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hand picked restaurants

Nestling amidst the hustle and bustle of Richmond, surrounded by chain and branded restaurants, is Bacco and Vinoteca, a modern Italian restaurant which uses fresh ingredients to prepare the food and serves it with the right mix of personalized and friendly service. Authentic cuisine accompanied by a range of Italian wines and a relaxing ambience have made the venue a cosy haunt for those who have discovered these merits.

The bocconcini of scallops, tuna with roasted chicory, butterfly king prawns as well as fagottino are just some of the dishes that might catch your eye.  Among pasta the spinach gnocchi is delicate, light and fondant and lobster ravioli and taglioni pasta with fresh black truffle served in a crispy parmesan basket are presented well. Meat dishes include favourites such as pan-fried Dutch calves liver glazed with butter and fresh sage served with crispy pancetta and saffron potato puree.

Sitting prettily on the side of Richmond Hill, The Petersham Hotel overlooks the River Thames and surrounding meadows. This 1865 building is an interesting juxtaposition of traditional values and the excitement of living in a luxury hotel in Surrey.

The restaurant is a good place to enjoy some no-frills cooking and Head Chef Alex Bentley brings his passion for fine food to bear on the menu, which he describes as 'elegant British cooked in a modern and refreshing way'. So for a start you could harvest on the flavours of foie gras with hare and smoked sweet potato, Muscat jelly and toasted brioche, or red mullet and soft shell crab. The mains show promise as well with saddle of lamb en croûte, steamed sea bass fillet and hand rolled spinach lasagne, followed by desserts of apple galette and chocolate moelleux.

Petersham's cellar is home to a vast store of aging wines from renowned vineyards across the world.

Located on Kew Road in Richmond, Origin Asia is a large and elaborate dining space that serves a rich menu of authentic Indian dishes in rich and vibrant surroundings. The large restaurant has been conveniently divided into sections comprising four floors, where guests have the option to choose the perfect setting, whether it is for more intimate meetings, private parties or family gatherings. The menu carries many of the traditional Indian favourites along with a number of house specials, prepared from local ingredients flavoured with Indian spices.

Guests can start their meal with vegetarian starters of paneer chatpati made with fresh cottage cheese, and pudina aloo tikki with potato patties on a bed of tangy chick peas served with mint and tamarind chutney. There are also meat starters of jalpari pani pat, with king prawns marinated in spices, and machli Amritsar. Mains include regional Indian dishes such as Malabari fish curry, and chicken Chettinad, that can be eaten with rice and Indian rotis.

The restaurant also serves a takeaway menu allowing diners to enjoy delicious Indian food in the comfort of their own homes.

If sitting by the river sipping a cold beer in the company of friends, while you look out at the picturesque views across the Richmond Bridge is your idea of a serene and blissful afternoon, then it's quite probable that you are thinking of the White Cross. Where else in Richmond would you find such a delightful beer garden with its lovely terraces and homey traditional pub atmosphere? Whether you choose to sit inside with a cosy real fire or outside in the rippling breeze, this is one experience you are bound to enjoy.

They have a wide selection of salads, sandwiches, wraps and homemade pies, alongside Cumberland sausages, baked jacket potatoes, and other classics such as beer battered haddock fillet and chips, burgers and puff pastry pie. They have a fantastic range of Young's award winning real ales and a great selection of wines which makes this the perfect place for good food and drink.

The Glasshouse exudes a kind of restrained class typical of fine dining restaurants where the focus is equally divided between providing excellent fare and ensuring a relaxed and comfortable atmosphere. For nearly a decade, this restaurant has been treating its patrons to some delicious French cuisine that also has interesting influences drawn from Spain and Italy.

A typical menu brings together rustic and refined elements and could include dishes such as starters of warm salad of wood pigeon with balsamic vinegar, deep fried truffled egg followed by an invigorating main course of venison and chanterelle hot pot with galette potato, crushed carrot and swede. Fish lovers can try the roast sea bass with butternut squash broth.

For dessert, you could indulge in homemade vanilla yoghurt with honeycomb and chocolate pearls. The international wine list covers the old and new world with aplomb offering reasonably priced alongside exclusive wines such as the Chateau Petrus '94.

Pizza Express remains a hugely popular bedrock of casual eating. Its popularity is testimony to the fact that across the country, they have restaurants where you will always be guaranteed a good nosh, with children's tastes being well catered for.

Pizza Express has gone even more Roman, and following the success of that particular example of listening to their public have introduced Romana pizzas, including the scorching Etna and the hearty Siciliana.

These pizzas are now thinner, bigger and crispier, and if that sounds like a marketing line, it is. However, unlike many such lines, this one is true, and their quality is always consistent, though cleverly they have still managed to retain a homemade feel to their pizzas.

As an alternative to pizza, try their pollo pesto - cavatappi pasta with torn chicken breast, mushrooms, red onions and mozzarella in a creamy gruyere, parmesan and pesto sauce and finished with grana padano - or the niçoise salad with mixed leaves, yellowfin tuna, free range egg, green beans, potatoes and tomatoes with olives, anchovies, capers and house dressing.

Many of the big chains have come a long way, and Pizza Express is certainly amongst them. One of the first to be quoted on the Stock Exchange - in 1993 - Pizza Express is not a franchise operation and retains tight control through its own staff.

Their wine list - though short - contains some surprisingly good offerings, especially their intense Australian Chardonnay, and a big, full-bodied Merlot from Cusumano, Sicilia.

It might not really surprise you to learn that La Buvette which is now a chic and pleasant eatery, favoured haunt of varied celebrities, has actually been around from the 1930's albeit as a canteen to the parish of St. Mary Magdalene Church. This charming place offers some classically executed dishes based on regional French cooking as well as some European delights from across Spain, Italy and even North Africa.

The à la carte features favourites such as snails in garlic butter or parfait of duck foie gras with quince jelly and toasted brioche amongst the starters. Follow with a chicken à la crème with wild mushrooms and pomme puree or the roast fillet of bass with clam and cockle velouté. The cranberry sorbet with lemon flavoured vodka is a perfect way to finish while cleansing your appetite appreciably and the wine list with its French connections has an exclusively blended house wine by renowned wine maker Philippe Maurel.