London Fall Restaurant Preview

Summer is almost over – sigh. But fall, and the slew of restaurant openings that comes with it, is just around the corner. For a peek at what you’ve got to look forward to, read on:

Dinner by Heston Blumenthal at the Mandarin Oriental: On Wednesday, 1 December, London’s most significant opening in a decade bows near Hyde Park. Heston Blumenthal’s first ever London restaurant will be headed by Ashley Palmer-Watts, group executive chef at The Fat Duck for 11 years, and will feature some fairly extraordinary interior design touches including "a pulley system modelled on a 16th-century design for the Royal British Court’s kitchens" and some equally antique recipes, garnered from Blumenthal’s work tracking down dusty old foodie books in the British Library. Think bergamot-cured mackerel salad, slow-cooked short-rib of beef, and scallops with cucumber ketchup and peas. A three-course lunch costs  a surprisingly reasonable £25 and an à la carte dinner is priced at £55. Booking lines will open from Friday, 1 October. Expect them to be permanently engaged (66 Knightsbridge, SW1X; 0207-201-3833).

Les Deux Salons: Arbutus and Wild Honey are set to get a third sibling in October with this French on William Street (opposite Terroirs) in Trafalgar Square. Anthony Demetre and Will Smith will be serving classic dishes such as tarte Lyonnaise with organic salmon, slow-cooked pork belly petit salé, red mullet soup and green olive tapenade. Dishes will be accompanied by affordable wines from all over the world, available in carafes as well as by the glass and bottle (40-42 William IV St., WC2N).

The Savoy Grill: Planning to reopen in October under Gordon Ramsay’s gimlet eye, this reborn classic will offer a menu featuring starters including boudin blanc with foie gras and spiced quince, mains including beef Wellington from the trolley and for dessert the inevitable peach Melba, which was created on-site by the great Escoffier when he ran the same historic kitchen in the 19th century (Savoy Hotel, Strand, WC2R).

Cassis Bistro: The former site of the Oratory Restaurant turns contemporary Provençal bistro mid-November, courtesy of the owner of Umu (which by the way reopens Thursday, 2 September, after a light refurb) and The Greenhouse. Expect a high-end experience, with dishes along the lines of bouillabaisse, frogs' legs and artichoke fricassee, plus grilled prawns with anisette liqueur (232 Brompton Rd., SW3).

Pollen St: General Manager of Harry’s Bar for the last 15 years, Eugenio Rolfo is opening what looks to be an A-list destination in Mayfair, serving light breakfast, lunch, tea and dinner. The chef hails from Brunello at the Baglioni, so expect seasonal North Italian dishes at the fore, including risottos, veal Milanese and pastas, when it opens mid-September (5 Pollen St., W1; 020-3170-8291).

Bar Battu: Opening on the site of Molloy’s in October with head chef Sydney Aldridge (whose CV includes Galvin Bistrot de Luxe, the Hoxton Hotel and Terminus in the City), this wine bar and bistro will have a main dining room for 80 and an upstairs dining area for 40. Foodwise, think snail, ox cheek and bavette with shallots and bone marrow. The wine list will be substantial (48 Gresham St., EC2V).

Le Café Anglais: Reopening after a major refurb (it's shooting for Thursday, 2 September – but call to confirm), this great Bayswater institution helmed by Rowley Leigh now has a 50-seat cafe and oyster bar (8 Porchester Gardens, W2; 020-7221-1415).

Hawksmoor: Serving one of the best steaks in London, this East London steakhouse opens a sister restaurant in Covent Garden in September. In a pleasing innovation, there are at least 20 spaces for solo diners, and Richard Turner is coming from the original restaurant to cook (11 Langley St., WC2H).

Wright Brothers: The brothers' award-winning Oyster & Porter House is a fixture of Borough Market, and despite some controversy about how they run their oyster beds, these wholesalers-turned-restaurateurs have a loyal clientele. Expect a lot of interest in this new sister establishment just off Carnaby Street, which opens November (5 Kingly St., W1B).

Wahaca: A fourth branchof  London’s best Mexican (according to Zagat surveyors) opens November in Wardour Street, Soho, with a capacity for 145 on the top floor plus  a downstairs cocktail bar - expect a busy young crowd eating street foods like crispy taquitos. A percentage of your meal price goes  to ednica.org.mx, which works to support street kids in Mexico (80 Wardour St. W1F).

Goodman: Just opened in Mayfair, Goodman is already set to open a second London site, this time in the City of London. It calls itself a "British interpretation of a New York-style grill" and puts great store in its aged-on-site beef, including rare-breed Belted Galloway from the Lake District, Nebraska Angus from the U.S. and black Angus from the Duke of Buccleuch’s estate in Scotland. There’s also a substantial wine list for the City boys to carouse with (11 Old Jewry, EC2R; 020-7600-8220).

Patch: Fulham Road’s Cactus Blue gives way to this art deco newcomer. Boasting a "predominantly Modern European menu," it seems mostly a place to people-watch and grab a burger. Future plans include an upstairs members club and a roof terrace (86 Fulham Rd., SW3; 020-7823-7858).

Geales: The Notting Hill haunt expands for the first time since opening its doors in 1939, opening a second site in Chelsea Green on Thursday, 16 September. The emphasis is on "down-to-earth" British food: fish soup, fish 'n' chips and lemon clotted cream all served on gingham tablecloths (1 Cale St., SW3).

– Roger Clarke