Zephyr

Zephyr sits on Portobello Road from the team behind Pachamama, who moved from Peruvian cooking to a modern Greek concept for this one, and the shift suits Notting Hill’s slightly showier end of the dining scene. The room is understated and chic rather than taverna rustic, built around shareable Greek small plates with a London gloss on them, all soft lighting and a look that leans more Mediterranean lounge than village restaurant.

The menu takes a tapas approach to Greek cooking, with outdoor seating that gets busy whenever the weather allows and a wine list that leans into the same modern, slightly aspirational register as the room itself. On Tripadvisor it sits respectably in the middle of London’s enormous restaurant field, praised most often for atmosphere over any single standout dish, and it works well for a group happy to order across several plates rather than one main each.

The recurring criticism, and it’s a legitimate one, is that some reviewers describe it as style over substance, with concerns raised specifically about prices not being listed on the menu, which runs against UK rules on menu pricing. That’s worth knowing before booking rather than discovering at the table, and it’s the kind of detail that colours an otherwise positive write up.

For a relaxed, good looking dinner with a group in Notting Hill, Zephyr does the job reasonably well, and the small plates format suits sharing across a table of four or more. Just ask about pricing up front if it isn’t printed clearly when you sit down, particularly on anything described as market price or similar.

It won’t satisfy anyone chasing a serious, traditional Greek taverna experience, but as a modern, Portobello Road version of the cuisine, it has its audience, and Portobello Road itself makes for a pleasant walk either side of the meal.