10 legendary West End restaurants to visit after the theatre

If you want to keep the culture flowing after the theatre, Mayfair dining spot Scott’s famously has an impressive fine art collection, where you can marvel at paintings by Pissarro, Chagall and Renoir over an equally artful dinner. Seafood tops the enticing menu here: sip on champagne and slurp down oysters as you survey the surrounding grandeur from the bar. Or, in the main restaurant, order from a menu of dependable classics: Cornish sole goujons with tartar sauce; seared sea bass with lemon and herb butter; or blackened miso salmon with bok choy. 

Closest theatre: Jermyn Street Theatre

The historic J Sheekey is a name synonymous with upscale, classic fish and seafood dishes. Tucked away down a Covent Garden alleyway and defined by its iconic red frontage, the restaurant dates back to the late Victorian era, and a stallholder by the name of Josef Sheekey, who also had the honour of supplying food to Lord Salisbury’s after-theatre dinner parties. After-theatre dining is still Sheekey’s domain, with oysters, caviar, lobster and shellfish platters top of mind for this well-loved venue’s loyal diners. 

Closest theatre: Wyndham’s Theatre

The grand dame of London restaurants, The Ivy has been a meeting place for the city’s glitterati for almost a century now. Its discreet location on a quiet sidestreet round the back of Cambridge Circus and its luscious decor make it perfect for the theatre crowd, offstage and on. You can’t really go wrong with the crowd-pleasing classics on the menu, which are a combo of modern British and elevated home cooking. We’d go for the famous shepherd’s pie followed by the chocolate bombe pudding. 

Closest theatre: The Ambassadors Theatre

Langan’s launched its French-inspired Brasserie on a side street near Green Park back in 1976 and it quickly became one of Mayfair’s most exclusive spots, attracting celebs such as Mick Jagger, Elizabeth Taylor and its co-founder Michael Caine. In 2021 it was given a new lease of life, and it now leans into its storied past while also looking to the future of London dining and partying. You can still score the famous Langan’s fish pie, while the ground floor now features a new raw bar and upstairs there’s a smart space with a late licence and live entertainment. A perfect escape from the West End hustle and bustle. 

Closest theatre: The Criterion

You can’t say ‘Theatreland’ without saying ‘Joe Allen’. Like Langan’s, this London institution has also been the subject of a recent refresh. It first opened in 1977, as a sister establishment to the famed New York location, and brings a decent dose of Big Apple energy to Covent Garden. The walls are lined with posters from classic shows, and the atmospheric front bar is perfect if you’ve only got room for a Martini. If you want to dine you can do it in serious style, with racks of oak-smoked baby back ribs and a secret-menu burger.

Closest theatre: Lyceum Theatre

Dining rooms rarely come grander than The Wolseley. Bang in the middle of Piccadilly with the likes of Fortnum’s and The Ritz for neighbours, this elegant and airy art deco-styled café-restaurant will make you feel like a superstar when you pop in for a late-night libation. We recommend a Piccadilly Fizz – complete with Lillet Blanc, Chambord and St Germain – and a lobster and chips if you want to pair it with a hit of pure enjoyment. 

Closest theatre: Theatre Royal Haymarket

The oldest restaurant in London – this surefire classic dates back to 1789 – is as traditional as they come. When it comes to food their specialism is game, but the upstairs cocktail bar is where dry Martinis rule the roost. The bar has got great theatre chops too: this is where Edward VII would take his mistress, actor Lillie Langtry. Eating downstairs is like having your dinner in a museum – but not nearly as stuffy. 

Closest theatre: The Adelphi

With wood-panelled walls and an abundance of leather and tartan, Guinea Grill channels Old Blighty through and through. This place is all about homegrown meat at its best: diners can chomp on prime dry-aged, grass-fed British beef, cooked on an open grill. It also has a fine selection of award-winning (mainly meat) pies. It may be a Young’s, but eating here you’ll feel like a member of the landed gentry. 

Closest theatre: The Palladium

After the actual theatre, treat yourself to some tableside theatrics as you watch the expert waiters prepare Otto’s legendary pressed canard. The three-course duck menu consists of duck liver with morels, followed by the famous canard à la presse (prepped in front of you with a medieval-looking device), then confit duck leg with foie gras and a black-truffle sauce. The poultry triple whammy comes at £140, but if it’s a memorable occasion you’re after, it’s a memorable occasion you’ll get. 

Closest theatre: Sadler’s Wells

A little to the west of the West End is Bibendum in Chelsea. Another mollusc-heavy menu, this oyster bar and restaurant in the Michelin building is named after the chubby tyre man himself. Bibendum is actually made up of two restaurants: the luxurious upstairs eatery, and the more laidback downstairs bistro. After absorbing some fine new writing at the nearby Royal Court, you’ll feel extremely classy slurping back oysters in this iconic building where the decor itself is a performance.

Closest Theatre: Royal Court Theatre