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hand picked restaurants

Everyone knows that the Greeks are well schooled about having a good time and this fact is nowhere more evident than in the Arena Restaurant located in Wembley. This Harrow Road eatery has been around for more than two decades and has continued to grow in popularity for the simple reason that it provides exceptional fare in a warm and welcoming atmosphere. Whether it's a business lunch or a party with friends, the ambience has just the right amount of character and charm that befits such a venue.

The à la carte offers a wide variety of Greek and continental dishes to choose from and typical starters could include chicken fillets stir fried with cashew nuts, spring onions and fresh peppers or maybe a mixed platter of char grilled haloumi cheese and sausages with spicy tomato salsa. For the main course, Arena's kleftico, knuckle of lamb, marinated and cooked in a slow oven with herbs and wine served with rice, is a popular choice. There's an excellent range of sweet confections to end the meal.

Delicious Italian food, a warm and convivial setting, beautiful neo-rustic décor and attentive service, all come together in Scarpetta with delightful results for Teddington locals. Concentrating on the cuisine from Puglia, which happens to be the epicurean centre of Italy, providing olive oil, fresh meat, poultry and seafood, this popular restaurant brings the age old recipes with a fresh outlook.

Whether you're having smoked chicken with goat cheese and avocado or pan fried crab cakes with mixed leaf salad for lunch or deep fried rice balls with mozzarella and roasted butternut squash for antipasti during dinner, there's very little chance of going wrong. There are a number of pasta options, including ravioli, tagliatelle and cannelloni, for the enthusiasts, although the risottos are also excellent. Hot waffle with vanilla ice cream is the perfect way to end a meal and the prominently Italian wine list does not fail to please.

Friends Restaurant in Pinner's High Street runs on the key concept of simplicity, where fresh ingredients are infused with flavours and a light touch is all that is required to bring them together into a delightful meal. This graceful restaurant in Middlesex is one of the best venues outside Central London where people can drop by for a satisfying lunch or an intimate dinner. The friendly service and warm atmosphere is inviting and the commitment of Chef and Patron Terry Farr to bring locally sourced ingredients into focus is evident from the menu which strongly highlights that which has been reared, shot or caught not too far from their location.

A typical meal could begin with terrine of confit rabbit with puy lentils followed by pan fried fillet of sea bream, roasted fennel, basil dressing and crushed potatoes. There's a delectable selection of desserts and cheeses which help round off the meal beautifully and the wine list at Friends is extensive with most being available by the glass.

Italian food often presents contrasts, where delicate flavours exist alongside robust tastes and at A Cena, the play of opposing textures and tastes is brought to full bloom in the stylish and simple setting of this family run restaurant. The dining room is fairly big for events and other special occasions but they also have seating arrangements for intimate and cosy dinners, making it an ideal destination. The atmosphere is casual and the feel is definitely clubby without going over the top.

If you're dropping in for lunch, do try the delicious braised pork with lemon, sage, peas and olive oil mash or the penne piccole with duck ragu and Parmesan. More elaborate meals indicate the need for starting off on the right note with smoked haddock carpaccio with pea shoots and chilli, followed by breaded calves' liver with lemon and asparagus. Desserts include a delectable chocolate tartufo with homemade honeycomb and the wine list is typically Italian.