HOT: Wahaca, 66 Chandos Place, Covent Garden WC2N 4HG

I was in dire straits - my last day in London was rapidly slipping away from me, the National Dining Rooms didn't serve afternoon tea until 3pm and I needed to be in Kensington Church Street for my haircut at 3:30. Circling around Trafalgar Square aimlessly, I suddenly had an inspired idea.

Tranzie and Huy had both raved about Wahaca to me before, but I had developed a hatred for their no reservations policy which had meant that I'd been thwarted from eating there twice before. However, no queues at 2pm on a Wednesday!

Given the number of times I'd been turned away after encountering long queues, I was really surprised by the size of the underground dining room. 'They must be doing something really right' I thought to myself, as I settled into a simple wooden table backed onto a brightly coloured wall.

The menu placemat contained a wide choice of slightly unfamiliar takes on familiar Mexican dishes. In the interests of research, I chose three street food dishes (ranging from 3.50-4.00 each) which my waiter assured me would be 'more than enough' with a disbelieving glance. The pork pibil fillings wrapped in small soft corn tacos were nice, but only became really special when slathered with hot chipotle salsa. Same with the slightly bland chicken quesadillas. The really outstanding dish were the nopalitos tostadas - fresh, light and tangy ingredients contained in crisp corn shells. Next time I would definitely just have variations of the tostadas and nothing else.

NOT: The Avenue, 7 - 9 St. James's Street, Mayfair SW1A 1EE

Another benefit of unemployment is the freedom to take a leisurely 3 course lunch on a weekday. Thanks to Toptable, I was able to redeem my points for a free lunch at The Avenue, a relaxing, light-filled restaurant catering for the pinstripe-suited workers of Mayfair.

I don't know whether I chose badly, but the food ranged from so-so to bad. My entree was a crab salad with avocado and marie rose. The chopped baby cos, bland crab and tasteless chunks of avocado were ok, and I now know that marie rose is in fact a fancy name for something that looks like thousand island dressing.

My main was a rabbit and ham hock pie with buttered carrots. I know rabbit and ham hock are recession-friendly ingredients, but I've had rabbit before where it has been as delicately flavoured as chicken. On the other hand, this pie was a steaming mass of heavy, gamey odours and filled with unappetising shreds of offcuts. I didn't finish it.

My Devon custard tart with blackcurrant sauce was nice, but unremarkable. The kind of sliced cake you'd get at your bog-standard suburban cafe.

Luckily I only had to pay for my peppermint tea (to aid digestion). Given the other fabulous restaurants on the street, I'd give The Avenue a miss.

HOT: Petersham Nurseries Restaurant, Off Petersham Road, Richmond TW10 7AG

I thought I'd done with Chiswick forever, so I was frustrated when I discovered that I'd have to schlep out there again, on my precious weekend, to rescue a blue skirt that I'd abandoned at the dry cleaners.

But in a Pollyanna moment of inspiration, I decided I'd make a fun trip of it and head out to Petersham Nurseries for lunch. It's a tube/train to Richmond, and then a short bus ride, but the trip is quite pleasant as the hectic density of Central London transforms into the villagey Richmond high street and then the bucolic fields and winding Thames, where the birds twitter and the air smells fresher.

The restaurant is an extension of the delightful shop and is located inside one of the large greenhouses, which gives it a sense of alfresco dining even in the depths of winter. It was gasp-inducing in its beauty - a dirt floor combined with rustic French country chic, with a dash of the subcontinent in the Indian hangings and bamboo mats slung on the walls and the ceiling. The table decorations were simply a pot of fragrant herbs and a dusky pomegranate or bright lemon, and on the sideboard was an antique Salter scale loaded with an abundance of freshly picked clementines.

And the food was absolutely incredible. Given the expensive menu, I had originally resolved to only have two courses, but that was quickly thrown aside. My starter of Dorset crab and white polenta was a meagre description for the inspired pairing of flavours and textures. As slowly as I could, I savoured the light summery flakes of crab and lemon zest melding into the warming winter comfort of the polenta. Next up was a crispy skinned and juicy guinea fowl, balanced with a pat of anchovy butter and some lightly charred Treviso radicchio. Dessert was a barely baked blood orange tart, oozing bright citrus flavours.

I was so impressed by the setting and the quality of the food that I felt I compelled to have a word with the Australian chef, Skye Gyngell. She must get gushing foodies coming to her all the time (she's written a couple of books and writes a column in the Independent on Sundays) but I hope she understood the depth of my appreciation. I told her that it was my last weekend in London, and in my two years it was one of the best meals I'd ever had. A special memory to take home with me.

PS If you want to visit Petersham Nurseries, you'd better go soon, as it may not be able to continue as it is for much longer. They are currently applying for permanent planning permission with Richmond City Council. To support their application, click here.

HOT: Duke of Sussex, 75 South Parade, Chiswick W4 5LF

It's a shame that it was only two days before the end of my job that we discovered the nearby gastropub, the Duke of Sussex. It would be a perfect summer venue, as the front faces Acton Green, and the back contains a greenery filled beer garden. In winter it's still lovely, as the dining room has been beautifully refurbished with crystal chandeliers hanging from the high carved ceiling.

The menu is reasonably priced and unexpectedly veers between traditional English pub grub and Spanish dishes. My seafood paella (12 pounds), individually served in its own small paella pan, was full of lively flavours, and the vanilla cheesecake with pomegranate and blood orange (5 pounds) was a deceptively light cake which felled me about an hour later. With our Chiswick Park One Card we got an extra 20% off the total bill, leaving everyone a happy camper.

HOT: The Warrington, 93 Warrington Crescent, Maida Vale W9 1EH

You'd better hope that the Warrington was a HOT, given that I was going to be eating there three times in the next week.

The stunning Gordon Ramsay gastropub has been beautifully restored, with gleaming carved pillars, brightly coloured mosaic-tiled entrance and a dark wooden interior. The sedate cream and beige dining room upstairs was more Modern British, like its menu. We had the 2 course special for £15 from the Times, and my thick pumpkin soup and enormous chicken pie with mash were very good. Everyone agreed that all the dishes were well executed and to cap it off, served with friendliness. It was a perfect venue for a cosy Monday night dinner with friends.

HOT: The Double Club, 7 Torrens Street Islington EC1V 1NQ

I love the tagline for the Double Club, a temporary bar, restaurant and disco designed by Carston Holler; 'where the Congo meets the West, and the West meets the Congo'. Not only that, but as the brightest new thing on the temporary pop-up venue firmanent, it felt like the United Nations. The crowd ranged from blond highlighted Sloanes, glamorous towering Africans a la Grace Jones, awkward buttoned-down white men jigging awkwardly from foot to foot, trendy malnutritioned art-students, and then us - Asian lawyers + Anglo-Saxon lawyers.

Everything in The Double Club is....double. The decor is part Congolese (giraffe print stone walls, African tiling) and part Western (original Andy Warhols on the wall). The menu has Congolese dishes on one side, Western dishes on the other. We tried everything on the Congolese menu and while it wasn't bad, it wasn't something I'd be rushing to try again. Let's just say everything was stew and spinach and it cost 26 pounds. The disco normally switches between the happy lingawa to Western techno, although on Saturday night they had a live Congolese act which got the whole crowd bouncing and waving their arms in happy abandonment.

HOT: J Sheekey, 28-32 St. Martins Court, Covent Garden WC2N 4AL

Martin's favourite London restaurant is the old school seafood institution, J Sheekey. The building is split into two - the dark wood dining room, hung with many black and white photos of theatre luminaries who have eaten there, and the Oyster Bar, very Parisian with its black and white tiles and brass railings. We ate in the dining room, but in future I will request a table in the Oyster Bar.

On the weekend it has a good value 3 course menu for 24.50 with Julia Childs' style comfort food. Martin and I experienced the opposite ends of the seafood spectrum. I went for a creamy potato and smoked haddock soup, following by another creamy and buttery fish pie. Martin tried the light potted salmon with toast, and then a small fillet of plaice with shrimps. We both ended with two scoops of chocolatey ice-cream. Not the best food in the world, but a nice place for good solid food.

HOT: deVille Restaurant, Mandeville Hotel, Mandeville Place, Marylebone W1U 2BE

Dinner at deVille Restaurant, at the fashionable Mandeville Hotel, marked the beginning of farewells with my London friends (sob). Being a secluded hotel restaurant, it was pretty empty on a Tuesday night, but I cannot recommend this place highly enough.

The glamorous decor was a plush grey with hints of plum reflecting off with mirrors. The service was welcoming and attentive, but not obstrusive. The bread was delicious, they didn't sneer at tap water nor when we ordered to fantastic value three course menu at £15.50. Every dish was carefully presented with delicate flavours, from our thinly sliced tea smoked duck and orange salad, the pork cutlets with mash, and the crowning glory of a bread and butter pudding (chocolate fondant for Riya). At full price, it was wonderful. At half price, thanks to Taste London, it was a miracle. The whole meal, including service, was £8.72 a head.

NOT: River Cafe, Thames Wharf, Rainville Road, Hammersmith W6 9HA

The famous River Cafe is a London institution probably because (a) it's not cheap (b) it's hard to get a booking; and (c) it's inconvenient to get to via public transport.

The light and airy restaurant has floor to ceiling windows with views of the murky Thames but why the cobalt blue carpet? That and the long dining room reminded me a bit of a cruise ship.

The Italian food was generally of a high quality and flavoursome. Everyone else loved their dishes, although personally I thought my spinach tagliatelle didn't have enough of an al dente bite and the scallops in my main dish were definitely overcooked and rubbery. The chococlate nemesis was an amazing chocolate cake, almost like a baked chocolate mouse in its pillowy softness. Service was ok and unremarkable.

So the question I keep coming back to is "was it worth it?". I liked it, but at £65 for 3 courses and a prosecco cocktail, I needed to love it. Besides the cache of name-checking such a famous place, I think I enjoyed my food and surroundings equally at Dehesa the day before, at less than half the price. The fact I could think of many other (recession friendly, easily accessible) restaurants I'd rather go to before this one makes me conclude it as a NOT. Controversial, I know.

HOT: Dehesa 25 Ganton Street Soho W1F 9BP

Every telephone encounter I've had with Dehesa has always been prompt and friendly, so I already had happy expectations when I met up with Huy, Michael and Brek for Brek's faux-farewell. Lunch at this warmly welcoming leather-and-wood restaurant was reasonably priced (£25 a head, but it I didn't need dinner that night), consistently delicious and marked by supremely smiling service by an attractive waiter with twinkling blue eyes.

My prodigious appetite managed to work through most of the imaginative tapas menu, with stand out items being the delicately fried courgette flowers stuffed with goats cheese, tender pink wood pigeon with soft polenta and the soft chocolate cake.

HOT: L'Autre Pied, 5-7 Blandford Street, Marylebone W1U 3DB

Firstly, I'm uncertain as to why this restaurant was a runner up for Time Out's best design award. The winner of that award, Sake No Hana, is streaks ahead in the innovation and 'wow' factor of its fit out. On the other hand (or should I say, other foot - haha) L'Autre Pied reminded me of a twee suburban restaurant, with its pastel green floral walls (even if some flowers were etched on glass), all-glass street level frontage, low ceilings and awkwardly closed in quarters. The only design feature I remember is that the toilets smelled really nice.

Never mind, to the food. Now that I'm a self-appointed semi-professional food critic, attending one famed restaurant to another famed restaurant night after night, it's much easier for me to make rapid-fire comparisons. And L'Autre Pied does its work boldly, creatively and with innovative presentation, with no weird flavours. In particular, its puffball bombe was a perfect wintery marriage of meringue, mulled fruits and red wine.

Not cheap (55 pounds for 3 courses) but worth trying for its beautiful food.

NOT: Galvin at Windows, London Hilton, Park Lane 22 Park Lane W1K 1BE

A difficult choice for HOT or NOT, but here goes....

The panoramic views over London's glamorous lights are pretty spectacular from the 28th floor of the London Hilton. This alone should make it a HOT, as it's the perfect date or international guest venue. Unfortunately, we were seated at the inner section of the restaurant, which, while elevated, had the view blocked by an unnecessary decorative bannister.

But mostly what drives this to a NOT was the food. Basically, it was weird. The wrong side of avant garde. I'm all for unusual tastes and presentations, but the over-accessorised pork belly with lentils, cabbage, clams and pork cheek was a case in point. Frankly, the best things were the homemade marshmallows (although one of them was the yucky liquorice flavour they kept using). At normal price (58 pounds for 3 courses) I can think of a lot of restaurants which I'd recommend over this one. Luckily, on Toptable at the moment it's 50% off.

HOT: Momo, 27 Heddon Street Mayfair W1B 4BH

The challenge with pre-theatre dining is to find somewhere cheap, quick and good. The smaller tea house section of Mourad Mazouz's famously expensive restaurant Momo ticks all those boxes, as well as having a beautifully twinkly Middle Eastern interior. Initially Huy battled against my choice (calling the restaurant a NOT filled with a couple of tacky cushions and some haphazard lanterns) but luckily Tina and Michael backed me up, as we all (yes even Huy) had a very enjoyable meal cosied up on the low stools and digging into the seemingly endless stream of hot and cold mezze and mint tea - all for 15 pounds each.

NOT: Princi, 135 Wardour Street, Soho W1F 0UT

Bringing the Milanese bakery Princi to London is the new project for master restauranteur Alan Yau, so it was immediately on my to-do list. The clientele seemed to consist of mainly Chinese and Italians, which is a reliable indicator that the cakes are good and the coffee is good. My nice, not great, but very photogenic profiteroles were little balls of choux pastry with an unexpected cream-cheese-like filling and a light flaky biscuit base. The service was smiling and friendly.

However, sadly this bakery gets an overall NOT. The uninspiring beige stone walls reminded me of the kind of decor you find in cafes at the bottom of office buildings. The Sunday crowds were stressful, all jostling at the counter, at the standing area, at the seats. It felt like there were a million people lumbering around with their coats, hats, scarves and shopping bags and bellowing loudly across the communal tables or the high benches facing a strange water feature -basically a row of taps pouring out constant flow of water into a trough. This made a drought-conscious water-saving Australian like me really nervous. For such a busy eatery, they had only three toilets - men, women and disabled (although I have no idea how anyone in a wheelchair would be able to navigate the scrum). I also don't think you'd have any luck trying to maintain your composure if you were lining up for the loos while watching and listening to that water feature.

So, I'd give Princi another go but only on the condition that it was on a weekday morning, and I'd try some of the hot food and sandwiches instead of the cakes. Maybe I'll do a comparison when I got to Milan.

HOT: Tamarind, 20-22 Queen St, Mayfair W1J 5PR

Tamarind is a discreet high end Indian restaurant in Mayfair which is best experienced on a Sunday. You can go a la carte, but I think you're better off with the Sunday tasting menu, which is a huge selection of the most popular a la carte dishes for 28.95 (and currently with Toptable, it's 2 for 1). Mike, Berangere and I started off with a canter through a crunchy chickpea salad, a delicately fried potato cake and a moist tilapia fillet with a perfect mint and coriander chutney. Then a full gallop into tandoori grilled chicken, simmered lamb (the least successful dish), dahl, two sorts of vegetable curry, rice and roti. We ended with a slow trot for the surprisingly good dessert of poached cheese dumplings with saffron flavoured milk, and an unusual palate cleanser of fresh mint leaves covered in white chocolate.

HOT: Wild Honey, 12 George St W1S 2FB

Another day, another Time Out Top 50 Restaurant. Wild Honey certainly lived up to its Top 50 rating, with its sedate wooden interior (reminiscent of an old courthouse) split up into private booths, large comfortable chairs, friendly service, good value dishes (including the 16.95 three course lunch menu which some of our party ordered) and Modern British food done very well. Make sure you don't miss the scrumptious white sourdough! I'm normally a good girl and choose brown bread, but I couldn't pass up the white bread this time - I don't know what butter or salt they used, but it was some of the best bread I've ever tasted. My venison pie was essentially a fancy shepherds pie, and perfect for a cold winter's day, while my chocolate soup was a very flat moulleux, again post-prandial-inducing. A lovely way to spend a Saturday afternoon, and soooo much more enjoyable than its sister restaurant Arbutus.

NOT: L'Atelier de Joel Rubochon, 13-15 West Street, Soho

If a dining experience was purely about the food, then I can safely say the dishes coming out of this restaurant's colourful open-racked kitchen were delicious and deftly presented. However, we all know that dining out isn't just about the food (although I don't often make a rabbit terrine or lobster risotto at home) and several things failed me at L'Atelier de Joel Rubochon.

• The decor. It immediately put me to mind of an expensive black patent leather Louboutin pump with a crimson sole. Quite disturbing to feel like I was eating inside a shoe.


• The stilted layout. Lots of dark corridors, lots of stairs, lots of mysterious corners and doors and a lift. A bit claustrophic (see above re shoe).


• The high chairs. The bar area is where all the action is at, but sitting high up on leather stools doesn't make a relaxing dining experience.


• The recession-unfriendly prices. Vanessa and I had the pre-theatre 3 course menu for a reasonable 25 pounds. However, a peek at the a la carte revealed 15-20 pounds for entrees, and 25-30 for mains. The degustation was 105 pounds! For that price, there are many other restaurants I would recommend before this one.


• The snooty service. We were offered the a la carte menu, and when we asked for the pre-theatre menu there was a marked difference in friendliness. Come on people, there's a recession on. And then when I asked for tap water? Just because it's not on the drinks menu doesn't mean it's not ok to drink!

HOT: Bistrotheque, 23-27 Wadeson Street, Bethnal Green E2 9DR

It took me four trains to get there, I remained underground for almost half the time it would take me to get from London to Paris, and the restaurant's unforgiving white brick interior and naked light bulbs reminded me of a hospital ward.

Huy had been concerned that I would cut down his favourite restaurant with one slash of my biting critique, but he needn't have worried - I had a great dinner at Bistrotheque. The food in the good value Prix Fixe Menu (17.50) was uniformly excellent and well presented: fresh warm breadrolls with a brulee-crisp crustiness (worth breaking your no-carbs-after-6pm rule, Huy), succulent fried squid with aioli, white polenta piled with wild mushrooms, rocket and parmesan, and to finish off, a large slab of dark chocolate tart with my all-time favourite ice cream flavour, hazelnut.

HOT: Mr Jerk, 187 Wardour Street, Soho W1F 8ZB

I don't know why English pub food never developed down the chilli route over the centuries. If I had to choose between bland stodge and spicy stodge as a winter warmer, it would always be an easy decision. The signature dish from the Original Mr Jerk was an enormous plate of spicy jerk chicken served with salad and a choice of rice and peas, plain rice or hard food (boiled yam, banana, dumpling and sweet potato). Along with a sweet guanabana juice, it made for a stomach-stuffing and cheap meal (12 pounds). In fact, I think I'm going to track down a bottle of jerk sauce, as I believe any meat would taste better with it!

HOT: York and Albany, 127-129 Parkway, Camden NW1 7PS

We heart Angela Hartnett, so despite sickness, freezing cold and gusting rain, we decided to make a Sunday lunch pilgrimage to her new restaurant at the Gordon Ramsay hotel, York and Albany.

In general, the experience was a HOT. The 3 course Sunday lunch was 20.55, the service was good and the food was of a high standard. My home smoked salmon with beetroot and horseradish was a delightful trompe d'oeil of red salmon, my juicy sea bass was perfectly cooked with shrimp sauce, and the rustic apple and blackberry crumble came with some lovely vanilla icecream.

However, to ensure that your experience remains a HOT, do not do the following things:

• ask for lemon and water for your sore throat. It'll cost you 2.45 because it's considered 'tea' (and even if 3 pieces of lemon peel and hot water were considered tea on some other planet, that's exorbitant for a cup of tea).
  
• order the cod with curry sauce. In fact, according to Huy, never order any curry flavoured fish dish, except if it's fish curry.
  
• sit at a table downstairs, particularly facing the open kitchen. Upstairs is airy and light, whereas downstairs is like being inside a throbbing red velvet cauldron. If you sit directly across from the kitchen, you also experience the chef yelling at his staff - not a relaxing dining ambience.