Medlar

Medlar has anchored the World's End stretch of the King's Road since April 2011, when chef Joe Mercer Nairne and front-of-house David O'Connor left Chez Bruce to open a restaurant of their own. More than a decade on it reads as a Chelsea institution: a modern European kitchen, French in its foundations and seasonal in its instincts, run with the calm precision that earned three AA Rosettes and, in its early years, a Michelin star. It now carries a Michelin Plate, and the room is the better for the lack of ceremony.

Turner & Pocock designed the interiors, with artwork curated by Tanya Baxter Contemporary. The look is Medlar's own: apple-green buttoned banquettes, mirrored walls that double the space, and faux blossom trees arching over the tables. A calm front room gives onto a quieter room behind and a skylit space beyond, so a gathering can take one area or, by arrangement, the whole restaurant. Upstairs, the first-floor Private Dining Room sits under south-facing windows over the King's Road, with its own bar area and room for up to twenty-eight.

The wine list is the other draw, running from familiar names to genuinely obscure finds, with a sommelier on hand. It is a restaurant for a considered private dinner, a milestone celebration or a small wedding party rather than a late DJ set, and the neighbourhood following keeps it full. Exclusive hire of the whole restaurant is available on enquiry.