A very private function

Dinner parties always sound like fun - until you've struggled with Nigella all night, only to be left wearing the Marigolds when the last guest has gone. But how about this: sitting in a beautiful room, surrounded by your best friends, dining on amazing food and wine, and being waited on hand and foot?

It's not a dream. Many of London's finest restaurants offer this VIP service to all in their private dining rooms. Book in advance and pick your menu for a dinner party with a difference. Here's our selection of London's best.

Luciano
Seats: 10 around one table
Hire charge: none
Best for: intimate party for close friends
The sexily refurbished private room at Marco Pierre White's St James' restaurant is an adult affair, all no-nonsense Italian cuisine and superb wines. Menus, from £42 per person, offer two choices for each course, with the emphasis on classics such as veal cutlet with butter and sage or Parma ham with figs.
72-73 St James' Street SW1 (020 7408 1440, lucianorestaurant.co.uk)

Gordon Ramsay at Claridge's
Seats: private rooms seat 30, 12 and 10
Hire charge: £475 (lunch), £575 (dinner)
Best for: your parents' anniversary
At Gordon Ramsay's restaurant at London's most beautiful hotel, Claridge's, the three private rooms are resplendent and the service is seamless. Multi-course menus (£55 to £110 per person) offer the Ramsay style, and if Gordon's in the kitchen, he'll pop in and say "hello".
Brook Street W1 (020 7499 0099, gordonramsay.com/claridges)

Zuma
Seats: one room 12, the other 14
Hire charge: none, but a minimum spend of £700 and £900 is required
Best for: a very special birthday
These traditional Kotatsu rooms provide tranquility at this otherwise kicking Knightsbridge Japanese restaurant. Here, behind bamboo screens, guests sit at sunken tables after removing their shoes. Choose from five set menus from £50 per person, or splash out on head chef Rainer Becker's superb tasting menu for £96.
5 Raphael Street SW7 (020 7584 1010, zumarestaurant.com)

Tom's Kitchen
Seats: 22 maximum
Hire charge: none, but minimum spend of £1,000 (lunch) and £2,000 (dinner)
Best for: blowing your City bonus
The well-heeled gentleman dines at snazzy restaurant Tom Aikens, but he'll nip down to Tom's Kitchen to relax. Hearty menus (£30 to £80 per person) offer sirloin steak and big chips with béarnaise, or sea bass with red pepper relish.
27 Cale Street SW3 (020 7349 0202, tomskitchen.co.uk)

Le Cercle
Seats: 12
Hire charge: none, but an £80 minimum per head (including wine)
Best for: a chic gourmet soirée
Here at this basement French brasserie there's a gem of a private room on the mezzanine level, where the glass balcony overlooks the main restaurant. Choose from chef Thierry Beyris's grazing menu or the three-course wine-pairing dinner.
For spring, there's French seasonal produce in garden peas cream, truffles aroma, piquillos emulsion (£4.50) or fillet of beef, girolles mushrooms and broad beans (£15.50).
1 Wilbraham Place SW1 (020 7901 9999)

The Balcony, Galvin at Windows
Seats: up to 18
Hire charge: a mere £1,500
Best for: that extra "wow"
Both the 28th-floor view and chef André Garrett's modern French haute cuisine are breathtaking. Lunch from £29pp; dinner from £58pp.
London Hilton On Park Lane, 22 Park Lane W1 (020 7208 4021)

Odette's
Seats: 8
Hire charge: none
Best for: an engagement party
The new-look Odette's, with Bryn Williams of TV's Great British Menu in the kitchen, is a Primrose Hill hit. From £21.95 per person at lunch, to £60 per person for a tasting menu.
130 Regent's Park Road NW1 (020 7586 8569)