Top Fives: Eighties Survivors

Despite appearing in the London Restaurant Menu Guide 1983, the following eschewed the temptations of putting Pepsi and Shirley in headbands on their menus. As a result, they managed to survive the 1980s with their customer base - and their dignity relatively intact.

1. Pomegranates

Patrick Gwynn-Jones has wafted his avuncular presence over these dim and eccentric basement premises since time immemorial. A pioneer in its day - don't mock - with a menu featuring previously unheard-of satays, koftas, curried goat and, ooh, even coriander.
94 Grosvenor Road SW1. Tel: 020 7828 6560. Tube: Pimlico

2. Rowleys

A former butcher's shop - complete with the gorgeous original tile work - often packed with pinstripes. Simple, unfussed-with food is the winning formula, including an exemplary steak frites with addictive herb butter.
113 Jermyn Street SW1. Tel: 020 7930 2707. Tube: Piccadilly Circus

3. Odette's

Twinkling mirrors add to a famously romantic setting, solicitous staff minister without intruding, a gently evolving menu keeps up to date without frightening the horses. What's to fix?
130 Regents Park Road NW1. Tel: 020 7586 5486. Tube: Chalk Farm

4. Dan's

Slightly camp little longtimer with a divinely pretty back garden for summer months, this is a favourite with Chelsea's dowagers and ladies who lunch, drawn in by a menu that manages to be both luxurious and light.
119 Sydney Street SW3. Tel: 020 7352 2718. Tube: South Kensington

5. Brasserie St Quentin

Recently re-acquired by one of its original owners, this Knightsbridge classic has the old-school lot: classic brasserie menu, tinted mirrors, chandeliers, lugubriously French waiters and pleasantly retro prices.
243 Brompton Road SW3. Tel: 020 7589 8005. Tube: South Kensington