Keeping track of London’s ever-growing, ever-shrinking, and ever-evolving restaurant scene is no easy task. Turn your back for one moment, and there’s a new spot everyone is talking about and a new reservation that’s already impossible to get.
What, though, if that hot-ticket restaurant is intentionally hiding from you — say behind the facade of a leather goods shop. Automat opened in the tail end of 2025 to relatively little fanfare and hides behind Tanner Krolle – a heritage British leather brand, dating to 1856 (although this flagship store at 127 Mount Street only opened in 2024). Walking past, you’d likely not even notice the sultry little dining room beyond the main shop floor, save a little decal on the windowfront, the distant glimmer of candlelight, and some impeccably dressed hosts. Arrive a little early for your reservation to peruse Tanner Krolle’s wares, drink in hand.
The restaurant is a reincarnation of the original Automat that once stood a few roads over on Dover Street (in the very same site that now holds Martin Kuczmarski’s wildly in-demand bar and restaurant, The Dover), and brought New York’s brasserie-style diner concept to British shores. In-the-know Londoners loved it, lapping up the diner-esque menu and the Art Deco styling (patterned carpets and all).
See also: Is Mayfair Ready To Be Mayfair Again?
This new iteration of Automat boldly helps itself to the original’s take on American dining culture, taking its mid-Century modern look and giving it a bit of Mayfair pizzazz courtesy of London-based Tomef Studio. Yes, there is carpet underfoot and black-gloss ceiling, but there’s also intentionally un-done murals on the wall and crisp white linens coating the tables. A waist-height bar amid the tables, laden with bottles and glasses and churning out signature martinis, gives the feeling that you’re being hosted at someone’s very, very nice home.
The menu itself is casual, with nods to comfort classics. There’s a retro shrimp cocktail and a dijon-laced steak tartare to begin. Next, a rich Caesar salad, cut through with lashings of lemon; or a signature burger, served medium rare and far too messy for the pristine white table cloth you’re supposed to eat it over. Or there’s chicken pie, a striploin steak, even chicken nuggets. To finish, a skillet cookie and ice cream or a tiramisu sundae, piled high with whipped cream and chocolate sauce. This isn’t a menu clamoring for fine dining accolades; it is one that will leave you full, happy, and potentially with a little tomato ketchup remnant in the corner of your mouth.
See also: The Best Fine Dining Restaurants in London
One place where that slick American front slips is in the service which, while charming, is still a little rough around the edges. Our drinks order took too long to be enjoyed with our mains and a dessert was saved from ending up falling on the floor just in the nick of time. I’ll gladly put this down to teething issues though.
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While Automat’s open has skipped uncharacteristically below the radar, its arrival comes as little surprise to those following Mayfair’s resurgence. Led in part by the aforementioned The Dover and more recently, its little sister The Dover Counter, London’s wealthiest neighborhood has been tiptoeing away from its flashy character in recent years, back toward being an area characterized by community. Yes, all that gilded glitz is still there, but nowadays, you can head to W1 for a burger and a martini, not just zealously overpriced champagne and caviar. Get your table booked at Automat soon though; everyone else will be doing the same.
