Wagamama founder at top of food chain

Alan Yau: Gastronomic king of London, says Time Out

The former owner of Wagamama has been crowned gastronomic king of London.

Two of Alan Yau's dining rooms - Hakkasan and its sister restaurant Busaba Eathai - rank first and second in a new guide to the best places to eat in the capital.

A third Yau venue, Sake no hana, was also named among the top 20 restaurants by Time Out magazine.

However, the comprehensive list snubs big names such as The Ivy, while Maze was the only one of Gordon Ramsay's restaurants to make the top 20. The Wolseley just scraped into the Top 50.

Guy Dimond, Time Out food editor, explained the list was aimed at people wanting excellent food without the need to book months in advance or pay a huge bill at the end of their meal.

So while some stalwarts such as Chez Bruce are included, others have made way for less familiar recommendations such as Sushi Hiro, a small Japanese restaurant in Ealing, and Tobia, an Ethiopian restaurant above a community centre in Finchley.

Other international cuisines represented include Moroccan, Pakistani, Mozambican and Georgian. For those seeking a more traditional English menu, the guide suggests the National Dining Rooms in the National Gallery.

Mr Dimond said The Wolseley was one of several restaurants that had been marked down because of the size of their bills.

"The most common question I get asked after 'Why aren't you fat?' is 'Can you recommend a really good restaurant?', so I've made it easy for people," he said.

"You will notice that The Ivy is missing, although it is a good restaurant if you don't mind waiting months to get a table. Most of us prefer to be a little more spontaneous than that.

"Gordon Ramsay's restaurants also serve good food, but again it takes a long time to get a table and the prices are beyond what most people can afford.

"Alan Yau's restaurants are well priced, although you could spend a lot of money at Hakkasan if you went silly with the cocktails.

"But you will struggle to spend £15 on dim sum at lunchtime and can happily eat for £25 in the evening."

The full guide will appear in Time Out's food issue out on 22 January.

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