National Portrait Gallery

This restaurant has possibly the best view in all of London. Imagine you were standing behind and just above Nelson’s shoulder on his column and you will have an idea of the panorama. This is the place to take tourists for lunch on a London visit. The food is fantastic, and the desserts are particularly inspiring. I had an almost spiritual experience sharing a raspberry bombe dessert with a good friend of mine here. Service has sometimes been erratic in the past but you can forgive a lot with that view. In fact we like this restaurant so much we had our wedding reception there – and let me tell you the canapé selection is out of this world! We enjoyed giant scallops wrapped in some of the tastiest bacon I have ever come across, a mini "bowl food" red duck curry that was sublime and tiny mini-lemon meringue pies that were a work of art. Oh and miniature cheesecakes and tasty mushroom risotto, and warm potato salad and some poached moist chicken with the creamiest mash ever.

We're not suggesting you get married here but at least go for lunch!