London
‘It feels subversive to eat so much carbohydrate in Mayfair’: Claridge’s ArtSpace Café and Bakery reviewed
Claridge’s grew nine storeys in the last decade: it’s a metaphor. The ornamental 1897 castle on Brook Street has expanded…
The Spectator’s caught in the EU crosshairs
Is the flotation of Elon Musk’s SpaceX venture on the US Nasdaq exchange a beacon for the future of earthly…
Did ‘millions’ attend Tommy Robinson’s Unite the Kingdom rally?
The Metropolitan Police were braced for one of the “busiest days for policing in London in recent years” on Saturday,…
Letters: it’s hard to undo dumbing down
Tales from the City Sir: Simon Jenkins’s article on Liverpool Street Station (‘Horror storeys’, 9 May) is inaccurate, and an…
‘A constant good in this world’: Simpson’s in the Strand reviewed
Simpson’s in the Strand is a dream palace, and its fortunes are as tidal as the river. It is on…
Dear Mary: how can I prevent my daughter from getting ‘tweakments’?
Q. My husband has been appointed to a post in Wales and we as a family have moved here for…
The Golders Green atrocity is the final straw
It is undeniable now: war has been declared on British Jews. A fascistic crusade is being waged against our Jewish…
Letters: what vegetarians get wrong
Flat broke Sir: John Power’s article on the property squeeze (‘Flatlined’, 18 April) identifies a symptom of a deeper problem,…
Russell Brand is everything that is wrong with the world
There are few stranger public careers than that of Russell Brand, the former “comedian” turned MAGA cheerleader-in-chief. He has given…
Flat out: the property squeeze crushing the young
Last month, a new account called London Price Drop appeared on X. It has already gained more than 14,000 followers…
‘An adequate meal for a Cornish giant’: Brasserie Angelica reviewed
Brasserie Angelica is the – is the word signature? – restaurant inside the Newman, Fitzrovia, a new hotel that has…
Why the keffiyeh classes have forgiven Kanye West
And there you have it. Britain is a country where a musician who says “Heil Hitler” gets to headline festivals…
In days of war, we need trifles: Mezzogiorno reviewed
Mezzogiorno is a very serious, golden Italian restaurant inside the Corinthia London Hotel on Northumberland Avenue. Restaurants are increasingly gold…
The perils of London: a beginner’s guide
An interesting new perspective on London is doing the rounds. Our capital city is being advertised as a paradise. London,…
Food for adults remembering childhood: Dover Street Counter reviewed
Dover Street Counter is the tiny sister of The Dover, a very good restaurant on – who knew? – Dover…
My mother has become a hostile stranger
‘Do you know who I am?’ said the voice belonging to the lady who used to be my mother, crossly,…
Like dining with Elrond in Rivendell: Corenucopia reviewed
Corenucopia by Clare Smyth is in Belgravia, amid a line of interior-design shops, and it is prettier than all of…
‘Beloved by Chinese tourists – and the Labour party’: Phoenix Palace reviewed
The exterior of the Phoenix Palace is cream with golden letters like the napkin and the Laffer curve, and it…
How to drink like you’re at the Savoy – from your sofa
There are two great American bars in London. One is perfect to escape the winter chill, the other to embrace…
Hell is a dog café
The dog café had a pretty pink sign describing its many services and I stood outside it mesmerised as I…
A restaurant so perfect I hesitated to review it
Sometimes you find it, H.G. Wells’s door in the wall, but to tapas: a restaurant so perfect you hesitate to…
Scott’s vs Mayfair
Kingsley Amis was obsessed with Scott’s on Mount Street, Mayfair, and he knew a lot about food. He ate himself…
Heroes have faults too
The chief function of the prime minister is to take the blame, and Sir Keir Starmer can no more escape…
LA lacks London’s Christmas spirit
‘Never again!’ I sigh every 6 January, as I pack away the abundance of Christmas decorations and baubles lovingly collected…
A right royal travesty: Lilibet’s reviewed
Elizabeth II was a god and a commodity: now she is gone it is time for posthumous exploitation. Lilibet’s is…
