Hampstead is not a neighbourhood that shouts about its restaurants. The good places tend to be known by reputation rather than publicity — establishments that have been feeding the same families for decades and feel no particular need to advertise beyond their own consistent quality. Finding them requires either local knowledge or a certain willingness to walk down unpromising streets.
Jin Kichi
Jin Kichi on Heath Street is a Hampstead institution: a Japanese izakaya that has been operating for over 30 years in a small first-floor room above the street. The yakitori is exceptional — small skewers of chicken, liver, and vegetables, cooked over charcoal with the precision of a chef who has been doing this for a very long time. The sashimi is restrained and excellent. Book well in advance; the room is tiny and fills months ahead on weekends.
L'Artista
L'Artista on Perrins Court is Hampstead's neighbourhood Italian — the kind of place where the owner knows your name after two visits and where the pasta has been made the same way for longer than most restaurants in London have existed. The carbonara is definitive. The house wine is decent. The atmosphere, particularly on a winter evening when the room is full, is exactly what a restaurant should be.
The Horseshoe
Heath Street's The Horseshoe is a Young's pub that does gastropub food of genuine quality. The beef and ale pie is the thing to order; it arrives in a proper deep dish with a crust that takes itself seriously. The upstairs dining room is more formal; the bar is better.
Zara
Zara on Heath Street is Hampstead's most reliable Lebanese: charcoal-grilled meats, excellent mezze, and the particular hospitality that North London's Lebanese restaurants have made their own. The mixed grill and the fattoush are both dependable choices.
## The serious Hampstead restaurants La Gaffe at the top of Heath Street is the oldest restaurant of record in Hampstead, opened in 1962 and run by the same family. Italian, classical, unfussy. The dining room is small and wood-panelled; the menu changes with the season but the pasta course is always the thing to order. Tagliatelle with slow-braised oxtail in winter, spaghetti with clams in spring. Mains £24 to £36. Fixed-price lunch at £24 for two courses is the best-value serious meal in Hampstead. Book 48 hours ahead for weekends. L'Antica Pizzeria on the High Street is the only Hampstead pizzeria with a proper wood-fired Neapolitan oven. The Margherita is £13 and is what you should order. Starters run £8 to £12, mains (pizzas mostly) £13 to £20. Walk in or book. The Wells on Well Walk is a gastropub that has drifted into restaurant territory. The menu is ambitious — seared scallops, braised shin of beef, a whole roasted plaice for two — and the execution is reliable. Mains £24 to £34. Upstairs dining room is quieter; book for dinner. ## Modern British The Horseshoe on Heath Street reopened in 2022 after a refurbishment and now runs a tight modern British menu that leans on local and seasonal British produce. The beef shin (around £28) and the hake with samphire (£26) are regulars. The six-seat bar does a better-than-average wine list by the glass. Book ahead for weekends. The Magdala in Belsize Park (reopened 2021) serves modern British pub food — dry-aged beef, properly-cooked fish, a good vegetable-forward section — in a room that still has the Ruth Ellis history on its walls. Mains £19 to £28. Sunday roast £24. ## Casual and quick Ginger & White in Perrins Court does breakfast, lunch, and coffee better than anywhere else in the village. The bacon sandwich is £9 and is one of the best in north London. The flat white is £4. Weekend queues from 10am to midday; go at 8am or after 2pm. Le Pain Quotidien on the High Street is a chain but serves the most reliable weekday lunch in the area — tartines, soups, salads, around £14 for a main. The large communal table seats eighteen and is the best place in Hampstead to eat alone without feeling strange. Pomaio on Flask Walk does wood-fired pizzas (£11 to £18) in a narrow room with six tables. Excellent for an early dinner; closes by 10pm. ## The special-occasion choice La Gaffe for a classical Italian anniversary dinner; The Wells for a serious date; The Horseshoe for modern British with an ambitious wine list. Avoid the Hampstead Michelin-starred chain branches — the village versions don't live up to the central-London originals and you're paying Hampstead markups for central-London food. ## Practical notes Hampstead restaurants generally close their kitchens by 9:30pm weekdays and 10pm weekends. Late diners go to Belsize Park or Camden. Cash is still occasionally useful for tips at family-run places. Parking is limited and controlled everywhere; take the tube.