"Core By Clare Smyth is the place to get involved in fine dining if you’re someone who, shockingly, actually wants a proper meal. Headed up by a chef whose CV reads like The Michelin Guide To Planet Earth, this converted townhouse in Notting Hill feels like your quietly fancy friend’s living room. The food is a tour of excellent but familiar British produce, tweaked and combined with the occasional unusual ingredient. Make full use of the ‘show next available’ button on OpenTable because you’re never going to be able to book the specific date you want. Even then it’s a torturous game of playing around with dates until something close enough to what you’ve chosen triggers a hit. And then, take it. Take it even if it’s for 9:45pm in three months' time." - heidi lauth beasley, jake missing, sinead cranna, rianne shlebak