Singing with your supper

Can't decide whether to go to a gig this evening or treat yourself to a slap-up meal? Why not do both? Hungry music-lovers don't have to settle for a greasy burger from the van parked outside Brixton Academy, or a dainty ice cream at the Royal Opera House any more — they can combine their two passions in one of London's many restaurants with live entertainment.

You can hear arias over the appetisers, guitars while you graze on a steak sandwich, or have a saxophonist jazz up your jam roly-poly. So if you're bored with the barely audible background CDs you get in most dining establishments, here's a selection of the best of the capital's live music eateries

Pizza Express Jazz Club
The venue below the restaurant on Dean Street offers pizza fiends the chance to enjoy the same menu as upstairs while listening to live music.
Famous names who have played here since it opened in the Sixties include Van Morrison, Norah Jones and Amy Winehouse, as well as jazz musicians Ian Shaw and Barb Jungr. We all know and love the pizzas, which include the salsiccia, made with Italian sausage, yellow peppers and red onions (£9.45). Singer and pianist Nicola Emmanuelle will be tickling the ivories on Sunday, and Sophie Garner is performing on 22 April.
10 Dean Street, W1 (020 7437 9595)

Ronnie Scott's
Celebrating its 50th birthday this year, Ronnie Scott's is a jazz bubble in the centre of Soho. It has cosy banquettes where guests can sit and enjoy a drink and a bite to eat while the lady sings the blues. The place had a multi-million-pound makeover in 2007, while the menu has become more sophisticated. Start with grilled squid with a mango and chilli salsa (£6.50) while you toe-tap to laid-back riffs, followed by a stuffed, corn-fed chicken with garlic mousse, sage polenta, sugar snap peas and chicken velouté (£14.50). Natalie Williams is heading three tribute nights celebrating 50 years of Motown from tomorrow until Saturday, and jazz double bass legend Ron Carter is playing from 20 to 22 April.
47 Frith Street, W1 (020 7439 0747)

Bel Canto
This restaurant offers performances of well-known classics from opera-singing students who double as waiters and waitresses, accompanied by a pianist. Buried in the basement of a building in a hard-to-find corner of the City, it is an exhilarating experience having four singers belting out cantatas while you eat. The food is standard French bistro fare: try the beef fillet with dauphinoise potatoes and a port wine glaze, followed by a decadent chocolate moelleux served with violet ice cream. While not exactly cheap — there is only one set menu, £55 for three courses — it is a lot easier on the wallet than a night at the opera.
Mark Lane, EC3 (020 7444 0004)

Bar Music Hall
This place is very Shoreditch, with big open spaces, wooden floors, pink furniture and very hot bands. On one side of the space is a restaurant area serving an informal, New York grill-style menu, including a thyme and basil chicken burger (£7.50) or a spicy chilli beef burger with jalapeños and salsa (£8.50). The other side of the room is a live music venue where recent acts include Björk, Boy George and Florence And The Machine. Electro funk band They Came From The Stars I Saw Them are playing tonight.
134 Curtain Road, EC2(020 7729 72 16)

Old Queen's Head
Sunday is the best live music day at The Old Queen's Head. Roast dinners and pub grub are served while bands and musicians such as Kid Harpoon, The Holloways, Luke Pritchard — The Kooks' lead singer — and Drew McConnell from Babyshambles perform. Try the sirloin steak roast with Yorkshire pudding (£11.50), the chicken burger with spicy cranberry relish and chips (£8.50) or the Welsh leg of lamb served with gravy (£10.50). Not your average run-of-the-mill dingy indie club, this venue is a restored Victorian pub with high ceilings, huge windows and chandeliers, and a decent wine and cocktails list. Comfy, battered old sofas and tables are scattered around upstairs, providing space for people to eat, relax and listen. Indie folk/pop singer Pauline Taylor, who has supported Morcheeba, is playing on
20 April.
44 Essex Road, N1 (020 7354 9993)

Floridita
This restaurant claims to be the largest dining space in London. It's certainly huge and now has a long, inviting cocktail bar running down one side, modelled on the one at the famous El Floridita bar in Havana, Cuba. At the end of the room is a stage where Buena Vista Social Club-type bands flown in from Cuba perform each night, alternating with more home-grown artists — a recent charity event held here saw performances from Eric Clapton, Beth Rowley and The Feeling. The food isn't too authentically Cuban, although the long menu instead offers posh Hispanic-style highlights including a charcoal-grilled lobster (£16.50), mozzarella, aubergine and basil quesadillo with sour cream and salsa cruda (£13.50) or the spit-roast suckling pig (£18.50). Cuban six-piece band La Cuba Ritmo are playing until end of April.
100 Wardour Street, W1 (020 7314 4000)