From going out to galleries, eating out to entertainment, the in-crowd gives us their recommendations

You may be more inclined to imagine angry sweaty types when you think of a head chef (thanks for that, Gordon Ramsey), but Florence Knight, who by the age of 26 was at the helm Polpo’s outpost at The French House in Soho, brings some serious glamour to the kitchen. She has also got plenty of culinary expertise joining that Middleton mane under her chef’s hat, so who better to get a few tips for a weekend of eating from? And if, like Florence, one of your favourite pastimes is reading recipe books and cooking, you’ll probably want to get your hands on her latest book, One: a cook and her cupboard. 

I love having a big breakfast, wandering around Maltby Street market with the dogs, reading cookbooks, and cooking a Sunday roast when I’m not working at the weekend. 

Quo Vadis is my favourite place in London for a fancy dinner. The food is honest, seasonal and interesting, and they do sharing plates, which is how I prefer to eat. The service is impeccable and the setting sophisticated without a trace of stuffiness. I have a particular fondness for the pickled prunes that accompany their terrine. 

If I’m after something cheaper, I’ll go to Homeslice in Neal's Yard. They do really good, thin, crispy pizza not over-laden with toppings. The menu is small and you can either have a twenty inch pizza for £20 or a generous slice for £4, and with Prosecco on tap and at £4 a glass, it's really hard to beat.  

My favourite way to eat is small plates, particularly cheeses, hams, tomatoes, excellent bread and olive oil. I prefer the variety and social, sharing nature of it, but also choosing how much of each plate I want and creating my own meal. It's certainly not new and it’s not going anywhere. 

Bar Nestor in San Sebastian is not new for the locals but it is for me: a crammed little bar where all they serve is meat with padron peppers, olive oil and vinegar. 

Diversity is the best thing about London's food scene. In the square mile surrounding my home in Soho there is fantastic curry at Moti Mahal, Chinatown, Patara Thai, eclairs at Maison Bertaux, coffee at Monmouth, Italian delis, tapas, burgers, ramen, cream tea, oysters...   

I tend to read food journals like FOOL, Gourmand and Kinfolk magazine mostly, as I don't have much time to get engrossed in novels. Julian Barnes' Levels of Life was a great read, as was Blood, Bones & Butter by Gabrielle Hamilton. 

When I’m shopping for food, I zigzag around town picking up ingredients, usually from La Fromagerie, two great Italian delis - Lina Stores and Camisa, Berwick Street and a guilty mooch around Liberty.

I’d head to Caffe dei Cioppi in Paris if I could only eat in one restaurant again. I love Paris and I’d be especially happy to eat at this tiny Italian restaurant. There are just two chefs and fifteen seats, so it feels like sitting in their kitchen, and you're served beautiful seasonal food made with love and care. I often think about their half-baked chocolate cake.