New Restaurant Openings in London

Mele e Pere - an 80-seater northern Italian restaurant - has opened on Brewer Street in Soho. The contemporary trattoria and vermouth bar is co-owned by Peter Hughes and chef Andrea Mantovani, who has worked at Harry's Bar, Arbutus and Wild Honey. The menu includes dishes like salt cod 'alla Veneta'; orecchiette with Romanesco broccoli and clams; veal Ossobuco; and Bistecca alla Fiorentina.

L'Etranger have expanded next door with the opening of a new lounge bar and dining room. Meursault offers molecular cocktails, small plates, and a Japanese themed menu created by executive chef Jerome Tauvron. Diners can expect sashimi, tempura and sharing platters, plus luxury mini burgers made with crab, Wagyu beef, and lobster.

Mark Hix has opened Hix Restaurant and Mark's Bar at the new Belgraves Hotel on Chesham Street in Belgravia. The 80-seater restaurant offers 'a menu inspired by Mark's travels from around the world', while the bar pays homage to his ever-popular Soho drinking den. The venue also boasts 'a stylish cigar garden with commissioned artwork by British artist Mat Collishaw.'

Now open in Brixton, Boqueria is a tapas bar which promises 'amazing Spanish Food, wine and sherries in a fabulous contemporary setting'.

Now open in South Kensington, Galante is a new Argentine cocktail bar from the Gaucho team. Bar snacks like ceviche platters and grilled tiger shrimp are provided by the Gaucho kitchen next door.

Pub group Geronimo Inns have opened a flagship site called The Oyster Shed on the ground floor of the headquarters of Japanese bank Nomura in the City. Locals can look forward to carefully selected wines and beers, Bar Boards to snack on, and great views of the River Thames. The main menu features seafood, a rare breed burger, and steak and oyster pie.

Meat People is a new steak restaurant on the former S&M Cafe site in Islington. Expect top quality reliably sourced steaks, quirky world wines and retro cocktails.

Ollie Dabbous (formerly of Texture) has opened his own restaurant with mixologist Oskar Kinberg (ex-Cuckoo Club) in Fitzrovia next year. Dabbous serves a modern European menu of small plates as well as a seven course tasting menu priced at 49 pounds. The Whitfield Street restaurant is spread over two floors, with a basement bar offering bar snacks and an extensive range of cocktails.

New Italian wine bar and kitchen currently soft open in Spitalfields. Expect good food, Italian beers and 'superlative red wines from the Tuscany region'. (Fully open by end of January).

One of Belgium's oldest restaurants, Chez Leon, has opened the first UK branch of its Leon de Bruxelles chain in London. The Covent Garden eatery serves Belgian beers, traditional fish soup, crisp frites, waffles, and - of course - moules in a range of delicious sauces, from the classic Mariniere to the more unusual Madras curry sauce. Leon de Bruxelles is initially open for breakfast, lunch and dinner, with afternoon tea launching later in 2012.

Following the success of their Southbank BBQ van, the Pitt Cue Co team have opened a permanent Soho site near Carnarby Street. Diners can squeeze into the bijou basement space and feast on trays of pulled pork, juicy brisket, ribs, and sides like burnt ends mash, smoky beans and crispy pickled shitake mushrooms. The drinks list focuses on beer, bourbon and whisky-based cocktails, including the infamous pickleback.

The newly revamped Odeon cinema at Whiteley's offers a sophisticated snack menu devised by Rowley Leigh (Le Cafe Anglais). Diners can order without leaving their seat and choose from finger, fork and spoon options that are easy to eat in the dark. The menu includes a porchetta, fennel and apple ciabatta, red mullet and prawn risotto, and venison chilli.

Now open in Islington, Yipin China is an authentic Hunanese restaurant. Chef Mingyuan Geng has put together a menu of traditional dishes from his native Hunan, alongside Sichuan and Cantonese classics. Don't miss Chairman Mao's red braised pork, deep fried beef with cumin, and the restaurant's signature dry wok dishes.

Italian pasta producer Giovanni Rana has opened its first UK restaurant near Euston. The chain was first launched by Giovanni Rana in Italy, where there are now 24 outlets. Situated on Regent's Place, the restaurant features open kitchens, a relazed dining room serving fresh pasta, and an antipasti and aperitivo area.

Now open in Ealing, Tuk Cho serves dishes inspired by 'the fresh, exciting flavours of authentic South East Asian street food, in a vibrant environment inspired by Asia's amazing street markets.' Diners can tuck into classic curries, stir-fries, salads, noodles and more.

Now open on Bermondsey Street, Antico is a new Italian restaurant with a separate lounge bar. Diners can drop in after work for aperitivo snacks washed down with an Aperol Spritz or glass of Prosecco. The a la carte menu includes antipasti and spuntini, as well as full size plates like pork agnolotti, bistecca di Fiorentina, and pan-roasted sea bream.

The team behind the ever-popular Goodman steakhouses have launched their latest project, Burger & Lobster, in Mayfair. There's no menu - just a choice of their infamous burger or a whole lobster (steamed and grilled or in a roll) for £20. The bar is fully stocked with fine wine, Champagne and cocktails by Soul Shakers priced around the 7.50 mark.

Obika Mozzarella Bar is now open in Canary Wharf. It specialises in fresh mozzarella, which is flown in three times a week from artisanal producers near Naples. Diners can opt for classic tasting plates or try the mozzarella in salads, with smoked salmon, or melted over lasagna and pizza. There is also a takeaway counter for lunch on the go.

The ETM Group (The Botanist, Chiswell Street Dining Rooms) have opened their first West End gastropub in Covent Garden. The ground floor operates as a traditional pub whilst the first floor provides an informal dining room for lunch, dinner and pre/post theatre meals. Ingredients are sourced from select farms and Billingsgate fish market and the menu offers seasonal British dishes and bar snacks.

Pan-Asian restaurant East Street is now open on the former Eagle Bar Diner site on Rathbone Place. The lengthy menu includes small plates, soup noodles, salads, stir-fries, curries and more.

Caparossa, a new Southern Italian restaurant, is now open in Putney.

Azerbaijani restaurant and bar, BAKU, is now open in Knightsbridge on the former site of La Noisette.

Flute Champagne Bar, which already has sites in New York and Paris, now has a London branch on Great Portland Street. The fizz-focused lounge-bar offer over 100 sparkling wines and Champagnes available by the glass and bottle. If you're hungry, Flute's spring roll bar serves 20 different Vietnamese fusion creations.

Now open in Shoreditch, this minimalist cafe is part of the ICN Gallery - a new contemporary art space that showcases the work of up-and-coming artists from Japan and other Asian countries. The ICN Cafe serves 'honest-to-goodness Japanese food' and high-quality teas. Locals and gallery visitors can tuck into authentic Japanese dishes like onigiri (rice balls), chicken karaage, and hearty nimono (simmered) dishes like braised chicken and vegetables.

Chris Corbin and Jeremy King have opened The Delaunay - a sizeable sister restuarant to The Wolseley - in Covent Garden. The cafe-restaurant, inspired by the grand cafes of Europe, is open all day and features a smart takeaway counter.

Now open on Leather Lane, KIN serves pan-Asian dishes inspired by the street food of Japan, China, Thailand and Vietnam. The drinks menu includes Asian beers, Vietnamese coffee and interesting wines from up and coming wineries.

Now open at the Boxpark in Shoreditch, the Bukowski Grill is the brainchild of Robin Freeman (long time head chef of Soho members club Blacks) and Alberto Figueroa (ex-Green and Red). They're serving 'good, greasy, mouthwatering gourmet burgers cooked in the fires of the legendary and infamous charcoal Josper Oven.'

Keith Tucker and Jeremy Hall have opened The Lucky Pig cocktail bar in Fitzrovia. Bar manager Olly Hornby Smith (ex-Soho House Group) has created a menu of classic cocktails and the bar's decor is inspired by old fashioned New York glamour.

The King's Road branch of cheap-and-cheerful Thai chain Busaba is now open.

Following the success of his Bermondsey Street tapas bar, acclaimed Spanish chef Jose Pizarro has opened a more formal restaurant on the same street. Pizarro will feature a bar with a huge selection of cavas, sherries and wines, where diners can graze on snacks, cheese and cold meats. In the 40-seater dining room, the menu will offer dishes that are more substantial than tapas but still suitable for sharing.

Japanese skewer specialists Bincho Yakitori have opened another restaurant on the former Ambassador site in Exmouth Market. The restaurant features a bar area, counter seats and tables outside.

The restaurant formerly known as Artisan has been relaunched as Alyn Williams at The Westbury, a 45-seater fine dining restaurant. It is the first solo venture for Williams who joins the hotel after many years working with Gordon Ramsay and more recently heading up the kitchen for Marcus Wareing at The Berkeley Hotel.

Russell Norman and Richard Beatty have opened Mishkin's, a Jewish deli and cocktail bar, in Covent Garden. Their fourth venture was inspired by the Jewish delis of the Lower East Side in New York and the traditional cafes in London's East End. It serves classic cocktails from the 1930s and 1940s with an emphasis on gin and the menu includes Brick Lane salf beef on soda bread, a classic Ruben sandwich on rye, and house-smoked beef brisket hash and eggs.

Colchis, a Georgian bar and restaurant, is now open in Notting Hill. As in Georgia, the menu is closely linked to the wine list, which will include choices from Georgia, as well as small, interesting producers from around the world.

Caprice Holdings (The Ivy, J Sheekey, Scott's) has opened a 100-seater steakhouse on South Audley Street in Mayfair. Head chef Paul Brown and his team will be serving carefully sourced meat and seasonal game cooked on a bespoke charcoal grill that was imported from Argentina. Carnivores can look forward to prime cuts of meat including Scottish dry-aged grass-fed, Australian Wagyu, US prime Creekstone Farm and organic grass-fed beef from northern Argentina.

French chef Joel Antunes has launched a Provencal restaurant at Embassy Mayfair. Kitchen Joel Antunes showcases traditional Provencal dishes like sweetbreads with porcini, octopus salad with caponata, and roast sea bass with lemon. The restaurant's interior is inspired by 1950s and 1960s Riviera glamour.

Ed Wilson and Oli Barker, the team behind the ever-popular Terroirs and Brawn, have launched their third site in Battersea. The restaurant, named Soif after the French word for thirsty, offers a concise daily-changing menu of dishes like scallops with lardo di colonnata, jugged hare, and heirloom beetroots with baked ricotta. The wine list will feature approximately 150 bins, with up to 18 available by the glass.

Following the success of their West End and City restaurants, the Goodman team have opened a third steakhouse in Canary Wharf.

Iberica Food & Culture have opened their second restaurant in Canary Wharf. The Cabot Square restaurant serves the same authentic Spanish dishes and tapas as their Great Portland Street original, as well as offering a take-away and delivery service. The drinks menu includes beers and wines that were previously not exported outside Spain.

Jamie Oliver has opened the first outlet of his new Union Jacks chain at Central St Giles. The menu focuses on wood-fired flatbreads with British inspired toppings like slow-braised oxtail and brisket, roast pork shoulder, and Cornish sardines. Diners can also tuck into trad Brit starters like ham hock terrine, potted prawns, Arctic Roll and treacle tart.