"After a refurbishment of both kitchen and premises, this haven on Farringdon Road is back to the form that has made it one of the most essential of the city’s essential kitchens in recent years. Chef Nick Bramham’s cooking now leans more towards the Aegean, with the likes of giouvarlakia bringing herbed meatballs bobbing in avgolemono. The menu will change weekly and will travel across southern Europe, but look out for Bramham’s clever riffs on BLTs, lobster rolls, and perfectly seasoned pasta dishes, after peerless gildas, before flawless sour cherry cannoli. Must-try dish: When Nick does pasta or Nick does a sandwich, you must order it." - Adam Coghlan
"Visibility level: A very well-catered séance One of London’s most alluring corner restaurants, Quality Wines has just the right amount of dancing candles. Which is to say, an excessive amount. Whether sat at the counter or at a table in this Clerkenwell dream, your eyes will only adjust to what matters: the twinkle of your wine glass and the shine of focaccia." - jake missing
"Aside from being one of London’s finest date night restaurants, Quality Wines gains lots of points for establishing the gilda as one of the aperitif snacks in the city. Those with a god-given need to manspread and an aversion to chintzy china might have a problem with this Farringdon wine bar, but it’s highly likely it wins them over." - jake missing, heidi lauth beasley, sinead cranna
"This woozy Clerkenwell small plates restaurant is one of London’s most gorgeous date night spots, but from Tuesdays to Fridays you should take yourself to Quality Wines for a little self-love. The weekly changing express lunch is a straightforward pasta and a glass for £15. Think bucatini con la sarde, handmade spaghetti and meatballs, or cavatelli with ventricina al sugo (a.k.a. salami and sausage)." - jake missing, sinead cranna, rianne shlebak
"Quality Wines is a shop, wine bar, and modern European small plates restaurant in Farringdon. All it’s missing is a sleeping bag and we’d be there 24/7. It’s open during the day for lunch, before switching into a candlelit, lardo-on-toast, wine-serving den in the evening. Which means whether you pop in for a pre-matinee snack—they do a £15 express lunch of pasta and wine—or a romantic dinner after three hours of ballet, Quality Wines just makes sense." - jake missing, rianne shlebak, sinead cranna