Just off Portobello Road, Sova isn't exactly hidden away. In fact, it's right next door to The Notting Hill Bookshop, meaning I had to navigate a queue of tourists waiting to recreate their Julia Roberts moment before I could get through the door.

Flour & Grape make bloody good pasta. I’ve been a number of times now and have never left disappointed. It sits right down at the far end of Bermondsey Street, which has quietly become one of the best food streets in London.

The food at Quality Chop House is rich. Deeply, unapologetically rich. If you go for lunch, as we did, I strongly recommend skipping breakfast and making absolutely no plans for dinner afterwards. I felt full for the next two days.

Much has already been said about Singburi and most of it is true. In its original form in Leytonstone, getting a table was a feat in and of itself. It built up this near-mythical reputation over the years, regularly appearing on lists of the best restaurants in London.

I wouldn’t usually choose somewhere like Nora for Turkish food. In my mind, if you want the best Turkish cooking in London, you go to Green Lanes and you don’t overthink it. That still largely holds true. But Nora offered something slightly different and it’s worth acknowledging that it does it well. A little more polished without losing sight of the flavours that matter.

A couple of Khao Soi spots have begun to appear across London recently, a quiet sign that this northern Thai dish is finally getting the attention it deserves. Known to anyone who has travelled through Chiang Mai or the surrounding region, Khao Soi is a curry noodle soup that is rich and textured. For a recent Friday date night, we decided to see how it translates here in London.

I arrived at Camille tired in that particular way that only fellow teachers can understand, wanting little more than a good glass of wine and somewhere to sit quietly. Camille delivered exactly that.

I had been meaning to go to Belly for some time, though with a degree of suspicion. It had all the markings of a place that photographs beautifully but leaves you disappointed, the kind where style eclipses substance and you find yourself stopping for something else on the way home. BELLY, however thankfully, is not that place.

The thing that really stayed with me about Mountain was the vegetables. I went in expecting to be most impressed by the meat, which is undeniably very good, but it was the vegetable dishes that were exceptional.

For my partner’s birthday, I booked us in for the tasting menu at Angelina. Not to be confused with Osteria Angelina (which I’m still desperate to try), this is where they serve their ‘Kondate’ menu, a Japanese-style tasting menu with Italian influence. And for London, it’s actually pretty reasonably priced.

The tandoori lamb chops at Gymkhana are the best thing I’ve ever eaten. I’m saying that upfront so there’s no confusion. This was the most blowout meal I have ever had - one of our closest friends turning 40 and the rest of us treating her. The kind of evening where you say yes to everything and don’t think too hard about the bill until much later.

A little birthday treat for my partner, we booked in for lunch at OMA. This was before it picked up its Michelin star, but even then it wasn’t easy to get a table which is always a good sign.

Tucked halfway down Bermondsey Street, one of the best food streets in London, Casse-Croûte was the setting for my birthday meal. It’s a small, proper French bistro, with a menu that changes daily and is written up on a chalkboard.

I’ve been to The Tamil Prince a few times now, and it never misses. It was one of the first places we thought to take my partner’s family when they were visiting from China, which says a lot. It’s the kind of restaurant that feels special without being over the top, a desi gastropub with a really well put-together menu.

I have very good friends. The kind of friends who buy you a voucher for Barrafina and not a modest one either. Generous enough that my boyfriend and I could go all in and order exactly what we wanted, without that usual mental tally running in the background.

There is an unassuming restaurant that I almost certainly would have walked past had it not been recommended by a friend. Nestled halfway up Essex Road, it specialises in Ecuadorian food.