds from Italy, France, Germany, Australia and South Africa complements the food perfectly.

To gain further information, just visit their extremely comprehensive Website.