Foxlow Soho restaurant review ★★★★★

With soulful seasonal British food, BYOB nights and some of the best (and cheapest) cocktails this side of the Watford Gap, Foxlow is the local every Londoner wants on her doorstep.

Having won a loyal band of followers in different pockets of the city with thriving restaurants in Clerkenwell, Balham, Stoke Newington and Chiswick, Foxlow has forgone locality for centrality with a new restaurant in the middle of Soho.

And, happily, the easy conviviality isn’t lost in this liveliness of the West End. The interiors of the 120-cover restaurant are a subtle homage to London’s nightlife capital, with a dramatic U-shaped bar, beneath an illuminated canopy, with pops of bright teal.

The warm welcome makes first-time visitors feel like a regulars, and even though we had got the booking details wrong, the staff were patient, smiley and more than happy to find space for us.

The food follows the Foxlow formula of organic, seasonal, flavoursome and simple. Along with the favourite fried chicken with habanero vinegar and succulent steak cuts (all sourced from small British farms), there’s fresh fish and enticing vegan options. The warmly-spiced roasted cauliflower main course is too good to be dismissed by carnivores; order it as a generous side and thank us later.

A brunch menu also runs daily alongside lunch and dinner, there's free corkage (!) on Tuesdays and a weekend roast is either beef with all the trimmings, or chicken pot roast (pictured) with cider braised turnips, parsnips and heritage carrots.

Portions are plentiful and the selection of starters, mains and sides works just as a well as sharing plates for the greedy/impatient. Pudding adds a little wow-factor to the homely simplicity, with an extravagantly spiked and charred baked alaska.

In a city where one martini can easily cost the same as a main course and ‘cheap cocktails’ come in jugs at Wetherspoons, it’s rare to find destination drinks at pre-pay-day prices. So the selection of £6-7 cocktails at Foxlow is a breath of fresh air.

Our waiter Adrian had a nose for an empty glass and top notch recommendations for each refill. First we were dubious that ‘Miami Dolphin’ would be sickly sweet or worse - blue. Actually, it’s a summer in a coupe glass: a fresh, fruity mix of strawberry rum and lime topped with creamy pina colada foam.

We can't wait to become regulars.