London Restaurants

First of all you need to work out what area of London you will be in, or would like to be in, at dinner time. London is huge with thousands of restaurants so you need to narrow it down a little bit!

Indian restaurants have numerous vegetarian options so keep that in mind.

Thanks!
I think we will be near the British Museum one night, near the Victoria and Albert another night, and east of Hyde Park the another night.
On the remaining night we are already eating at the restaurant at the Old Globe Theatre.

We are hoping to really enjoy our surroundings as well as the food, but I guess I already said that when I said “atmospheric.”

Dishoom at Kings Cross/Granary Square.
Maggie Jones in Kensington. Amazonico in Mayfair.

Plenty of pubs have atmosphere. Try the art deco Blackfriar pub or the The Old Bank of England pub.

This link is very beneficial:
https://www.hot-dinners.com/Features/Hot-Dinners-recommends/londons-best-looking-restaurants-beautiful-extravagant-extra-bling

Vegetarian Options, reasonable costs, Multiple locations: Wagamamas

The dining area at the Victoria and Albert is beautiful.

I second Cala's recommendation of the cafe at the V&A Museum!
Lovely decor, great food!

mistimetotravel, where is your hotel? I'd like to give you recommendations for near there, as I'm sure you'll return there at the end of each day. We actually like to stop off at our hotel, wash hands and freshen up, and then head out to a nearby restaurant for dinner.

I don't know many places these days, cheap or expensive, fancy or plain which don't have a variety of vegetarian options, and many Vegan options.

Thanks everyone. It sounds like eating at the Victoria and Albert for a meal would be very nice.
Rebecca, we will be staying right near Hyde Park on the north side.

Ottolenghi’s restaurants are vegetable focussed and have a lively atmosphere. Their website gives location details as there is more than one plus some takeout locations.

Paddington Basin will be close to where you’re staying. It has a great atmosphere especially on a sunny day. There is a restaurant on a boat and a large, stunningly decorated place called Bondi Green with the same owners. Very good fun. The food is good rather than amazing.

Hello mistime,
Walk north from Hyde Park to Paddington Basin area, as mentioned by Helen. Keep walking to the area known as Little Venice, where several canals/waterways come together. In this area I recommend The Waterway restaurant, 54 Formosa Street. They have a variety of salads and more. Their online menu is slightly deceptive, in that it heavily features meat dishes; burgers, seafood, etc. but they have large salads plus daily specials which do not appear on the online menu.
Book a table using their website:
https://www.thewaterway.co.uk/
This is right beside the waterway where you will see narrowboats pass. Walk around the area before or after your meal. There is a path alongside the canal and you can see many narrowboats permanently moored there where people are living onboard.

In this area, there is a boat ride you can take down the waterway. London Waterbus Company takes you from Little Venice to Camden Town. (Camden Market & Camden Lock are here too). If you want to do a return trip back (round trip) from Camden to Little Venice, you can.
https://www.londonwaterbus.com/

Camden Market is at the other end of the London Waterbus trip. This can be a good area to walk around, look at shops, buy food from street vendors, or just people watch. Here's a page to explore the food options in Camden Market area:
https://www.camdenmarket.com/food-drink

If you take the London Waterbus trip, you will pass just north of the London Zoo and Regents Park.

London Zoo is located in the northern area of Regents Park, which is worth exploring, too. Regents Park has paths, ponds, green space, plus their own small cafes serving snacks, lunches, coffee, tea and ice cream.
The Broad Walk Cafe
The Regent's Bar And Kitchen
The Open Air Theatre sometimes has plays or music in the summer.
https://www.royalparks.org.uk/parks/the-regents-park

Map of Regents Park here:
https://www.royalparks.org.uk/parks/the-regents-park/map-of-regents-park

Since you may be walking through Hyde Park in order to get to the V&A Museum, I will add that Hyde Park has a couple of cafes for breakfast, lunch, snacks or coffee.
The Serpentine Lido Cafe:
https://www.royalparks.org.uk/parks/hyde-park/food-and-drink/lido-bar-and-cafe
Serving breakfast and lunch items.
Menu: https://www.royalparks.org.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0015/114063/MENU_The-Seprentine-Lido-Cafe_A5.pdf
https://www.royalparks.org.uk/parks/hyde-park

Map of Hyde Park here:
https://www.royalparks.org.uk/parks/hyde-park/map-of-hyde-park

Park Sports Cafe: https://www.royalparks.org.uk/parks/hyde-park/food-and-drink/park-sports-cafe
The Lodge Cafe, also serving breakfast: https://www.royalparks.org.uk/parks/hyde-park/food-and-drink/the-lodge-cafe

You could leave your hotel or apartment, walk through Hyde Park, have a nice breakfast, and continue walking south to see the Victoria and Albert Museum.

Thank you so much Rebecca for these suggestions. We have a free day and it seems exploring the areas of Little Venice and Camden could be a part of that day.
I had wondered about Little Venice. Is it a bit out of the way to get to like under a freeway or far from mist attractions? What is the closest museum or main attraction?

Little Venice is right near the Warwick Road Underground Station. LondonWalks does a Little Venice walk. I took it last fall and really enjoyed it. Little Venice is NW of Paddington Station. I took a look at Google Maps and would agree it's not super-close to major attractions, but it's easy just to hop on the Underground and head elsewhere. The northern edge of Kensington Gardens is just over a mile away, as is the western edge of Regent's Park.

"What is the closest museum or main attraction?"

Not close to any museum. Closest attraction that draws a lot of tourists is Abbey Road Studios and the Beatles Crosswalk.
acraven is right.
Little Venice is NW of Paddington Station.
Not under a freeway. It's a lovely area.
Closest tube station is Warwick Ave. on the Bakerloo line.

The London Walks walk through Little Venice that acraven mentioned would be a good one to take.

I second the rec for one of Ottolenghi's restaurants - lots of vegetarian options (he's renowned for it) and wonderful tasty food - definitely fit for a foodie.

If you visit the website, you can pick one that appeals to you. https://ottolenghi.co.uk/restaurants

One additional thought: I believe that the food creates the atmosphere. :) If you go to a fancy place with loads of atmosphere, but the food is only so-so, it tends to destroy the ambience, imo. But a hole in the wall can be an incredible dining experience if the food is great.

Mardee, I agree about the food being excellent at Ottolenghi and with your other post, too.

Here's a good video walking tour of Little Venice and the Regents Canal area. Good to watch for anyone thinking of visiting the area.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8NzZ-tWUrts