London 2012 : Eating

Eating

Best no-booking option: the communal Thai dining canteen Busaba Eathai.

Some 5.5 million day visitors are expected to descend on London 2012, so finding a top restaurant is going to make your quest to find a ticket look positively easy.

New restaurants, however, are popping up all the time -- not least the opening of the world’s largest McDonald's restaurant (to use the term loosely) within the Olympic Park.

The 3,000 square-meter restaurant will stretch over two floors, will be the equivalent of half the length of an American football field and will employ 470 staff to serve around 50,000 Big Macs, 100,000 portions of fries and 30,000 milkshakes during the Games.

But don't worry. You won't be so short of options that you are forced to eat every meal chez Ronald.

The trick is to book early and be flexible. Several excellent "no-booking" restaurants have sprung up in the capital too, so if you are prepared to queue you will be able to secure a table.

Stand out ‘no-booking’ options include:

Da Polpo, acclaimed for its meatballs (6 Maiden Lane; +44 (0)20 7836 8448; www.dapolpo.co.uk)

Burger & Lobster, particularly good if you like burgers and lobsters (29 Clarges St.; +44 (0)20 7409 1699; www.burgerandlobster.com)

Soho tapas joint Barrafina (54 Frith St., +44 (0)20 7440 1463; www.barrafina.co.uk)

Communal Thai dining canteen Busaba Eathai (106–110 Wardour St.; +44 (0)20 7255 8686;www.busaba.com).

If queuing is not your thing then click here for some of the best options across varying price ranges.

More on CNNGo: 10 freebies during the London 2012 Olympics