445 Best Restaurants in England

This sophisticated modern bistro, with its hardwood floors and royal blue banquettes, is popular with locals for a special-occasion dinner and with the theater crowd, who enjoy the fixed-price early-bird menus. The food strikes a balance between hearty, traditional British fare (like beer-battered fish-and-chips) and contemporary international dishes (like confit duck croquette with saffron aioli). The pre-theater menus, available before all performances at the Chichester Festival Theatre, are a good deal at £25.95 for two courses or £29.95 for three—considering mains alone typically cost between £25 and £35.

Lured by the fresh ingredients and cool, unfussy surroundings, diners come here to enjoy the freshest of Cornish fish, Salcombe Bay crab, and Forest of Dean ham accompanied by unusual but delicious vegetables like borage, wild garlic, and sea cabbage. The accent is on fish, but you will also find hay-baked Cotswold lamb and vegetarian dishes. The menu changes bimonthly so it's always seasonal. The service is friendly and knowledgeable.

A stylish dining room is the perfect setting for the inventive Punjabi cuisine at this popular curry palace and cocktail bar on bustling Broad Street. White linen tablecloths, neutral hues, and accents of gold and amber create a plush dining setting, and the food doesn’t disappoint either: try the spinach and prune cakes to start, or the chef’s selection of five appetizers, the Pushkar Panorama, if you want to to sample some unexpected flavors. Your server will guide you through the mains, depending on how spicy you like things—the house specialty tariwala murgh is a good medium-spiced option, and the buttered naan is heavenly. For dessert, try the gajar ka halwa tart, a bed of grated carrots with condensed milk and spices, served with pistachio ice cream.

This unpretentious 17th-century inn in the pretty little village of Troutbeck is in a superb fell-side location. The menu showcases local ingredients, and there's a traditional Sunday lunch with roasted meats and all the trimmings. The intimate dining rooms have oak beams, flagged floors, and log fires. Queens Head also has 10 guest rooms, and the spot is well positioned for walks in the Troutbeck Valley. The Queen's Head is owned by Individual Inns, a small group of properties in the Lake District and Yorkshire Dales. 

British-Sri Lankan chef Cynthia Shanmugalingam's interpretations of regional Tamil cuisine cooked on an open fire have won plaudits for the home-cooked feeling of her curries, rotis, and sambols (especially the one that combines chickpeas, parsley, and coconut). Main dishes include a creamy sticky chicken pongal rice flavored with saffron, coconut milk, poppy seeds and cinnamon, a red tamarind prawn curry, and a whole Jaffna crab curry, and they are mostly small plates designed to be shared. There's a set menu at £38. Reservations are recommended (it's busy and service, while friendly, can become disorganized), but some tables are reserved for walk-ins.

Hidden away up a winding lane past the old mill waterwheel, homey Rattle Ghyll is a deservedly popular little deli and takeaway serving great soups, sandwiches, and lots of salads. The deli also has an eco-conscious refill station and coffee from regional roasteries.

Part of a group of coffeeshops with the aim of giving jobs to those recently released from incarceration, this café also serves really excellent coffee and delicious cakes and pastries. On the grounds of St. James's Church between the garden and the church itself, the space is spacious and welcoming, with room for 35 people inside and garden seating under the trees outside that's perfect for sunny days. With an entrance directly on Jermyn Street as well as through the church gates on Piccadilly, it's also wheelchair accessible. Even if you didn't know you were doing some good by coming here, the story of how Redemption Roasters began (setting up a roastery in a prison to train residents and reduce reoffending rates) is written over the walls, so you can read about it while you wait for your brew. If you're visiting the church, it's the perfect spot to rest and refuel.

Pretty stained glass windows separate this sophisticated little restaurant from bustling Chesterton Road. The setting, in a terrace of houses, is low-key, but the food is creative and eye-catching, with a fixed-price menu that changes monthly and includes dishes like Australian winter truffle with Parmesan or Nidderdale lamb with smoked aubergine. For dessert, try the coconut parfait with chili sauce if it's available. The restaurant only offers its full tasting menu (£145) for dinners and its short tasting menu (£110) for lunch.

Renowned as one of Britain's finest seafood chefs, Rick Stein chose Winchester for his first venture away from the Cornish coast. The menu is largely focused on fish and crustaceans, but carnivores and vegetarians are catered for as well. The airy room embodies tasteful nautical chic, but the restaurant's popularity means it can be noisy when busy.

A 14th-century inn and a row of thatched cottages make up this pub–restaurant with great harbor views. The kitchen mixes local cuisine with European influences, so expect dishes like rack of Exmoor lamb or spiced pork tenderloin. There's fresh seafood year-round, and a superb game menu in winter. Booking ahead is advisable for the restaurant; otherwise, just show up for the bar menu, which features such snacks as soused mackerel fillet and crab sandwiches. In the attached hotel, corridors and creaking staircases lead to cozy guest rooms decorated in stylish print or solid fabrics.

Across the river from Magdalene College, this popular waterfront bar and grill serves delicious steak, burgers, and pies, plus specialties such as lobster mac and cheese or salmon steak with molasses and spices. There's an extensive cocktail menu as well. Try a Frisky Vixen (rum with pineapple juice, lychee, and passion fruit) or head up to the roof terrace for a glass of Champagne. When dining, perhaps leave room for a classic sticky toffee pudding for dessert.

Good coffee, fresh produce, and delicious pastries make this coffee shop one of the best places in Lewes to drop by for an afternoon pick-me-up. A light-filled space with wood floors and simple tables creates a pleasant, casual spot to enjoy a cup of coffee with breakfast, a scone, or a light sandwich or salad lunch. You can also order to go.

You'll feel like quite the foodie insider once you finally track down the quirky Rochelle Canteen, founded by Melanie Arnold and Margot Henderson, two doyennes of the London food scene. It's set in a former bike shed at the Victorian-era Rochelle School—ring the buzzer next to a blue door, go through the "Boys" entrance, and enter the long white canteen, where you'll enjoy gloriously understated British fare ranging from monkfish liver parfait and crab apple jelly to beef and pickled walnut pie. Bump along with the Frieze London art crowd and enjoy braised chard with ricotta on toast, or go for a dessert such as poached quince with chocolate sauce and praline or a velvety custard tart.

In the heart of Plymouth's harbor, right next to the National Marine Aquarium, and with plenty of outdoor seating, this is the perfect spot to watch the boats go by and the antics of gulls while you refuel. It's part of a small local chain launched by Devon chef Mitch Tonks, and although fish and chips is the staple, there are plenty of variations on the theme, including chargrilled mackerel or sardines, as well as king scallops, fish tacos, fritto misto, and lobster. Almost everything on the menu can be made gluten-free, and there's a good selection of children's meals (as well as free fish and chips for under-11s). Takeout service is also available.

Fresh, seasonal, creative dishes are served at this smart but relaxed restaurant in the heart of Wells. Small and sharing plates predominate on the menu, which is mostly oriented toward such vegetarian dishes as grilled zucchini with whipped tofu and basil pesto, beetroot Waldorf with celery, grape, walnut, and apple, or sweet-and-sour eggplant with pickled cabbage. Some excellent meat and fish options do make an appearance, however, perhaps sea bream ceviche with orange and stem ginger dressing or braised lamb rump with carrots and salsa verde. Most dishes are around £10, and there's an enticing set-price lunch menu (£18 or £21). Try and book a table at the back, for partial views of the cathedral's west front.

Plain wood floorboards, comfy sofas, sturdy wooden tables, and solidly good food and drink set the tone at this contemporary gastropub with rooms on the town’s main square. It’s popular with locals, and the owners take pride in offering seasonal food with a focus on sustainability, mixing British and international influences. The set menu from noon to 6 pm is very good value. There's a good area for outdoor dining too. Moderately priced bedrooms provide stylish lodging in the pub and across the lane.

Plain wooden tables and understated decor are the backdrop for the wholesome British dishes served in this traditional restaurant beautifully sited on the banks of the River Windrush. There's a large outdoor area for alfresco dining. Sip a cocktail on the riverside terrace while you wait for your order. Desserts include vanilla panna cotta and sticky toffee pudding.

Situated in Keswick’s iconic Market Square, the Round is the starting point and finishing line for the Bob Graham Round, a 24-hour mountain run that is the most famous and grueling physical challenge in the Lake District. This vibrant restaurant and bar serves gourmet burgers with names inspired by the national park's peaks, such as Katsu Bells (from Catbells) and Pullvellyn (from Helvellyn). Besides beef, there are chicken, pork, and lamb choices, all with interesting toppings. 

This gabled pub, located in the snug village of Leighterton just 5 miles west of Tetbury, likes to satisfy the crowds that assemble here with the best creative local fare in the area. Draw up a stool at the bar or take a seat at one of the many wooden tables to try the tandoori hake or the enoki mushroom burger. Finish with a calorific dessert. There's also a sheltered walled garden for summer dining.

The queues can attest to the quality of the Neapolitan pizza at this laid-back pizzeria at the top of Bold Street. Although part of a national chain (that began in neighboring Manchester), the restaurant has a vibrant, indie feel to it that appeals for just about any occasion. The light, fluffy bases come adorned with a variety of traditional toppings refined with quality ingredients.

Considered by Guildford locals to be one of the best Thai restaurants in the Southeast, Rumwong has an incredibly long menu, with dozens of choices from all over Thailand. Tasty dishes include the poh-taek, a "seafarer's soup" made with lemongrass, lime leaves, and shellfish, and kai pud krapraw, a spicy stir-fry made with ground chicken, fresh chilies, and basil.

With a courtyard at the back and a patio at the front, this chic "restaurant with rooms" is perfect for a light lunch or full dinner, with menus that concentrate on Modern British dishes and change seasonally. The restaurant, in a former furniture factory belonging to local designer George Russell, is modern, airy, and stylish. The less expensive fixed-price menu is just as tempting, and there's also an attached fish-and-chips shop. You can spend the night in the very sleek, boutique-style rooms upstairs.

Small and slightly twee, this longtime tourist magnet near Bath Abbey occupies the oldest house in Bath, dating from 1482. It's famous for the Sally Lunn bunn, a semisweet bread served here since 1680. You can choose from more than 30 sweet and savory toppings to accompany your bunn, or turn it into a meal with salmon or a steak. There are also economical lunch and early-evening menus. Daytime diners can view the small kitchen museum and shop in the cellar (30p for non-dining visitors).

This small and buzzing bistro has a nostalgic 1950s flavor, thanks to walls adorned with posters of past music and movie icons. Diners squeeze onto benches and into booths to savor dishes made with local seafood—including a majestic bouillabaisse—or menu items like the "Sam Burger" or "Super Salads." Without a booking, you might have to wait for a table.

This "greasy spoon without the grease" has become a neighborhood hot spot thanks to its modern reinterpretation of traditional British “caff” food (with the nontraditional additions of a wine list, vegan options, newspapers, and books) as well as its well-connected owners (the restaurant was officially opened by local resident Helena Bonham Carter and the vintage jukebox is “curated” by none other than Robert Plant). Daily-changing lunch and dinner options feature healthy, homemade dishes like pan-fried filet of sea bass with a balsamic glaze and roasted fennel, jerk chicken with rice and peas, an artichoke and spring vegetable pie, and homemade fishcakes, while breakfast offers a vegan Full English. The ambience is a cross between an American diner and a Parisian bistro, and the service is welcoming if sometimes disengaged.

Located in the heart of town and run by a family who fell in love with Spanish food after decades of visiting Spain, this restaurant, bar, shop, and deli offers mainly shared plates meant for a social meal. You might find deeply authentic dishes such as ensalada de Santiago with duck liver pâté and shavings of hard Mahon curado cheese or aubergine fritters with romesco sauce, honey, and fresh Valencian goats’ cheese.

You can feel the history at this 1889 Art Deco--dining powerhouse, which has hosted everyone from Winston Churchill to Marilyn Monroe. Nowadays it caters to business barons, well-heeled West Enders, and wealthy tourists, who come for the Grill's famed table-side silver serving trolley, which might trundle up laden with roast beef or a succulent saddle of lamb. Savoy signatures like twice-baked Arnold Bennett soufflé (with flaked haddock, chives, and Montgomery cheddar sauce) or Peach Melba dessert always impress, as do other timeless classics like Chateaubriand steaks, beef Wellington, and lobster Thermidor.

Imposing doormen in bowler hats greet visitors with a wee nod at this ever-fashionable seafood haven on Mount Street in Mayfair. Originally founded in 1851 in the Haymarket, and a former haunt of James Bond author Ian Fleming (he apparently enjoyed the potted shrimps), Scott's draws the wealthiest of London, who come for the fresh Lindisfarne oysters, Dover sole, and tasty shrimp burgers. Prices could make a Saudi sheikh blanch, but that's the price to pay for what many consider the hottest table in town.

In a prime riverside location, this seafood restaurant epitomizes the region's ongoing food revolution. The knowledgeable staff guides you through the Italian-inspired menu, which primarily depends on the day's catch and might feature Dartmouth lobster salad, tagliatelle with spider crab and datterini tomatoes, or cod loin al cartoccio. Leave room for the delicious desserts, too, such as apricot sorbet. Three-course prix-fixe menus are a good deal at lunchtime (£30), and Joe's Bar, attached to the restaurant, offers a good range of wines, locally distilled gin, and cocktails. The owner, celebrity-chef Mitch Tonks, also runs a much more basic fish-and-chips restaurant a few doors along called Rockfish, open daily.