London & UK Restaurant & Venue Guide

Bringing a slice of the exotic Middle East to suburban London, Chiswick new boy Chella mixes popular Persian food such as meatballs and baklava with lesser-known dishes like noodle soup ash-e-reshteh and herb omelette kookoo sabzi. Inside it’s very much a modern neighbourhood restaurant, with no mock-Arabic decor cluttering up the site, while a trendy cocktail bar injects a touch of Friday night glamour.

If singing for your supper seems silly, try being sung at during supper instead. After a hushed few months since closing its City site, the operatic-themed restaurant – complete with its warbling waiters – has reopened in the Corus Hotel in Lancaster Gate. Be prepared for an assualt on the senses - £35 will buy you a menu of Gallic-inspired European food and more opera than an Il Divo fan club get-together.

Got an iPhone? Or perhaps an iPod Touch? Then don't miss out: Square Meal has launched a super-duper new app and it's absolutely free. Just download it from the App Store on your iPhone, then take it for a spin. The Square Meal app uses GPS mapping so you can search for restaurants, bars and special offers by location – not to mention being able to download virtual vouchers for deals. Yes, readers: virtual. No need to print them off or plan ahead – now you can be a fly-by-the-seat-of-your pants kind of person.

Sexy Shoreditch members’ club The East Rooms has the competition of the decade (so far) for V&E readers. After a hugely successful run, the pop-up Alpine ski lodge has come to a close and it’s up to you to decide what it becomes next. Send your ideas for a spring/summer rooftop pop-up and you could win a private party worth £5,000! Come to look round the venue at its open house, next Wednesday 17 February. Check out the ski lodge and take part in a keg party, cocktail masterclass and BBQ. Click for the invite.

It’s been a big week for the London hotel scene. Prospective planning has been granted to build a new four star on the site of The O2 Arena and now East London is set to see its first art’otel spring up in Hackney in 2012. The 350-bedroom, 18-storey cylindrical obelisk will be designed by Squire and Partners and will feature a top-floor restaurant, spa, arthouse cinema and gallery.

Oxfordshire’s RBS Williams F1 Conference Centre is kick-starting 2010 with a special offer on the delegate day rate. For £47.50, guests receive three servings of refreshments, all necessary accessories, free car parking, Wi-Fi and a tour of the private Williams F1 collection. The venue has also launched a new grand prix hospitality package.