Maison François

"Maximum Capacity: 18  Minimum Spend: £1500 at dinner  / £500 at breakfast There are few things more sensual than the words “salon privé”. However, a close runner-up is “comté gougères”. You’ll find both at Maison François, a warm, stylish French restaurant in Mayfair where the private dining room is a glass-fronted wine cellar. From our experience, the service here tends to be exceptional without ever teetering into stuffiness, and your private dining experience comes with complimentary place cards, wifi, and your own sound system. " - heidi lauth beasley, sinead cranna

"Perhaps it’s your birthday and you refuse to celebrate without the breathing cause of the fur on your new outfit. Or it’s someone else’s birthday and ‘PURRFECT PET SITTER’ ghosted you on Pawshake. Or maybe you just want to consume a lot of comté in the presence of all of your best friends, furry roommate included. Maison François in St James’s is the spot. From its faux Parisian golden hour lighting to the dessert trolley that’s wheeled around like sugared royalty, this brasserie is one of our favourite places for a celebration—Chablis toasts and literal takeaway doggy bag included. " - heidi lauth beasley, jake missing, rianne shlebak, sinead cranna

"The Dish: Comté Gougères These naughty one-bite wonders offer a throuple of richness: creamy, nutty Comté, deliriously buttery choux, and the slightly offensive £9 price tag. Still, Maison François is the kind of shiny, art deco posing palace that overdrafts were made for. Sit back, enjoy the warm orange glow of this St James's brasserie’s dining room, twirl your glass of Chablis like your surname is Deneuve, and debate whether ‘Gougères’ would be a good name for your firstborn. Non, je ne regrette rien." - heidi lauth beasley, daisy meager, rianne shlebak, sinead cranna

"It is possible to feel chic eating a full English breakfast, you just have to be in a stylish French restaurant in St. James’s. Maison François is a place where presentation matters. There’s no slopping of beans on plates here. Instead they come in a silver gravy boat, warm bread is presented in a cloth basket, and a little pat of heavily salted butter gets its own ramekin. The warm orange glow of the art deco dining room matches the runny yolks of eggs and juice is served in a wine glass. " - rianne shlebak, jake missing, sinead cranna

"Maison François has being chic down to a fine art. From the warm orange glow of this art deco dining room in St. James’s to eating a plate of ham—pardon, jambon noir de Bigorre— it all feels like a worthy occasion for posing on the banquette seating like Robert Doisneau might pop out of the open kitchen to take your picture. It’s a beautiful, buzzing space designed for beautiful people to do beautiful things, like eat fried comté covered in yet more comté. Save room for the dessert trolley that gets rolled around like sugared royalty. There’s an unmissable gâteau a la pistache and drawers full of deeply tempting iridescent macarons. " - heidi lauth beasley, jake missing, daisy meager, sinead cranna