As I write this, London is going through the most sustained bout of bad, rainy weather that I can remember. Every day or so of sunshine sees crowds flock outside, ecstatic that they are going to have a few hours of relief from the dreariness; soon enough, we’re all sent scurrying back inside. The particularly depressing – although very English – thing is that these things can often happen on the same day, even during the course of the same evening, which plays havoc with a restaurant’s seating policy; although, of course, the clued-up ones are more than able to invest in such things as canopies and temporary cover.
The Garden Terrace at The Hari
However, this happens every year, and, hopefully, by the time this piece is published, the bad weather will be a forgotten memory and we’ll be basking in one of the most sustained (yet never uncomfortable) heatwaves that we can remember. And when we do, we’ll all be desperate to flock to some of the city’s best restaurants that offer al fresco seating, whether on terraces, in sumptuous gardens or anywhere else that enables us to soak up the sun, as well as the food and wine. Here are some of our favourites.
Yauatcha City
Broadgate Circle in the City is home to several restaurants, but only this helping of the much-loved Yauatcha can boast both sublime food and outdoor seating. The current offering that they’re keen to promote is the ‘beer and Bao’ set menu, where you can have two bao buns with an Asahi beer for a wallet-friendly £15, and for a light after-work spot of refreshment, taken al fresco, you could barely do better.
However, us Arbuturian critics are keen to take the full pulse of an establishment this beloved, and so we opt for the restaurant’s semi-bespoke tasting menu, the ‘Harmony’, which begins with dim sum (the best being the lobster dumpling and Wagyu beef puff), follows it up with crispy duck, carved tableside and served with pancakes, cucumber and the like, and then an extra few courses, during which the hungry could eat everything from sea bass curry to rib-eye beef and lobster tail.
It’s all superb but my advice, having been soundly defeated by the sheer amount of food, would be to go a la carte and enjoy the lighter, smaller dishes in this setting, accompanied by the excellent wine list, much of which is available by the carafe. A particular highlight is the Assyrtiko, a crisp Greek white wine which is wonderfully refreshing, and a very fine, light Dolcetto d’Alba if your tastes veer more towards red. And the cocktails here are legendary, and rightly so; their twists on an Old Fashioned and espresso martini are to be venerated.
For more information, including their ‘beer and a bite’ offer, and for bookings, please visit www.taogroup.com.
Ham Yard Hotel
Wander a few moments away from Piccadilly Circus or Soho, and you’ll find yourself in one of London’s true oases of calm and sophistication: the outdoor terrace at the Ham Yard Hotel, temporary home to everyone from A-list celebrities who enjoy the relaxed, informal vibe to the literary and artistic cognoscenti who have been firm fans of the Firmdale hotels group ever since it was launched by Tim and Kit Kemp.
Everyone will have their favourite, but in London, it’s hard to beat Ham Yard on a warm summer’s evening, where the a la carte menu (the winner of two AA rosettes, deservedly) is complimented by some of the best wines and cocktails around. Order a half-dozen oysters – French or Irish, they’re both terrific – and one of the ‘Stories of Soho’ cocktails (the ‘La Revolution’, which comes with a mixture of gin and CBD, is a suitably mellow wonder), and dive into the dishes on offer.
Starters-wise, the seafood here is sublime, whether you opt for the charred mackerel or the suitably pimped-out smoked salmon. Given how far London is from the sea, the joys here are how fresh it all tastes – as if you’d been sitting by the East Anglian coast that day. And mains of lamb served with labneh and very fine rib-eye steak with bearnaise sauce temper their carnivorous qualities with a surprising lightness and delicacy that are well paired with excellent wines; a Riesling with the starter and then a truly exceptional Greek red with the mains.
It’s all served with just the right blend of formality and friendliness, with the enviably well-coutured staff equal parts suave and warm, and chances are that if you turn up for an early evening dinner prior to a later engagement, you’ll just forget about anything else you’re doing here and make a night of it. And, if it all goes really well, you’ll collapse into a suite upstairs and have the best sleep you can imagine.
For more information about the Courtyard at Ham Yard hotel, please visit www.firmdalehotels.com.
Mazi
If you’re feeling cash strapped this summer but still fancy experiencing a Greek holiday – albeit for a couple of hours rather than a fortnight – then head up to Notting Hill and take full advantage of the whitewashed walls of the exemplary Greek restaurant Mazi, which has been long regarded as one of the finest places in West London, and for good reason. Inside, you’re talking about a swish and exemplary establishment, but on a sunny day, the outdoor space really comes into its own, allowing you to think that you’re in Santorini or Mykonos.
Of course, it’s doubtful that you’d find cooking and wine of the calibre that Mazi boasts in anywhere but the most sophisticated of spots. If you kick off your meal here with ‘jars’ – small but delicious potted helpings of tzatziki and aubergine – and a couple of cocktails (the tzatziki martini went down far too quickly – what can I say, it was hot and I was thirsty), you’re going to be in seventh heaven, and then it’s time to delve into the hot plates, including honey roasted tomatoes with goat’s cheese, feta tempura with lemon marmalade – think savoury doughnuts and you’re pretty much there – and larger dishes of grilled octopus and spiced lamb rump. Add a bottle of the excellent Gaia Monograph to the equation, and you’re unlikely to have a better time anywhere in Notting Hill.
You’ll want to relax into the meal, but make sure that you leave space for a flawless dessert of chocolate mousse cake or strawberries with Prosecco and sorbet; very Bridesheadian, very decadent and the perfect summer’s treat. You will leave here exceptionally well-fed, very happy indeed and planning your next trip to Greece. Be aware, of course, that it will struggle to live up to such a glorious experience.
For more information, and for bookings, please visit www.mazi.co.uk.
The Hari
Belgravia is one of London’s most affluent spots, and, naturally, The Hari hotel combines both a level of luxury that few can match with unparalleled discretion. Some hotels describe themselves as offering the comforts of a members’ club, but The Hari goes a step further; visiting here is a lot like being in an particularly opulent private house. The Garden Terrace, which serves flawless smoked salmon blinis and exceptionally fine cocktails – the ‘Gin ‘n’ Jam’, a so-called ‘Haritini’, is a delight, and don’t miss out on the Pomello Spritz, a perfect summer thirst-quencher – make this the perfect spot to relax in. But it’s not an obvious place to find. I had to be directed there by one of the charming and highly accommodating members of staff, and its discreetly out-the-way location is of a piece with everything else here.
Gin ‘n’ Jam at The Hari
Although it would be entirely possible to have a very decent lunch or dinner based on the grazing menu on offer here, it would also be a great shame not to head downstairs to the hotel’s splendidly appointed Italian restaurant Il Pampero. We’re the only diners in for lunch, slightly surprisingly, but this self-described ‘neighbourhood spot’ has a remarkable degree of insouciant cool that this review – alas – will give away, but Arbuturian readers have always had the best taste when it comes to these things.
Pasta dishes here are nothing short of sublime (the cacio e pepe has a wonderful peppery kick) and the shared tagliata beef is so good, especially accompanied by a memorably jammy Malbec, that to while away a couple of hours on one of the wonderfully comfortable banquettes, far away from the cares of the world, is a perfect treat. Was the tableside-prepared tiramisu quite as wonderful as everything else? Perhaps not. But otherwise, this is the perfect entry for the little black book, far away from the dull yet pressing concerns of the rest of the world.
For more information about dining at The Hari, please visit www.thehari.com.
Lasdun
The Marksman is one of London’s best-loved gastropubs, and so the decision by its founders to run the fine-dining restaurant at the National Theatre was a stroke of genius. Casual venturers who want to soak up a spot of sun, however, will be delighted by the opportunity to visit its pop-up terrace that allows theatregoers and lovers of superb cocktails and fine English sparkling wine alike to either linger on the unfamiliar sunny days or to grab a bite pre-theatre. 
Lasdun’s expertise can be seen in a selection of buns that they serve, of which the best are probably a near-flawless Dorset crab and mayonnaise and sublime Tamworth and Lincolnshire poacher, and after a couple of delectable cocktails – a gin and bitter lemon is about as good as you’ll get anywhere, and the Tom Collins, according to bar manager Milo, “the bollocks”, and he’s not wrong – you should work your way through the three kinds of Nyetimber on offer (our favourite being the Blanc de Blancs), relax into an evening on the South Bank, or alternatively actually head into the theatre and see the country’s best thespians strutting their stuff.
For more information about The Lasdun, and for bookings, please visit www.lasdunrestaurant.com.
Lasdun photo by Joe Howard
