Guidebooks, world’s best lists and reputable food websites are all worthy resources when it comes to choosing where to eat out, but sometimes there’s no better recommendation than simply asking a good pal for their restaurant of the moment. While the MR PORTER staff may not know you personally, we do spend a lot of time sitting at countertops, white-cloth tables and street-food benches in the search for the perfect dinner, so you might find us wise counsel. Below, we list the places we can’t get enough of right now.

I was raised by a Gujarati mother who acquainted my palette with the incredible – and many – flavours of India from a very young age with dishes and recipes that had been passed down through generations. At Ooty, the food that my ancestors once ate in small Indian villages was dished up to me, relatively unchanged, here in London. Founded by Mses Pooja Nayak and Aseela Goenka, every dish is a brilliant reminder of home for me: traditional cooking methods and recipes, authentic flavours that haven’t been tinkered with and a simple menu where every single plate is a credit to head chef Mr Manmeet Singh Bali. Portions are light, deftly challenging the conception that all Indian food is rich. For dinner, try the lamb rack served with chilli jam, fennel paneer and Malabar jhinga biryani. If you’re after a snack, the dosa is delicious. Sorry Mum, I won’t be home for a while…

ooty.co.uk

My favourite restaurant in the whole wide world is Hélène Darroze at the Connaught hotel. The knee-deep shagpile carpets, the enormous enveloping chairs and crisp white tablecloths that are sharper than the Iron Throne give it an air of unhurried luxury that soothes harried nerves and makes me want to move in (potentially hiding beneath one of the crisp tablecloths). But all that would be to nothing if the food wasn’t as close to perfection as you will find in London. I would marry the Challans duck with potato, xeres vinegar and mustard if I could. It is very dear, so I recommend you go with a rich family member or a school-friend-made-good.

the-connaught.co.uk

I could sit facing the wood-burning grill at St Leonards all day. On a recent visit I watched as, one by one, the different cuts of meat were hung and then strategically moved around the heat, so the fat slowly rendered. It’s almost therapeutic to watch (and the results were delicious). Standouts are the beef bavette and Tamworth chop dishes, but even the borlotti beans on a seasonal roasted vegetable plate were perfectly cooked and seasoned. It’s quite a smart interior for east London but the staff dress casually – most were wearing sneakers – and everyone I encountered was friendly and helpful. The sommelier talked us through the wine list with knowledge and enthusiasm. I’m already thinking about what I want to try on my next visit.

stleonards.london

In the context of the rapacious London restaurant scene, I am late to the party when it comes to Singburi; Ms Grace Dent wrote about it serving “the best Thai food in London” way back in 2014. But who cares when the food tastes this good? (And you can BYOB.) I went recently with two of my best pals and we hardly spoke for the hour or so we spent in the reassuringly unassuming canteen-like room on an unassumingly reassuring road in Leytonstone. We were far too busy sucking sweet, fat, spanking-fresh clams from their shells and shovelling richly dense crab curry onto our plates. I can’t really remember what else we had – that’s probably down to the BYOB thing – so surely, I’ll just have to go back there to jog my memory.

593 High Road, Leytonstone E11 4PB

The chicken “meatball” soba at Cocoron on Kenmare Street in Nolita is probably my favourite bowl of soup in the city. With the spicy, delirium-inducing yuzu kosho paste they serve on the side, it’s actually among my favourite meals anywhere, ever.

cocoronandgoemon.com