A Michelin-starred restaurant located on Great Portland Street in London's Fitzrovia district, celebrated for its modern British cuisine and seasonal offerings.
Chef Merlin Labron-Johnson is known for his dedication to seasonal, locally sourced ingredients, deeply rooted in his upbringing on organic farms in Devon. His culinary journey began unconventionally, not through...
Portland is a Michelin-starred restaurant located in London's Fitzrovia district, known for its seasonal menu of modern British cuisine. Established in 2015 and part of the Woodhead group, it offers an elegant yet comfortable ambiance. The restaurant is praised for its high-quality dishes, precision cooking, and excellent value, particularly for its early dinner set menu. Guests can choose between counter dining or table seating.
Customer Perception
Customers consistently praise Portland for its delicious and beautifully presented food, often exceeding expectations. The service is frequently described as exceptional, friendly, and personable, with staff going above and beyond for special occasions. The atmosphere is noted as elegant, warm, and charismatic. While the early dinner menu is considered outstanding value, some minor inconsistencies were noted in a few dishes, and an extra charge for snacks surprised one reviewer. Overall, it's highly recommended for its superb dining experience.
Additional Details
The restaurant has held its Michelin star for over 10 years. It offers a 3-course lunch set menu and has a corkage fee of £40 if guests wish to bring their own champagne.
Booking ahead is recommended due to its popularity. An early dinner slot between 5:30 PM and 6:30 PM (including Saturdays) offers a 4-course set menu at £55, which is highlighted as excellent value.
I was very satisfied with my dining experience. From the moment I entered, the staff greeted me warmly and politely asked if I would like assistance with hanging my coat, which immediately made me feel welcomed.
The atmosphere was excellent elegant yet comfortable, and the food was outstanding, exceeding my expectations. The quality of the dishes was impressive, especially considering how reasonably priced the menu is. After the meal, we were pleasantly surprised with complimentary desserts, which was a thoughtful and delightful touch.
Overall, I truly enjoyed the experience. Another aspect I greatly appreciate is that the menu is not fixed; it changes with the seasons, allowing the restaurant to showcase the best available ingredients. I would happily return and highly recommend it.
My wife and I celebrated our anniversary at Portland. The food was absolutely delicious and service was exceptional. The staff went above and beyond giving us a signed card (signed from all of the staff) and some homemade biscuits to celebrate our anniversary.
With tasting menus you wonder how much food there will be, but the portion sizes here were very good, you will not leave hungry!
Would thoroughly recommend Portland, we will definitely be returning!
4
I’ve wanted to visit Portland for a few years, so it was exciting to finally go — especially impressive that they’ve been open since 2015. The interior is stunning, with beautiful artwork that immediately sets an elegant and exciting tone for the meal.
We brought our own champagne to celebrate a birthday and bon voyage. The £40 corkage fee felt reasonable for London. We went for the three-course lunch set menu, which was very well priced.
We were a bit surprised to be charged an extra £15 for the snacks (essentially an amuse-bouche). While they were good — particularly the macaron and scallop tartare — the chicken wing was fairly average. The bread with hay hollandaise was a standout: creamy and delicious.
For starters, the Devon crab was a favourite — a very generous portion, beautifully complemented by peas. The smoked eel, however, was disappointing. It was drowned in a creamy yoghurt sauce that heavily diluted the beautiful smokiness of the eel. A lighter hand with the sauce would have let the eel shine.
For mains we had the halibut and the lamb. The halibut was excellent, with a generous fish portion, flavourful scallop mousse, and nicely pan-fried courgettes for crunch.
Dessert was the citrus curd with strawberries — very intense and zingy, but the dense sponge cake at the bottom felt like it hindered rather than helped the dish.
Service was good, but not exceptional.
Overall, a beautiful space with some truly excellent dishes (especially the crab and halibut). A few inconsistencies and the new charges for snacks held it back from feeling like a full top-tier experience, but still worth a visit.
5
As ever, wonderful food, special service, and a bustling atmosphere. As a solo diner, their early evening menu (£55 for four courses, plus bread and petit fours) is tremendous value. The food was delicious: classical with innovative touches, and is beautifully presented. Service so friendly and attentive without being intrusive. This was my fourth visit and I’m sure to return.
5
Overall experience was brilliant, there were no glaring issues at all and everything was completed meticulously well.
In terms of preparation: I’d recommend booking a slot ahead of time, as it may get busy. The OpenTable app is easy to use and you can change your booking easily if you need to adjust your timing to suit your schedule. Their website also displays menus, which is helpful to gauge interest and allows for you to understand what you’re getting yourself into! With the booking, you’re able to select a counter space or a table space. If you were a lone guest like myself, you’re able to select the counter as I had done, where you’re seated right at the front of the building by the entrance with large windows, which allows the pleasure of ‘people watching’ while you wait or eat (maybe this is just something I enjoy).
During the visit: Service staff kindly checked if I was still interested with the counter dining, and instead allowed me to have a table if I wanted! I remained with the counter anyways but it was kind of them to let me know that this was possible! They are also incredibly kind to answer any questions I had regarding their items and possible pairings.
Food: everything was brilliant, no complaints. I had ordered a hand-dived scallop tartare (photo 2), Guinea fowl agnolotti (photo 4), sirloin of beef (photo 3), and the buttermilk panna cotta (photo 1). They also provided me two little petit fours (photo 5), before I left - I had to catch a train so was in a bit of a rush - which was a lovely surprise. The Panna cotta was definitely one of the highlights of my meal, I’ve never had the chance to try something like it and the rhubarb and pistachio added lovely crunchy textures to the soft experience. For me, this is a must try.
Service: No issues here. Perfect.
Atmosphere: As a few guests arrived, the atmosphere was warm and charismatic. As intended for a restaurant. The venue was bright and clean, no issues regarding cleanliness or hygiene.
Would I return? Absolutely. The experience was excellent from start to finish, and I would happily dine here again. That said, London has such an incredible and diverse restaurant scene that there are still many places on my list to explore before I revisit! If I found myself back here for a meeting, lunch, special occasion, or simply at the suggestion of friends, I wouldn’t hesitate to return, knowing I’d be in for another thoroughly enjoyable experience.
Thank you :)
