Primeur

Primeur is the gold standard of flickering candlelight, romantic restaurants in London. When this spot in a converted garage first opened between Stoke Newington and Canonbury, few London restaurants were recommending you share a few plates of this and drink a few glasses of natural that. Nowadays, that’s all the rage. But not many places have perfected restaurant atmosphere like Primeur. In the summer the doors are wide open as people pick on European-style small plates. At night, hunker down in a room of dancing flames and sharing tables. In our opinion, the ideal time to book is for early evening—that way you can eat jamon and gnudi in sunlight, then cheese and meringue in candlelight.

photo credit: Paul Winch-Furness