Lita, 7-9 Paddington Street, London W1U 5QH (020 8191 2928). Small plates £12-£29, sharing dishes £38-£160, desserts £8-£16, wines from £54
When I die, a moment keenly anticipated by certain chefs, I want the team that did the interiors at Lita in Marylebone to knock up my coffin. Because darling, the joinery! It’s an orgy of tongue and groove, dovetail and pocket. They haven’t stinted on the finish either. There’s a soft gloss and polish to the place that would, I think, lend a comely glow to my corpse in repose. There are even dainty net curtains behind the frosted windows set into the toilet cubicle doors. What do you mean, why did they put windows in the toilet cubicle door? If there weren’t windows, how could they put net curtains behind them? Do keep up. Anyway, I fancy a bit of that, too: maybe a little window in the casket’s lid, with a net curtain to dissuade the gawkers. And some toiletries by Aesop.
