He has three highly acclaimed restaurants in London: Tom's Kitchen (Chelsea and Somerset House), with his Michelin-starred restaurant in Chelsea, Tom Aikens, holding a veritable laundry list of awards: eighth on Restaurant Magazine's list of the world's top 50 restaurants in 2005, and five rosettes from the AA Restaurant Guide since 2010.
Aikens has a sizable media presence. He has published several cookbooks - most recently Tom Aikens: Easy, appeared on Iron Chef UK, the 2011 Great British Menu and penned an article advising the Times readers how to select good fish.
Critics have applauded his efforts. Time Out's Eating and Drinking Guide 2009 concluded that 'Tom Aikens deserves its status as one of the capital’s top foodie destinations', while Time Out described his food as 'a master class in simplicity'. Matthew Fort said of Aikens' braised pig's head, 'Aikens manages to unite the elements into a balanced whole, linking them through source, sauce, cooking techniques or straightforward magic.'
Aikens describes his style as influenced by Robuchon's attention to detail and Koffmann’s sense of terroir and intense concentration on relatively few ingredients, so provenance is key for Aikens - quality and individuality of ingredients lead.