Life & Style
Date-Night Destinations
Love stories begin, memories are made and relationships forged at our favourite restaurants. Whether it’s a tiny local eatery or a Michelin-starred spectacular, these beloved venues become our romantic home from home. Here, Collagerie’s friends reveal where they’ll be canoodling come Valentine’s night…
Alex Eagle, designer and founder of Alex Eagle Studio
Loves: Sessions Arts Club
“My favourite new restaurant is Sessions Arts Club. Sitting on the top floor of a beautiful building in Clerkenwell, it’s the perfect romantic hideaway. Bathed in soft candlelight, it’s warm and elegant but buzzy too. My friend Florence oversees the food, and I dream about her eel with potato and crème fraiche, though everything there is absolutely delicious and I always long to return. My Valentine’s date – my husband – also loves it there, so we will walk from Soho to Clerkenwell and enjoy a lovely long and delicious meal.”
Jo Ellison, editor of How To Spend It magazine and deputy editor of FT Weekend
Loves: Carmel
“I’m obsessed with a very new restaurant around the corner from my home in north-west London. It’s called Carmel and serves North African food – lots of tahini, hummus and oven-roasted deliciousness. It’s small and intimate, and being super-local makes it feel somehow very special. We’ve waited forever to have a great restaurant on our doorstep and now, finally, we have one. I should probably shut my mouth about it immediately.”
Jeremy King, restauranteur
Loves: The Savoy Grill
“My favourite restaurant without doubt is The River Café, but I hesitate to recommend it for the purposes of a date night. Date night should be free from distractions and the chances are you will see friends there, so I am going to recommend an alternative. Every Christmas Eve, my wife and I have a memorial gathering to attend and then we like to go to The Savoy Grill on the Strand, and are always generously given a booth – I think date night should be about sitting side by side. The glamorous environment and the attentive but not over-familiar service from the friendly staff make it the perfect setting.”
Whitney Bromberg-Hawkins, founder of FLOWERBX
Loves: The River Café
“There are few places on the planet that feel as special and yet as totally welcoming as The River Cafe in Hammersmith. No matter how many dinners I have there, each one feels like the best, and my husband and I have shared so many birthdays and anniversaries and Valentine’s Days there over the years that it is now imbued with our memories, making it even more magical.”
Emilia Wickstead, fashion designer
Loves: Casa Cruz
“Casa Cruz in Holland Park is the perfect restaurant for date night. It’s an intimate space that riffs on old-world dining, but with the chicest of modern touches. Juan Santa Cruz’s attention to detail, right down to the music he plays, is perfection. It’s the best place to drink cocktails and to share small dishes in a cosy and intimate environment, especially upstairs by the roaring fireplace. And I love everything on the menu!”
Jake Missing, restaurant critic at The Infatuation
Loves: Wong Kei
“People often think that a good date-night restaurant requires candles burning and moody corners, cocktails and suggestive panna-cotta licking. They’re wrong. You need objectionable strip lighting. You need staff who gleefully neg you. You need a Chinatown institution where you can take your friend, your lover, or yourself – as long as you’ve got cash. Wong Kei will never win any prizes for trying too hard, but then the best dates never do.”
Lisa Eldridge, makeup artist and founder of Lisa Eldridge cosmetics
Loves: The Petersham
“The Petersham in Covent Garden became somewhat of a regular haunt whilst the House of Eldridge was situated nearby at my pop-up studio. It’s a little oasis in the midst of this busy area, especially when you’re ensconced in its charming garden – it certainly doesn't feel like you’re in central London! The staff are so warm and welcoming, and as a non-meat-eater, their ‘plot to plate’ sensibility really appeals.”
Serena Hood, co-founder of Collagerie
Loves: No. Fifty Cheyne
“This Valentine’s Day, dinner for two at No. Fifty Cheyne in Chelsea is top of my list. Not only is the food delicious, but the ambiance ensures you leave the business of life at the doorstep and feel instantly transported to a grand country house miles away. There is climbing wisteria adorning the walls and ceiling, making it all the more romantic.”
Manolo Blahnik, footwear designer
Loves: Wiltons
‘‘My favourite restaurant has always been Wiltons, just off Piccadilly, a quintessential British destination. I have been visiting Wiltons for as long as I can remember; it is thanks to the old-fashioned courtesy and manners, which are kept alive, and of course the food is delicious. This is what I like about London, when the food and traditions remain.’’
Lucinda Chambers, co-founder of Collagerie
Loves: The Wolseley
“The Wolseley on Piccadilly is the most wonderful place in the world, and it has been the backdrop to our best family memories for many years. It’s one of my real happy places.”
Max La Manna, chef and author
Loves: Spring
“Spring isn’t like most London restaurants. It’s based at Somerset House, and from 5:30pm to 6:30pm, there’s a scratch menu, which is comprised of left-over ingredients and other bits from the lunch service that would have been wasted. Instead, they take what they have and make something incredible from nothing. It’s a great ethos to have, and Spring is a wonderful environment to share an intimate evening with a loved one."
Matilda Goad, founder of Matilda Goad homewares
Loves: Luca
“I love a lunch date and a place that holds countless memories for me is Luca in Farringdon. The food is always delicious and the venue has a fantastic buzz. In summer, try to bag one of the tables in the courtyard.”
Skye Gyngell, chef and author
Loves: Kitty Fisher’s
“Kitty Fishers in Mayfair would be my first choice for a Valentine’s dinner. I love how small and intimate it is – there are lots of little corners and the lighting is low and glowy. The food is delicious too, with lots of small sharing plates.”
