Restaurants

London has a wide variety of restaurants, catering to just about every taste and budget. The highest concentration of restaurants can be found around the city center, with Soho containing a sizable collection of tasty eateries.

Good restaurants will usually be very busy on a Friday and Saturday night and booking a table is advised. The most popular time for bookings is between 8 pm and 9 pm. You can book either by visiting the restaurant in person or by telephone. All restaurants in the UK are now a non-smoking area.

For most people, eating out is an informal affair. It’s very rare that a restaurant enforces a dress code, although the pricier the restaurant, the smarter the clientele tend to be. In the top end hotels and restaurants you may find some places that require men to wear a jacket, a tiny number of places also insist on a tie. "Smart casual" is fine everywhere else.

Restaurants are one of the few areas of British life where tipping is standard practice; 10% to 15% is usual. Some restaurants will include a 12.5% service charge on the bill, so you need to check in order not to tip them twice. And always try and tip in cash, as some restaurants don’t pass on credit card tips to their table staff.

Pubs

Most pubs now serve food as it brings more customers through their doors. Pub food varies in quality from fresh home made produce to re-heated, mass produced menus. Decent pub grub is extremely good value for money and some pubs offer such as two courses for £5 or children eat free.

Most pubs serve food at lunchtime, many in the evening and some now stay open all afternoon. Many pubs (especially in quieter areas) will be closed between 3 pm and about 5.30 pm. Closing time will be sometime from 11 pm.

A typical pub menu will offer a variety of choices such as fish and chips, lasagne, curry, chicken pie, salads, pasta, jacket potatoes, steak and grill and sandwiches. Nearly all of these will be accompanied by chips!

Pubs operate in different ways when it comes to ordering but you usually choose a table which will have a number on it. You then decide what you want and at the bar. A waiter will then bring your food to the table.