LOCAL PRODUCE SPECIALIST RESTAURANTS, CAFES AND DELIS

ACORN HOUSE

69 Swinton Street, London WC1X
(020-7812 1842; www.acornhouserestaurant.co.uk)

Times' food critic, Giles Coren called Acorn House "the most important restaurant to open in London in the past 200 years". Conceived by restaurant manager Jamie Grainger-Smith and head chef Arthur Potts, it is completely environmentally sustainable. The interior is cool and modern with uncovered tables and linen napkins. Food is café style during the day providing local office workers with a welcome alternative. By night, exotic dishes like pappardelle of wild venison, juniper, nutmeg and parmesan and chargrilled butterfly of mackerel fillet with cardamom and horseradish mean diners can indulge and save the planet at the same time.

BONNINGTON CAFE

11 Vauxhall Grove, London SW8 1TD
www.bonningtoncafe.co.uk

Run as a co-operative, this vegan and vegetarian café offers three courses for £13, cooked by a different “chef” each evening, and the satisfaction of having discovered one of London’s true hidden delights. The menu depends on the chef’s background but usually features home-cooked French and Middle-Eastern favourites made with fresh ingredients. It’s a relaxed, slightly shabby atmosphere with a BYO policy and sometimes, for good measure, a man on an accordion. Reservations are made by directly phoning the chef on duty.

BREW HOUSE AT KENWOOD HOUSE

Kenwood House, Hampstead Lane, London, NW3 7JR
(0208 341 5384; www.companyofcooks.com)

Best visited in summer, when the grassy surrounds of Kenwood House can be fully appreciated from an al-fresco table, this self-service café serves comfort food that’s organic and free-range where possible, with a menu that includes chocolate and chestnut pavlova, and chicken with orange and Madeira.

CANTEEN

2 Crispin Place, Spitalfields, E1; and below the Royal Festival Hall SE1
(0845 686 1122; www.canteen.co.uk)

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