The Chef's Table at Core

Why it is on the list

CORE by Clare Smyth opened in North Kensington in August 2017 and was given three Michelin stars in the 2021 guide.¹ The 2026 MICHELIN Guide United Kingdom lists it at three stars.² Both tasting menus are built on named British produce: Scottish langoustine, Cornish brill and Rhug Estate venison on Core Seasons; Isle of Harris scallop, Cornish sea bass and roast Devon duck on Core Classics, with the kitchen's 'Potato and roe' and 'Core-teser'.³ The Chef's Table seats up to ten and looks straight into the kitchen through a sheet of glass.⁴

It is the wrong table for more than ten, or for a party that wants to order separately: everyone at it eats the same tasting menu.⁴⁵ For the same format in Mayfair, the Chef's Table at Hélène Darroze at The Connaught, also three stars, seats up to ten at a pink marble table above the pass.⁶

How to get it

Call +44 20 3937 5086 or write to info@claresmyth.com and ask for the Chef's Table.⁴ The whole table dines from one tasting menu, against a non-refundable deposit of GBP 2,500; the date can be moved up to fourteen days before the visit.⁵ The menus are Core Seasons at GBP 285 a guest and Core Classics at GBP 275, each with a wine pairing at GBP 185; prices include VAT and a discretionary service charge is added.³ How far ahead the table opens is not published: ask info@claresmyth.com when you write.

Small children and babies are not accepted.⁵

Discretion

The table is booked directly with the restaurant by phone or email, for one party of up to ten; a sheet of glass separates it from the kitchen, so the party watches the brigade without sharing the room with it.⁴ The restaurant takes private events through info@claresmyth.com; the price and terms for taking the whole room are not published, so ask there.⁴