Old Tom's Bar, Square Mile

10-12 Leadenhall Market, EC3V 1LR

Leadenhall Market is a stunning covered market in the heart of the City of London which I'd somehow managed to ignore for five years until my recent first visit. There are a number of decent boozers in and around the market, not least the Lamb Tavern which claims to have origins dating back to 1780.

But underneath the Lamb lies a cosy little secret named Old Tom. Old Tom's Bar to be precise. This secret den is named after a legendary 19th century goose. This entrepreneurial gander managed to escape slaughter and survived until the grand old age of 38 thanks to the goodwill of the market's traders who fed him and let him roam around. That's my kind of goose, and, appropriately, this is very much my kind of establishment.

On our visit we'd only intended to swing by for a quick drink, but the sight of cheese and charcuterie being generously heaped on to platters behind the bar was too tempting to resist, so we settled in our armchairs for a delicious feast, washed down with some lovely wine.

I'm not in this area much, and when I have been I've always struggled to find somewhere up my street. Old Tom's Bar has most certainly filled that gap.

Cosy rating: 9/10 - gorgeous tiled walls reflect the twinkling candlelight and furniture is characterful and mis-matched.
Secret rating: 7/10 - two of us got a seat with no problem on a Thursday night when other nearby pubs were heaving.
Best bits: Fewer suits than many other local establishments, and very friendly service.
Worst bits: Drinks are a little on the pricey side, but you can't deny they have a classy and varied selection of craft beers and wine.

Nell Gwynne Tavern, Covent Garden

1-2 Bull Inn Court, Strand, London, WC2R 0NP

I recently visited the Adelphi Theatre on the Strand where I was lucky enough to watch Michael Ball and Imelda Staunton perform in Sweeney Todd. During the interval we managed to squeeze in a visit to the Nell Gwynne to knock back a quick glass of plonk.

I can't think of a more apt place to spend 15 minutes mid-way through a Victorian horror story. Located just outside the theatre's stage door, entering this alleyway pub really feels as if you've stepped back in time.

Sadly you're unlikely to get a seat in here most nights as it is absolutely tiny, but I'd very much recommend an interval visit if you are at the Adelphi - much more character (and cheaper!) than the theatre's own bars.

Cosy rating: 8/10 - Dimly lit and full of olde-worlde paraphernalia.
Secret rating: 5/10 - I must have walked past this alleyway hundreds of times over the years, but never spotted the Nell Gwynne. Sadly, plenty of others have done, and even on a Tuesday night it doesn't take much for this pub to fill up.
Best bits: If you do go here during an interval look out for people dressed in black - chances are they are stage hands or musicians from the Adelphi who have also popped in for a quick interval drink, which also explains why groups dressed in black tend to get served first during this brief window.
Worst bits: The lavatories are located down an incredibly steep and narrow staircase.

Tapster, near St James's Park

3 Brewers Green, Buckingham Gate SW1H 0RH

Like many of the other Davy's wine bars in London (and more to feature on this blog soon), Tapster manages to feel rustic and warm despite being located underneath a rather unattractive office block.

This modest underground establishment isn't going to win any awards for uniqueness, but it is a reliable little drinking hole, with lots of little tables, some closed-off private dining areas and a wide range of wines to choose from.

I really like the Davy's chain, and like all of the Davy's bars I've visited so far, Tapster is a great place to kick back and relax after a long day.

Cosy rating: 8/10 - candles, roses, bare bricks and a very nice vibe.
Secret rating: 8/10 - I expect office workers in the area have this gem to themselves on most nights.
Best bits: If you have a Taste Card you get 50% off food for two people Monday - Friday.
Worst bits: A disappointingly small dessert menu.

Joe Allen, Covent Garden

13 Exeter Street, Covent Garden, WC2E 7DT

Who said big places can't be cosy? Well, perhaps no one did, but I'm certainly asserting the opposite with Joe Allen. It's a humongous, cavernous restaurant located entirely underground, and is one of those places you can always rely on for a happy, no-nonsense meal.

You enter via a conspicuous doorway on Exeter Street, and be prepared for a pleasant surprise once you've descended the staircase, for it really is much larger than you might have imagined.

With theatre posters covering every inch of the walls, you cannot escape the fact that you're in the heart of London's West End, and it's the perfect venue for a date.

Cosy rating: 7/10 - nicely lit, and despite the large space it still manages to feel intimate.
Secret rating: 8/10 - The first time I went there I was gobsmacked that I'd never heard of it before - definitely one of London's best kept secrets.
Best bits: A big range of set menu offers, so it won't break the bank.
Worst bits: Service is super speedy and efficient - great for a pre-theatre bite to eat, but not ideal if you're looking for a place to linger.

Image courtesy of J Mark Dodds.

Chimes restaurant, Pimlico

26 Churton Street, Pimlico, SW1V 2LP

Ding dong! Chimes is a no frills British eatery, specialising in all things pie and cider-related. It's located in the bustling heart of Pimlico which in itself is well worth visiting for lots of nice pubs (special shout-out to the fa-beer-lous Cask), a food market during the day and some cute independent shops (including some rather awesome charity ones).

On the Chimes menu you'll find lots of British classics, so this is a good option for any international visitors. We went here with some cider-loving friends who were staying in London and had a great night guzzling the fizzy stuff and chomping on meat and potato-based dishes.

Not hungry? Then grab a seat in the bar area and sample a yummy cider or a glass of wine. Or both, whatever floats your boat!

Cosy rating: 6/10 - a very simple and wooden affair. It's crying out for a few candles, though.
Secret rating: 8/10 - very quiet on a Saturday night, perhaps worryingly so.
Best bits: TasteCard holders will be pleased to know that you get 50% off here, as long as you pre-book over the phone.
Worst bits: Emphasis on 'no frills'. The pies are delicious, but I wish they were shortcrust pastry pies, rather than having a 'lid' of puff pastry on top of a ceramic dish. But that's just my preference.

Photo courtesy of divedart.

Le Garrick restaurant, Covent Garden

10-12 Garrick Street, Covent Garden, WC2E 9BH

This restaurant is soooo cosy. Occupying a prime corner in Covent Garden, Le Garrick looks tiny from the outside with just a few tables squeezed into the ground floor dining area. Here you can sit, eat, drink and watch the world go by.

But it's downstairs where things get pretty special for we connoisseurs of cosiness, with bare bricks and intimate wooden tables, it really oozes glowy warmth.

The owners of Le Garrick - who have been at the helm for just over a year - actually met each other in this very restaurant when she was the manager and he was a regular customer. How lovely!

Cosy rating: 9/10 - candles everywhere, little alcoves in the basement - definitely a fabulous place to go for a date.
Secret rating: 6/10 - certainly not off the beaten track, this one, but underground feels like a world away.
Best bits: They currently accept TasteCard if there are just two of you dining, enabling you to get two meals for the price of one - very reasonable indeed.
Worst bits: Hmm, are there any? I guess without the discount it's not exactly cheap, but they offer set menus at certain times of day.

Swan & Edgar, Marylebone

43 Linhope Street, Marylebone, NW1 6HL

Is it a pub? Is it a restaurant? Is it a library? Who knows, but Swan & Edgar is an absolute gem and fellow book lovers will salivate over this little place before you've even stepped through the door - just look at the frontage above!

I discovered S&E one sunny afternoon while my friend and I had some time to kill before catching a train from Marylebone. Determined to take her somewhere fabulous I whipped out the Qype app (they're not paying me, honest!) and up it popped in the middle of a residential road. Perfect.

Now I didn't sample the food on my visit, and it seems to have not gone down especially well with the critics, but I had a marvellous time sat outside on a sunny afternoon with a big glass of rose wine, gossiping with my friend. Inside is so small, but with books piled high all around you, pretty candles and friendly staff, it felt like I was inside a good novel that I didn't want to put down.

Cosy rating: 8/10 - candlelit at night with books piled high in the little room upstairs, which also has a fireplace for keeping the cold at bay.
Secret rating: 7/10 - I can't imagine you'd walk down this street, unless you were lucky enough to live there.
Best bits: Check out the scrabble tiled floor in the loos.
Worst bits: Ever so small, so do call ahead if you're making a special trip here.

Le Beaujolais wine bar, Covent Garden

25 Litchfield Street, WC2H 9NJ

I was recommended Le Beaujolais by the proprietor of my beloved Val Taro wine bar, before Val Taro closed down. Luciano reckoned that, out of everywhere he knew in central London, Le Beaujolais was probably the closest we would come to recapturing the vibe of his establishment.

I recently ventured to this tiny wine bar for the first time, and although in my heart I knew it would never be able to match Val Taro in terms of cosiness, value and genuine warmth, I would still recommend it as a quirky and individual place to go in the West End for a glass or two of wine after work.

Situated just a few doors down from The Ivy, Le Beaujolais is kooky, quaint and unpretentious, with a small selection of good food and plenty of French characters propping up the bar, which make this place genuinely feel like a slice of Paris in the heart of London. They were also showing the Andy Murray semi final Wimbledon match on a big screen (he was playing a Frenchman, after all), which was an unexpected bonus.

Cosy rating: 7/10 - Emits a moody glow, just like some of my favourite places in the French capital.
Secret rating: 7/10 - I've never stumbled across it, despite the fact that I used to work down the road. You might have to share a table with others, but even if you do you'll probably bag your own before long, as did we.
Best bits: You get the impression this wine bar hasn't changed at all for 40 years or so, as confirmed by the amazingly retro hand dryer in the loo (I'm a bit of a hand dryer nerd...)
Worst bits: £18.50 for a bottle of house plonk? Ooh la la!

The Thomas Guy Club, London Bridge

Plenty more spots like these around every corner

My brother had been going on for ages about how great the Thomas Guy Club bar was on the Kings College campus, just round the corner from London Bridge, but I hadn't been there until tonight. Well, I can honestly say that I am now well and truly enamoured with this place.

Located in a vaulted basement, the bar has tons of seats, and also has a pool table, a telly room, a 'library' and a separate dining area (with loads of really cheap food options - £6.50 for a homemade burger for example).

Now, my brother works for the NHS, which is how he found out about it, but as far as I can make out anyone is allowed in here - you don't have to show any NHS / student ID to get in and it's accessible from Borough High St, but if anyone knows otherwise do feel free to correct me.

Cosy rating: 7/10 - loads of armchairs, sofas, beanbags, corners and bare bricks. Lower lighting would up the rating.

Secret rating: 11/10 - is this actually London's most undiscovered bar? No web presence whatsoever (other than the link above), it was 95% empty on a Thursday night.

Best bits: It's truly labyrinthine in here with loads of bare-bricked rooms, and you really have to make an effort to seek out where to buy a drink.

Worst bits: Very hard to find, so here are some directions: Upon leaving London Bridge station turn left onto Borough High Street. Go down the first alleyway on the left (it's the alleyway where the Old Kings Head pub is). Walk past the pub and directly in front of you is a doorway, which should have a sandwich board outside. Go down the stairs and you've arrived!

Cafe Eterno, Covent Garden

Divine milkshake at Cafe Eterno

At first glance Cafe Eterno appears to be just like any other nice, cute independent cafe in central London, but it's only when you've settled down with your bottomless cup of coffee and start to take in your surroundings that you sense there's just something.....different about the place.

When you discover that the cafe is in fact run by the London City Mission (a Christian charity), the vibrant wall murals, eclectic range of customers and even the name of the cafe itself make a lot more sense.

Religion not your thing? Don't let this put you off - Cafe Eterno provides a friendly escape from the West End crowds outside, and their Christian credentials aren't enforced upon their customers. Settle down on one of their sofas with a book, enjoy the great value food and hot drinks, and appreciate this little slice of tranquil simplicity in the heart of the capital.

Cosy rating: 6/10 - probably the least pretentious cafe you're likely to find in this cobbled corner of Covent Garden.

Secret rating: 4/10 - it gets a fair amount of footfall, but it's likely that many of its customers aren't aware of the cafe's spiritual background.

Best bits: Bottomless cup of coffee for £1.70, really friendly staff (some of whom are volunteers), and awesome, indulgent milkshakes.

Worst bits: The Christian leaflets dotted around may not be to everyone's taste.

The Harp, Covent Garden

Upstairs at The Harp

One of my favourite pubs in central London, The Harp is a hugely popular (and award-winning) drinking establishment. But what I love most about it is the little room upstairs, which not many punters appear to know about (or they just prefer to prop up the bar downstairs).

Stepping into the upstairs seating area is a bit like stepping into your granny's living room, with its pale pink walls, quaint pictures and flowery curtains. It really is a fantastic cosy spot in what is normally such a heaving corner of the city, and the best thing is that it's not trying to be 'kitsch', it just is in the nicest possible way.

The Harp is well-known for its selection of real ales, but another top tip is to try their bargainous sausages - for about three quid you can buy a banger served in a fresh baguette and sizzled to perfection before your eyes behind the bar (but not on Fridays).

Cosy rating: 7/10 - on a recent visit I noticed that they've replaced some of the comfy chairs upstairs with stools in order to squeeze in more seats, but the window table is still there, from where you can spy on the Covent Garden swarms as if in your own front room.
Secret rating: 4/10 - everyone loves The Harp, but if you want to impress someone with your London 'knowledge', enter via the back entrance, accessible from what must be one of the city's narrowest alleyways.
Best bits: The super-speedy service behind the bar, no matter how busy they are.
Worst bits: Upstairs can get a little hot during the warmer months, and the loos are TINY.

The Cork & Bottle, Leicester Square

The Cork & Bottle (image courtesy of HoosierSands)

I miss working in the West End, and The Cork & Bottle is one reason why. It's not unlike Gordon's wine bar on Villiers Street, but the trouble with Gordon's is that, despite its undeniable snugness, it gets so ridiculously busy and it's really hard to get a seat. So instead of highlighting Gordon's, for now I want to share the Cork & Bottle.

It's easy to miss this lovely wine bar, with the side streets of Leicester Square teeming with pizza joints and throbbing bars. But the C&B is a world away from these establishments, and is a great option if you're looking for a welcoming place for a relaxed drink or a nice spot for casual dining.

This is the kind of venue that you can keep up your sleeve for any occasion: dates, a pre/post-theatre bite to eat, after work drinks or lunch with the folks. Grab a table, treat yourself to a glass of bubbly and indulge in a plate loaded with delicious cheese. Lovely.

Cosy rating: 8/10 - It's underground, so plenty of bare bricks and lots of cave-like cubbyholes.
Secret rating: 7/10 - You can normally get a table, or a seat at the friendly bar, but they accept reservations most of the time so never does any harm to book.
Best bits: THE RAISED HAM AND CHEESE PIE. It's honestly one of the best, most mouth-watering slabs of honest food I've ever had the pleasure of eating.
Worst bits: West End prices, but don't let that put you off, it's worth every penny.

The Lady Ottoline, Bloomsbury

Fine dining at the Lady Ottoline

I had been struggling for months to find the perfect venue for a special, cosy 30th birthday meal with my parents and closest friends. So when I was told about The Lady Ottoline gastropub on the edge of Bloomsbury I was chuffed to say the least. 

The Lady Ottoline opened within the last year ago having undergone an extensive refurbishment. It’s located down a quiet street, with a warm bar area downstairs, and two beautiful candlelit dining rooms upstairs. As a party of 10 we had to choose from the set menu, with a selection of four or five choices per course. My pork belly with black pudding croquettes was delicious, and with the majority of the party opting for juicy steaks (with the most incredible and mirror-esque steak knives I had ever seen) we were a very happy bunch.

Service is excellent and smiley, and a surprise birthday cake baked on site by the chef and delivered to our table topped off the evening perfectly.

The Lady Ottoline certainly isn’t the cheapest place to eat or drink, but if you want to go somewhere a bit special, to be charmed and spoiled by the excellent staff, and to relax in what has to be one of the most welcoming and enchanting gastro pubs in London, then I couldn’t recommend it more highly.

Cosy rating: 7/10 - Wonderful candlelit atmosphere and beautiful leather banquettes upstairs, but they'd need to be squidgier for a higher cosy rating...!

Secret rating: 6/10 - it's still relatively new, but is already hugely popular with local office workers, most of whom appear to work for local law firms. Sometimes hard to get a seat downstairs, booking recommended for upstairs.

Best bits: The service is top drawer. 

Worst bits: A little on the pricey side.