Our selection of private dining experiences across Camden borough

Just around the corner from West Hampstead Underground station, the Gallery is our top pick for a laidback Camden private dining experience. The main bar at ground level is the definition of cosy and intimate, with a gallery overlooking the bar and a wall of vinyl records. For private dining and celebrations, the best space is the basement bar.

The basement is all wooden timber frames, exposed brick, whitewashed walls, an overspill of vinyl on shelves, and candles on tables like some type of pagan ritual is happening and we love it. The basement comes with its own bar so it is the ideal place for a private party.

The Gallery does great cocktails, whiskies, wines, and all the drinking food you could ever desire: fried chicken, Padron peppers, and juicy burgers but it’s the fried chicken & waffles that steal the show.

In short, the Gallery has a great ambience and choice tunes, and it’s a great bar & restaurant for a little shindig of a celebration.

Terra, meaning ‘earth’, feels aptly named. Found in leafy green South Hampstead, the Italian restaurant’s organic design use of earth tones culminates in the ivy-covered terrace that evokes a botanical garden.

Terra Terra offers its terrace for private hire as well as a private dining room known as the Wine Room that is as simple and elegant as the rest of the restaurant. The Wine Room can accommodate 35 seated guests and 45 standing, and the terrace can accommodate 65 seated and 70 standing.

Terra Terra offers set menus ranging from £35 to £69 per person but can create custom menus to accommodate different events and budgets. The Italian fare is seasonal and earthy, once again playing into the restaurant's name. From spunciotti (pre-meal nibbles) and cicchetti (small plates) to handmade pasta and cheeseboards and charcuterie, Terra Terra offers one of our top-pick Camden private dining experiences.

Taking its name from its neighbourhood of King’s Cross, the Cross is many things – a restaurant, cocktail bar, lounge, exhibition space, events venue, and more across its six storeys. Sophisticated, ultra-contemporary, and very Instagrammable.

The first-floor restaurant, Wild, is available for exclusive private dining from Friday to Sunday and has a capacity of 50 seated and 100 standing. The seasonal menu uses the finest sourced ingredients and has a Mediterranean flavour and a penchant for small and sharing plates.

Between the music, the ambience, and menu, and the types of nights hosted at the Cross, it’s like a little piece of Ibiza brought to London – fairly relaxed and civilised up to a certain hour after which the plates are cleared and the Cross raves late into the night with its electronic and dance soundtrack.

The only reason we’d walk through the insanely busy high street of Camden Town would be to escape inside the Farrier. It looks like it belongs somewhere out in the country rather than near one of London’s busiest high streets. It’s spacious, inviting and an absolute respite with its rustic decor.

The Farrier’s menu focuses on elevated farmhouse or country classics, hearty and rustic, with a touch of refinement in the presentation. Expect seasonal ingredients that marry the British countryside with the sea and don’t forget to be indulgent in your selection of the Farrier’s fine, fine wine cellar.

The Farrier’s dining room is available for semi-private hire and can accommodate 70 seated guests and 100 for a reception. Whether you have a celebration that requires a book out of the dining room, or you want to celebrate a birthday with a Sunday Roast dinner, regardless of the occasion, the Farrier is a welcome escape from the hectic Camden High Street.

Decimo restaurant, found in the chic Standard Hotel, offers a semi-private dining room with views that are anything but standard – floor-to-ceiling windows that look out onto the London skyline.

Decimo’s private dining room can accommodate up to 38 guests for a meal and 50 for a canapé reception, and accommodate several set-ups and layouts. Hire of the room comes with private bar service and Chef Peter Sanchez-Iglesias’s critically acclaimed menus that blend Spanish and Mexican cuisine.

It’s upscale, there’s mezcal, there’s Michelin-level presentation alongside a standout view. Decimo is the private dining experience when you want to go all out.

Our headline isn’t hyperbole, the Arches Wine Bar is one of those places that’s worth a trip across London if you don’t live nearby, the kind of place frequented and protected by regulars. It’s like an antique shop, a Parisian café, and a wine bar got together to have a party – a pleasing maximalism aesthetic that’s more eccentric than glamorous.

It’s cosy and pet-friendly, has regular live music, and a full cellar of wine. The food that comes out of the kitchen is delicious, comforting, and doesn’t pretend to be anything that it isn’t. The ambience is everything you want in a relaxed wine bar, with umpteen million different lampshades that are completely for decoration because it’s the kind of place with candle wax dripping onto the tables.

The Arches accommodate semi-private and exclusive bookouts. If you’re after a private dining experience in Camden or a place to bring together all your friends and family, we’d be hard-pressed to find a place that has as much character. The Arches has been around for thirty-three years and we hope it’s around forever.

Located near Chalk Farm Underground, Studio 48 is a cocktail bar and restaurant inspired by travels across America, from sunny palm-tree-lined Palm Springs to the folksy atmosphere of Austin, Texas and the neon lights of Las Vegas. It feels somewhere between a Florida beach shack and a Southern California dive bar.

The year-round roof terrace at Studio 48 is available for semi-private events for up to 26 seated guests or 30 standing, and they give you free rein of the aux so you can DJ your own party if you’re so inclined.

The Americana-inspired decor is reflected in the cocktail and food menu with classics like tacos, burgers and Mac & Cheese, and is well-known for its 100% gluten-free offerings. Whether it’s brunch or a late-night party, Studio 48 is for the palm-tree-worshipping Americanophiles.

Drake & Morgan restaurants and bars are becoming a dime a dozen in the capital and for good reason – l when it comes to hosting a private party these restaurants are designed to accommodate private events. Reliable, affordable and hospitality-driven, there’s a reason Drake & Morgan has made a mark on the industry.

There is absolutely a time and place for a big book out, and if that’s what you need, Drake & Morgan are ready with options to book out the upstairs or downstairs at King’s Cross. The 16-seater private dining room, however, is completely separate from the rest of the restaurant, offering something exclusive, relaxed and just for friends and family.

As expected of an establishment that specialises in catering to private functions, there’s something for everybody on the menu. From Asian curries and mezze boards to East Asian flavours and British classics. As we said, reliable, affordable and hospitality-driven.