Guide to birthday restaurants in London

This family-run restaurant in Holloway is the place to go for authentic Ethiopian food for an excellent price. It's a wonderful social experience since you get to enjoy the traditional meat and veggie dishes served on top of an injera that you eat with your hands. You can also enjoy Ethiopian beers or traditional honey wine, which is known as tej. It's the ideal spot for those not fussed about anything overly fancy and are just here for the good food.

Another one that won't break the bank: Padella. This OG pasta spot is ideal for those looking to chow down on carbs to welcome their birthday. You can enjoy hand-rolled pasta served with homemade sauces and fillings inspired by the owners' trips to Italy. You can comfortably enjoy a Negroni and a plate of pasta and still have change from a twenty.

Celebrating your birthday with a bunch of spice lovers? Head to My Old Place round the corner from Liverpool Street. This spacious restaurant is laid-back and specialises in spicy Sichuan cuisine, including everything from your standard Chinese dishes to more adventurous options like sliced pig ears and tripe. Everything is served family style, so sharing the food is a great way to get everyone socialising. Again, this is a restaurant for those who don't want a birthday cake with sparklers on it. It's all about the food, plus there's ample space so you can fit in a big group here.

You're guaranteed to have a great time at this Bloomsbury Trattoria. This casual Italian restaurant brings traditional Italian dining to the heart of London in a fun, upbeat setting with plenty of seating, ideal for big groups. It's an old-school spot and a celebratory classic with an atmosphere to get everyone boppin' in their seats. The food is good, but really you're here for the vibes.

This family-run Punjabi restaurant is an East London icon that's been drawing in hungry diners since 1972. There's something on the menu for everyone, from meat-based curries to plant-based traditional tarka dhal and more. Plus, it's BYOB (bring your own booze), so you don't need to fork out heaps on alcohol.

Nothing screams birthday like a metre-long pizza and a late-night karaoke sesh, and Bunga Bunga has you covered. If that's not enough to get you cheers-ing, perhaps the cabaret performers and iconic Italian cocktail menu will be. Enjoy watching dough-tossing chefs to the sound of singalongs, or head along to the Saturday brunch for some spicy entertainment by hunky male dancers.

Is there a better way to celebrate your birthday than by indulging in bottomless cake? We think not. This cosy cafe and bakery on Battersea High Street specialises in affordable bespoke celebration cakes and other sweet treats like brownies and cookies. Their main draw is their delicious Bottomless Cake experience, where they invite you to eat as much cake as you like in just 90 minutes to see if you can break the record. How's that for a birthday?

Gloria is another Big Mamma venture that knows how to celebrate special occasions in style. Aside from the outlandish decor, there's an excellent menu of delicious dishes made with ingredients sourced from Italy. There's pasta carbonara served in a giant wheel of pecorino cheese and a giant slab of lemon meringue pie, which, if you ask us, is exactly how birthdays should be celebrated.

Circolo Popolare is another one of the Big Mamma children. The glamorous interior includes 20,000 wine bottles and a plethora of lush plants. This Sicilian restaurant doesn't just excel on the decor, though; the menu is also set to impress, chock with classic Italian favourites like pizza, pasta and risotto. This glamorous spot is an excellent place to celebrate another lap around the sun under trailing wisteria and Italian elegance.

Bancone is an excellent option for those looking to celebrate their birthday with just a handful of people in more of a chilled-out setting. It's all about freshly made pasta at great prices, with the silk handkerchiefs with walnut butter being the star of the show. There's also a choice of signature cocktails and a curated wine list, including a few rare vintages.

Noble Rot is one of the restaurants you want to save for a special birthday with just a few other people. The Bloomsbury branch is located inside a beautiful 18th-century townhouse, with a casual wine bar up front lit by the glimmer of tea lights. The menu is themed around 'indulgence', featuring dishes like whole roast duck with cep gratin to share between two. They also have branches in Soho and Mayfair, and a very reasonable set lunch menu is available at all three for those who want to save the pennies.

What better way to celebrate your birthday than with real Italian mammas serving authentic Italian recipes at La Mamma Mia? There are three restaurants around the city, each with dishes that change based on the chef, plus a regular à la carte menu and group dining menus. If it's your birthday, you can expect a whole shebang of saucepan-banging, mamma-singing festivities to make everyone well aware of who's celebrating.

Big Mamma sure knows how to celebrate in style, especially at their Ave Mario branch in Covent Garden. Everything about this place stands out, from the outlandish decor to the impressive food menu, including dishes like the Gelato Tower, a giant ice cream cake. There's also a disco-themed toilet, where you can take a break from stuffing your faces and bop out to Italo Disco.

Jacuzzi is Big Mamma's latest venture, where there's enough space for 170 diners across the whole four floors of this Italian hot spot. The jazzy disco toilet screams birthday, best paired with any of the decadent and slightly outrageous Italian dishes, like the chocolate fondue for two made with half a kilogram of chocolate.

Core by Clare Smyth is a three-Michelin-star restaurant that encapsulates everything three stars should be: exceptional service, refined menus crafted by excellent chefs, and a cosy, elegant interior for a comfortable dining experience. Smyth only uses ingredients sourced from British farmers and producers, and there's a focus on seasonality, with menus constantly changing to reflect this. It's ideal for a special birthday and celebrating with the family, since it isn't cheap, but is well worth the money.

Hutong is an award-winning Chinese restaurant located on level 33 of The Shard, the UK's tallest building. Enjoy a glass of champagne and Northern Chinese dishes with breathtaking views of the city skyline and beyond. Feast on dim sum platters and speciality dishes like roast duck carved at your table, all washed down with artisan cocktails.

Dinner at No. Fifty Cheyne kind of feels like you're dining at your fun, rich auntie's house in the countryside. It's tucked away down a leafy Chelsea street and is a local neighbourhood favourite. This is an all-around special occasion restaurant, oozing elegance and prestige via everything from the decor to the food. Head chef Iain Smith has crafted a menu using the finest British ingredients centred around an open grill. There's also an on-site sommelier to help you match your wines to your plates. Don't expect a party atmosphere; you'll enjoy more of a wine-fuelled, laid-back, jolly vibe here.