How to Get Featured in the Food Press

A single review in the right London publication can fill a restaurant for months. A mention in Time Out's "Best New Restaurants" list shifts booking patterns within days. An Evening Standard star rating from Jimi Famurewa or Grace Dent affects the postcode's perception of a venue for years. London is one of the few cities in the world where food press still moves the needle on bookings, and the restaurants that understand how to work with the press get a marketing channel that paid advertising cannot replicate.

This post covers how to get coverage in London's food press: who matters, what they want, and how to approach them without irritating the editors who decide your fate.

The publications that move bookings

Not all coverage is equal. The publications that meaningfully shift bookings for a London restaurant are a smaller list than most operators assume.

The titles that count: Evening Standard (Grace Dent's Friday review, Jimi Famurewa's reviews, the Going Out section). Time Out London (the Best New Restaurants list, the cuisine-specific guides, the neighbourhood guides). The Guardian (Grace Dent's reviews, Jay Rayner historically though now post-Observer). The Telegraph (William Sitwell). The Times (Giles Coren and Charlotte Ivers). The Observer (Jay Rayner's successor, currently Jimi Famurewa cross-publishing). And among the magazines, Tatler for high-end coverage, Square Mile and Mr Hyde for the City and West End, and Hot Dinners for industry credibility.

Below the top tier, the second tier still matters: The Infatuation, Eater London (now wound down but with archived authority), Code Hospitality, BigHospitality, MagicDoor for fine dining, Resy's editorial team, and a small number of specialist Substacks that have built genuine London food audiences. Influencer accounts on Instagram and TikTok are increasingly part of the same ecosystem and are covered separately in our influencer marketing post.

Below the second tier, coverage exists but produces little measurable booking impact. A mention in a generic "10 best restaurants in Soho" listicle on a content farm site will not fill your tables.

What food editors actually want

Food editors and critics are looking for a story that can be written about, not for marketing collateral they can republish. The story is what makes their piece interesting to readers and worth their time to write.

The kinds of stories that get coverage: a chef with an unusual background opening their first solo venue, a restaurant doing something genuinely new with a cuisine, a regional cooking style being introduced to London for the first time, a controversial pricing model, a closure-and-comeback narrative, a relocation that changes the offer, a long-running family business hitting a milestone year, a sustainability angle that is real rather than greenwashed, a famous backer or owner, a building with a historical story, an unusual ingredient sourcing arrangement.

Stories that do not get coverage: another modern European restaurant in central London, another casual pasta concept, another small-plates spot, another natural wine bar, opening week as a story (always a story for a small publication, never for the major ones), and "we got a new chef" if the chef is not someone the editor already follows.

Be honest about whether your venue has a story. Most do not. Some venues have a smaller story (a head chef from a notable kitchen, a particular dish that is unusual) that can be the angle for a smaller piece.

The press release that gets opened

Most restaurant press releases are written for a different era of journalism. They run to two pages, lead with adjectives, bury the news in paragraph four, and assume the editor will read to the end. They will not.

A press release that gets opened in 2026 has: a clear two-line summary at the top stating exactly what is new, when it is happening, and where it is. A high-resolution photo or two attached or linked, not embedded. A bullet list of the actual story angles available (the "stories within the story" the editor can write about). The chef or owner's name and one-paragraph bio. Practical details: opening date, address, opening hours, price range, booking link. A direct mobile number for the founder or the PR person handling the venue.

Length: under 400 words. If the editor wants more, they will ask. Make them ask.

Building relationships before you need them

The biggest lever for restaurant PR is relationships built before you need coverage. This is unglamorous, slow work, and it pays back significantly when the venue has news.

The mechanics: identify the 15 to 20 journalists, editors, and influencers who cover the kind of food you do in the area you operate. Follow them on Instagram. Read their work. Engage with their content thoughtfully and rarely (one comment a fortnight, not three a day). Send them small, personal communications when relevant: an invitation to a chef's table you are doing as a private event, a note on a piece they wrote that you found interesting, an introduction when a new chef joins the team.

The temptation is to skip this and just send a press release when you need coverage. It does not work. Editors get hundreds of emails a week. The ones they read are from people they recognise.

Press dinners and previews

A pre-opening or post-opening press dinner is a standard tactic. Done well, it can land 5 to 10 pieces of coverage from a single evening. Done badly, it produces nothing and burns relationships.

The mechanics that work: invite 8 to 12 people, not 30. Pick people who are likely to actually come and write. Choose a Tuesday or Wednesday evening, not a weekend. Run the menu as a tasting with explanation, not a free-for-all. The chef should speak briefly at the start about the venue's story. Drinks should match the menu rather than being a free bar. After the dinner, send a follow-up email with the photos and key facts within 48 hours. Do not ask "will you be writing about us?" in that email. The follow-up is a thank you with assets attached, nothing more.

The mistake most venues make is treating the press dinner as an event marketing problem rather than a journalism problem. The point is to give the writers the experience they need to write something true, not to dazzle them.

When to use a PR agency

PR agencies cost £2,500 to £8,000 per month for a London restaurant retainer. The good ones are worth it. The bad ones are an expensive way to send the same press release a small operator could send themselves.

Hire an agency when: you have a venue with a real story, you have a 6 to 12 month launch window where consistent press matters, you have an in-house team that cannot manage press relationships, or you are opening multiple sites and need scaled coverage. Skip the agency when: your venue is straightforward, your press needs are around one launch event and ad-hoc coverage afterwards, or your budget is better spent on content production.

The best signal of a good PR agency is the ability to name 10 critics and editors they have worked with personally and to give an honest read on which would write about your venue and which would not. Generalist agencies cannot do this. Specialist hospitality agencies can.

The realistic cycle

Expect 3 to 6 months from a serious PR push to consistent coverage. The first two pieces are the hardest. Once two London publications have covered a venue, the third and fourth come faster.

If you would like a hand mapping out a PR-supported marketing programme, Byter's hospitality marketing service works with London restaurants on the full marketing mix and can introduce specialist PR partners where needed.

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