Five March

Five March is a seriously exciting new restaurant. Located on Elderslie Street, a stone's throw from Woodlands Road, this unassuming new restaurant has been a word-of-mouth hit since it opened its doors earlier in the year.

The chilli octopus with corn, radish, pink grapefruit and puffed rice, in particular, seems to leave diners compelled to recommend the place, and it only takes one visit to understand why. The menu is short and has serious quality control, with a list of creative small plates using as much seasonal produce as possible accompanied by lots of vegetables. Flavours are well-judged and bold; there is obviously real culinary expertise at work here.

Five March is made all the more charming by the low-key, nothing-to-see here interior; there's little more than a few cacti and some big wooden tables in the place. Being this good and this unprententious at the same time seems almost too cool to be true. And the prices are pretty cool too, with a chunk of the dishes coming in at just £4. The first port of call for comparison would be, whisper it, Ottolenghi himself.

Locals have taken Five March to their hearts, voting it into a couple of winning spots in our 2019 Food & Drink Survey, including Best New Place and Best Lunch and Dinner.