If you’d told me that London’s best new restaurant would be perched 25 floors above Old Street, glowing with Mediterranean warmth even on a moody October evening, I’d have politely raised an eyebrow. But then I met Solaya — and suddenly everything made sense.
Opened in September inside the design-driven art’otel London Hoxton, Solaya is already shaping up to be one of London’s best new restaurants, the kind you start recommending to friends before your dessert even lands.
Helmed by Michelin-starred chef Kenny Atkinson, Solaya brings the kind of golden, sun-drenched French Mediterranean cooking that feels like a holiday — without ever leaving East London. And trust me, when we talk about the best restaurants in East London, this one definitely takes a front-row seat.
View from the top: London’s best new restaurant
With a 360-degree circular layout floating high above Hoxton, the restaurant wraps you in panoramic skyline views that stretch from the glitter of the City to the creative sprawl of Shoreditch. Two wraparound balconies — available for hire year-round — make it a top contender among the best views in Shoreditch, whether you’re planning a long lunch or a champagne-fuelled celebration as the city glows beneath you.
Solaya’s elevation isn’t just in its high altitude location, but also in the restaurant’s design and menu. Designed by Digital Space, the interiors are all soft curves, quilted banquettes, plush blue seating, and floor-to-ceiling windows that pour natural light across every table. A backlit wall of wine storage anchors the room — modern, sleek, and glamorous — the kind of place where you instantly sit up straighter without being told to.
A menu by a Michelin-starred maverick
For Michelin-starred chef Kenny Atkinson, Solaya marks his first solo venture in London — a bold, sky-high expansion of his House of Tides and Solstice pedigree. And honestly? You can feel it. This is Atkinson’s signature: effortless sophistication, warm edges, and just plain good.
This is where the “London’s best new restaurant” claim starts to feel justified.
The menu, led day-to-day by Head Chef Nicola Losquadro, leans into sharing plates that evoke coastal afternoons, sunburnt shoulders, and the clink of cold wine glasses. The tuna carpaccio is delicate and glistening while the scallop crudo with heritage tomatoes is a refreshing way to start your meal.
For mains, the bouillabaisse with lobster is rich, aromatic, and deeply nostalgic — the sort of dish that convinces you to close your eyes mid-bite. the grilled seabass smoked olive oil and lemon blend together into a zesty harmony, while the Côte de Boeuf is cooked to perfection— a quiet triumph. If you’re on a quest to find the best restaurants in Shoreditch, these dishes alone justify the pilgrimage skyward.
Cocktails & Golden Hour glow
Solaya also takes its cocktails seriously — delightfully so. The bright, breezy vibe of the space finds its perfect partner at the bar, where the drinks flow as luxuriously as the skyline views. Even better: from 4pm to 8pm every evening, there’s the Golden Hour menu. Yes, you heard that right, at one of London’s best new restaurants.
During Golden Hour, you can enjoy signature serves — like the Soleil Spritz (Orange Wine, Fino Sherry, White Gentian, Mandarin & Ginger Soda), the elegant Le Fizz (Lillet Blanc Vermouth, Orange Marmalade, Beesou Safflower Honey, Telmont Réserve Brut Champagne), the bold Tomatini, and more — all for £10 each. It’s the kind of offer that makes you rethink after-work drinks entirely. Again, it underlines the sense that Solaya isn’t just climbing into the list of the best restaurants in East London — it’s rewriting the playbook for what dining and drinks should feel like.
When Atkinson says Solaya is about “sunshine on a plate”, he isn’t exaggerating. Everything — from the brightness of the flavours to the glow of the room to the rooftop views — is built around warmth, soul, and generosity. It’s rare to see a restaurant arrive so fully formed, so confident in its identity, and so unequivocally ready to sit among the best restaurants in East London.
In our view, Solaya isn’t just one of London’s best new restaurants — it’s one that will redefine what dining in Shoreditch can look like. With its Michelin-starred pedigree, skyline views, and Mediterranean heart, Solaya is poised to become one of the best restaurants in Shoreditch — and quite possibly your new favourite place to watch the sun go down over the city.
A restaurant built around sunlight, flavour, and feeling?
Solaya might just be the London glow-up we’ve been waiting for.
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Why Solaya Is One of London’s Best New Restaurants
Perched 25 floors above Old Street inside the art’otel London Hoxton, Solaya has arrived as one of London’s best new restaurants with complete confidence. Helmed by Michelin-starred chef Kenny Atkinson in his first solo London venture, the menu leans into French Mediterranean sharing plates that evoke coastal warmth and golden afternoons. From delicate tuna carpaccio and scallop crudo to a rich bouillabaisse with lobster and a perfectly cooked Côte de Boeuf, every dish reflects Atkinson’s signature of effortless sophistication with genuine soul. The 360-degree circular dining room, soft curves, quilted banquettes and floor-to-ceiling skyline views make Solaya feel like a holiday in the heart of East London.
Golden Hour, Skyline Views and a Cocktail Bar Worth the Climb
What elevates Solaya beyond a great meal is everything that surrounds it. Two wraparound balconies offer some of the best views in Shoreditch, available year-round for private hire or as a backdrop to a long, sun-drenched lunch. From 4pm to 8pm, the Golden Hour menu offers signature cocktails for just £10 each, including the Soleil Spritz and the effervescent Le Fizz, making after-work drinks here an entirely rethought experience. When Atkinson describes Solaya as sunshine on a plate, the phrase extends to every corner of the room, from the glowing wine wall to the warm Mediterranean flavours to the city stretching out beneath you.
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