Restaurants opening in London at fastest ever rate

More restaurants are opening in London that at any time in recorded history.

That's the assertion of Harden's London Restaurants, which has listed 200 newcomers in its new edition.

However, the guide has also recorded 76 closures, compared to 56 closures in 2015.

The guide's editor, Peter Harden, warned that oversupply would likely threaten the viability of some restaurants.

He said: "Londoner's are in a true golden age of dining out, as this year's record openings show. But, as many restaurateurs will tell you (and as these figures bear out), competition, heightened by the sheer weight of new restaurants, is increasing and starting to risk an oversupply, as shown by the rising number of closures."

Harden said that East London remained the destination of choice for new operators. Two new openings in the area achieved the guide's top 5/5 rating for"outstanding" value of cooking: Pidgin and Som Saa.

The restaurant ratings in the Harden's Annual Restaurant Survey are based on polls of 7,500 diners. #

The Araki achieved the highest average food rating, while the Ledbury received the highest number of votes for "top gastronomic experience". Meanwhile, Chez Bruce was named Londoner's favourite restaurant for the 12th year running.

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