Review of the reviews August

This is our round-up of recent restaurant reviews, bringing together what the critics and Square Meal had to say about the latest and hottest openings. Let us know your own thoughts by leaving comments on our reviews, or tweeting us @SquareMeal.

One of London’s original and best tapas spots, Soho’s Barrafina has never been short of praise. The new Adelaide Street branch just off Strand is proving no different, with a much-coveted five-star review from Fay Maschler already in the bag. The Standard’s food critic describes the restaurant as ‘a fabulously good place to have a vivacious, ambrosial and, incidentally, healthy meal’, and urges diners to be willing to queue for this no-bookings spot. In Time Out, Guy Dimond also has heavy praise for the food but warns to ‘watch out if you’re properly hungry, as the bill adds up fast’.
We say: ‘They've decided to share the Barrafina love and open a second location, which miraculously, improves on the experience at the big sister,’ says one reader.

Opso

The build-up to the launch of Opso near Paddington last month came with much talk of a new wave of Greek restaurants in the capital, partly spurred on by the closely timed opening of 21 Bateman Street and the re-opening of Peckham Bazaar. But Fay Maschler is disappointed: ‘Oops, there was a chance to fill a gap in the London market and Opso — sited opposite one of the branches of The Real Greek — hasn’t done it’. On the flip side, Time Out’s Guy Dimond declares it ‘a great place for savouring the more refined Hellenistic pleasures’ and a ‘refreshing approach to Greek dining in London’. Blogger The Picky Glutton agrees, saying: ‘Opso’s modern Greek cooking is delightful, playful, inventive, satisfying and quite unlike anything I’ve had in London before.’
We say: ‘The food is light, fresh and all very well presented... an extensive dining area in the basement will doubtless prove invaluable once word gets around about this place,’ says one reader.

The Palomar

Few restaurants capture hearts like Soho’s The Palomar has done. Critics, foodies and the restaurant going public alike have been won over by this unique London version of Jerusalem’s hottest spot. Time Out’s Guy Dimond names it ‘the West End’s most unlikely bar-restaurant of the moment’ and praises its ‘tastes of the souk’ and ‘appetite for fun’. In the Standard, David Sexton describes it as ‘maybe the most interesting restaurant experience out there just now’, while also noting that ‘the price is low for such an experience’. The Independent’s Tracey Macleod calls it ‘clamorous, cramped and exciting’ noting that ‘in a city that thinks it's seen it all, we'll still be queuing for a taste of the New Jerusalem’.
We say: ‘This tiny Israeli eatery punches well above its weight, delivering vibrant flavours and the warmest of welcomes.’

Wormwood

This Mediterranean-meets-North African restaurant in Notting Hill has won praise from The Times's AA Gill, who describes the cooking as ‘radical but thoughtful… accomplished, inventive, emotional’. He elaborates by suggesting it is ‘made with the three graces of food: childhood memory, interpretation and appetite’. Fay Maschler is similarly evocative in her description of the cooking ‘exhibiting restraint and artistry’ and being ‘affectingly classic and proper’.
We say: ‘In short, Wormwood scrubs up beautifully.’