London’s top places for eating out this autumn

With its warm lighting and white tablecloths, Six Portland Road is one of those places that looks oh-so inviting when you walk past on a dark night. Like the foliage outside, the menu changes with the seasons too, so you might be treated to a comforting bowl of soup, a hearty pie or some satisfying sweet potato gnocchi over the flicker of a candle. The restaurant also offers Sunday roasts, so you can get your fix of melt-in-the-mouth meat, Yorkshire puds and roast potatoes in particularly elegant surrounds.

While we would wholeheartedly argue that cheese is a year-round delicacy, the notion of a wine and cheese pairing is usually associated with the autumn and winter months. The team at La Fromagerie, which boasts several shops and restaurants across the capital, really know their stuff when it comes to cheese. At the Bloomsbury outpost, you could choose from 15 different cheeseboard combinations or one of the La Fromagerie classics, which include melted raclette, fondue Savoyarde and baked camembert de Normandie. Oui, merci!

The moody Troubadour is the perfect spot for escaping for a few hours and getting lost in some jazz music. The menu is suitably naughty too and features a slow braised brisket burger, baked camembert, a shepherd’s pie and a saccharine sticky toffee pudding — basically all the treats you tend to fancy after a few drinks. Speaking of drinks, you’ll find a tempting cocktail menu here, which features a Gimme Shelter Gimlet as well as the signature house spritz made up of limoncello, elderflower cordial, sparkling wine and soda water.

Is there anything cosier than curling up with a novel surrounded by shelves packed with books? At Swans Bar in Maison Assouline, you can recreate this feeling but make it even better with the addition of a cocktail and some snacks. Just like the volumes that Assouline publishes, the menus here are suitably high-end. You could order foie gras or choose between three types of caviar to pair with the bar’s premium wines, spirits and champagnes. The martinis here are famously good too, and there’s even one that comes served with a bump of caviar…

Soho is full of inviting places to duck into when the nights begin to draw in earlier. One such spot is The Little Cork on Old Compton Street where you can explore an extensive list of wines from across the globe. The food menu here takes inspiration from all corners of the world too, and you’ll find everything from garlic snails and chicken schnitzel to smorgasbords of cheese. Apparently, the cheese and ham pie is unmissable, and over a million portions of it have been sold since 1971!

Behind the scarlet exterior of this Covent Garden wine bar and bottle shop, you’ll find warm wooden furnishings, exposed brick walls and intimate candlelit tables. Not only does it offer an impressive selection of organic, biodynamic and natural wines (including orange and honey varieties), but it champions female winemakers too, with 90% of those on offer made by women. You’ll also find a selection of French delicacies to enjoy with your chosen pour, including monkfish bouillabaisse and a generous array of cheese, bien sûr!

This independent Italian restaurant in Willesden is perfect if you’re on the hunt for unpretentious and authentic dishes from sunny southern Italy. The menu is inspired by what’s fresh and in season at the time, but you can always expect gorgeously presented food plates which will be sure to add a little sunshine into your life. Menu highlights include baked Sicilian squid, fresh gnocchi, risotto, seafood linguine and a truffle-based pizza which will knock your socks off. Nestle up inside the comforting, Mediterranean dining space or enjoy a carafe of wine in the fairy light and olive tree-adorned outdoor terrace, which will transport you straight to Sicily even on the coldest of November days!

London makes for an excellent autumn city break, when the weather can still be fair, but the crowds are much more manageable! Even if you don’t plan on staying in a hotel, The Emory is worth a stop to pay a visit to the London outpost of Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s famous abc brand. The Insta-worthy decor features a glass facade that looks over Hyde Park as well as artworks by Damien Hirst. While taking in such views, you could be tucking into delights inspired by the original New York eateries, from pork confit tacos to black truffle pizza…

Nothing says autumn like hearty pub classics, seasonal dishes made with locally sourced, foraged ingredients, and fully loaded Sunday roasts with all the trimmings! The Spread Eagle is London’s first fully vegan pub, recreating contemporary British food plates and classic cocktails with 100% plant-based ingredients. You’ll always receive a warm welcome inside this cosy Homerton gastropub, and the gorgeous bar area boasts comfy velvet couches and atmospheric lighting, making it the perfect spot to hunker down in with your pals and your pooch on a crisp autumn day.

This family-run, neighbourhood local in Tooting Bec is a no-brainer when you’re craving a comforting yet impressive bite to eat. All the pasta and sourdough pizzas are made fresh and by hand on the premises, so you know you’re getting an authentic taste of Italy. Some of the most enticing autumnal dishes here include the fresh egg pasta with a traditional Tuscan peppery beef ragu and the fresh ravioli which is filled with potato and served with spicy Calabrian nduja, fresh chilli and tomato sauce…

The menu at Bronzo Sardinian Restaurant in Chiswick is full of the flavours and textures that start to tempt you when the trees start to turn golden and the days get shorter. You’ll find an array of traditional dishes that hail from Sardinia, including the longevity soup, which is a hearty mix of vegetables and beans and is representative of the Mediterranean island’s wholesome diet. Elsewhere, you’ll find a more indulgent wild boar ragù which is slow-cooked with herbs and dusted with pecorino cheese.