Sessions Arts Club

"First impressions may not be everything, but the one Sessions Arts Club makes upon everyone cannot be understated. The feeling is wonder. Pure, unadulterated, Disney-ish wonder. Not at big mouses or giant turkey legs, but at a towering balconied room. A home to waltzing candle flames and charming staff who serve nonchalantly elegant food made for swilling and seducing over. This is an adult kind of wonderment: at improbably long panisse, lusciously interchangeable squid and calamarata, a wine list that wills you to stay forever, columns that would have Kevin McCloud keel over, and the wondrous feeling of hours flying by in a perfect restaurant on Clerkenwell Green." - heidi lauth beasley, jake missing, rianne shlebak

"For anyone who has ever typed ‘artfully distressed’ into Pinterest.  You enter Sessions, in Clerkenwell, through a red, lantern-lit door, via a wonderfully hazy Diptyque-ish and boudoir-like reception desk, before being directed into a small brass-detailed lift. The drama of which must never be understated. The lift takes you to a vast, regal room with carefully distressed walls that are art-covered, and the entire place feels like it’s solely lit by flickering candlelight. You could picture a modern day Miss Havisham holding up the bar here. Only she wouldn’t be wasting her time alone, she’d be having an illicit affair. Or some equally seductive buttery squid, tomato, and calamarata." - heidi lauth beasley, rianne shlebak

"Sessions Arts Club is for anyone whose dream view is carefully distressed, art-covered walls, and a vast, regal dining room lit solely by flickering, throbbing candles. It’s easily one of London’s most glamorous and grandiose restaurants, and even the reception at this modern European spot in Clerkenwell has a wonderfully hazy Diptyque-ish and boudoir-like feel. The food—crab croquettes, panisse, chocolate tart—is all plate-mopping stuff and feels as special as the space itself. Try and get a booth on the upper level so you can look down on the space in all its dilapidated glory." - rianne shlebak, jake missing, sinead cranna

"Remember when you knew all the lyrics to The Libertines and, like, loved chatting about why Pete was just like, really misunderstood. Yeah, the adult equivalent is having a big fat crush on this restaurant on Clerkenwell Green. It’s undeniably cool, and being seen here - preferably online by everyone you’ve ever known - is also very cool. A beautiful yet purposefully distressed (just like Pete, right?) restaurant with enormous ceilings, candles flickering, and inevitable celebrity sightings, it’s just the place for an intimate birthday dinner in really flattering lighting. The best part is that the food, wine, and service totally lives up to the glorious hype of that oh-so glamorous setting. Get your booking sorted at least four weeks in advance." - heidi lauth beasley

"Sessions is the kind of place you daydream about when you’re thinking about the perfect restaurant for your birthday dinner. It’s almost entirely lit by candles, the ceiling feels 100 feet high, and the artfully dilapidated room looks like it should be the setting for a raucous party scene in a Paolo Sorrentino film. The food is rustic, tasty, and European, and the wine list is similarly brilliant. Come for something intimate, or bring your nearest and dearest to invade the entirety of their small upstairs terrace." - jake missing, rianne shlebak, sinead cranna, heidi lauth beasley