445 Best Restaurants in England

Eschew the myriad copy-and-paste curry houses of Brick Lane and opt instead for this broom cupboard–size Spitalfields restaurant serving flawless small-plate Indian cuisine. The charming waitstaff is happy to offer guidance when it comes to the menu, with its highly original takes on authentic flavor combinations from the subcontinent.

This dining-focused pub with bright, homey furnishings and a relaxed vibe looks past green fields to the ocean beyond. The frequently changing fixed-price menus (£40 or £48) feature fresh, inventively prepared meat and seafood dishes—look for hake with imam bayildi and garlic yogurt or lamb loin with potato and cheddar croquette and tender-stem broccoli. Leave room for some enticing desserts. Eight smallish rooms provide guest accommodations. The inn sits near the curvy coast road 6 miles west of St. Ives.

The last days of the Raj are invoked here at one of London's finest Indian curry emporiums, where top choices include dosas with fennel-rich Chettinad duck and the pork cheek vindaloo. Diners admire the whirring ceiling fans, rattan chairs, and other decor inspired by the colonial-era gymkhana sporting clubs of yesteryear. Other goodies include all-India delights such as Tandoori Masala lamb chops and Lasooni wild tiger prawns. A £110 tasting menu is the most extravagant way to sample the range of the restaurant's delights. 

Run by the same Greek-Cypriot family since 1966, this friendly taverna is a local institution and is considered by many to be the best Greek restaurant in the whole country. With its rustic interior and a mouthwatering menu of Greek culinary classics, it's the perfect spot for a leisurely lunch or a memorable evening out. The grilled meats are a must, as is the extensive selection of cold and warm mezze.

Tucked away on a quiet corner one block behind Greenwich High Road, this little grocery store and café is doing something very special. With a farm shop and a delicatessen that serves specialties like locally made gin, artisanal cheeses, and charcuterie, its biggest draw is the range of gourmet sausages made on site under the direction of chef and patron, Martin Heap, alongside his business partner and Italian food maestro, Vincenzo. Open until 4 pm daily, there are a few seats out front and a covered seating area in the back to accommodate those wanting more than a quick bite. Try a plate of sausage, mash, and onion gravy or a mint and lamb burger in a brioche bun with tzatziki, coleslaw, and a potato cake. Great for takeaway breakfasts, coffee, or lunch on the go, there's a wide variety of burgers and vegetarian options, too, as well as wines, beers, and cocktails. With artisanal sausages made from the very best ingredients, including the spicy Lethal Lucifer or Pork, Prune, and Cognac combo, it's no wonder there's usually a line onto the street that includes local shoppers stocking up on produce.

The city's wealthy flock to French virtuoso Hélène Darroze's restaurant at The Connaught for her dazzling regional French haute cuisine served up in a stylish Edwardian wood-paneled dining salon designed by Pierre Yovanovitch. Taking inspiration from the Les Landes region in southwestern France, Darroze sallies forth with a procession of magnificent dishes like turbot with rutabaga and razor clams. A great value weekday lunch is available on request at £125 per person.  

An informal restaurant by chef Simon Rogan, who owns multiple Michelin-starred restaurants, Henrock has been a superb addition to the Bowness dining scene, with an elegant, chandelier-lit dining room overlooking the gardens. Much of the fresh produce is grown on Rogan's farm in nearby Cartmel, and he uses seasonal ingredients to create dishes inspired by his travels abroad. The Sunday lunch menu offers excellent value, and if you opt for the superb tasting menu you may be treated to dishes such as fermented squash with truffle custard, Houghton Springs trout with lemon verbena, and cherry blossom madeleines.

Part of a small group of famously crowd-funded restaurants (yup, people liked the owner-chef's concept so much they raised money so he could open a place in their 'hood) found across northwest England, this neighborhood bistro offers ambitious dining at remarkably fair prices. In pared-back surroundings, expect the likes of pastrami-style trout with sour cream, dill, and pickled green beans or braised featherblade of beef with wild mushroom ketchup, truffle and Parmesan chips, and red wine sauce, plus wonderful accompaniments including hard-to-find vegetables. Gary Usher has another crowd-funded venue in the city center, KALA Bistro.

Visitors and locals alike head for the half-timber Hobsons Patisseries to indulge in the famous savory pies or scrumptious afternoon teas. Just a couple of minutes walk from Shakespeare’s Birthplace, it’s an almost obligatory lunch stop.

The restaurant within this Georgian house has magnificent views across the wooded, rhododendron-filled Tamar Valley and a sophisticated menu featuring traditional British cuisine with French elements. A typical starter and main course might be ginger-cured salmon with mango, wasabi, and dill, followed by Creedy Carver duck breast with textures of shallot and pommes duchesse, while desserts include pumpkin crème brûlée with blackberry sorbet and spiced orange and blackberry. Alongside the à la carte two- or three-course lunch menu (£32 or £39) and the three-course dinner menu (£69), there's a six-course tasting menu (£85). A converted coach house and the main house contain 16 sumptuously furnished guest rooms. It's 3 miles west of Tavistock.

London's onetime most famous celebrity haunt and West End landmark is still so popular it receives more than a thousand calls a day. Established as an Italian café in 1917, today it's still a top destination to dine on deep-fried haddock and chips, Thai-baked sea bass, and evergreen English classics like shepherd's pie and baked Alaska. Madonna famously once ate sticky toffee pudding with Hollywood actor Tom Cruise and British playwright Harold Pinter here back in the day. Perch at the coral onyx dining bar in pink mohair-backed seats, kick back with an Old Fashioned, and enjoy some of the best free theater and people-watching in town.

Scrub up like Eliza Doolittle and perch at the pewter bar sipping a My Fair Lady (with homemade gin and orange blossom) at this busy but laid-back little sister to the flagship The Ivy restaurant. You'll find bargains galore here on the something-for-everyone brasserie menu—from crispy duck salad and poached lobster cocktail to chicken Milanese and blackened cod. For dessert, be sure to try the chocolate bombe, a chocolatey mush of milk foam, vanilla ice cream, and gooey hot salted caramel sauce. The raucous salon atmosphere fits in perfectly with the green-leather banquettes, dark timber floors, and copious 19th-century brass lamps.

Open since 1896, this timelessly elegant seafood haven is a favorite with neighboring Theaterland's top stars and theater moguls. A warren of interlocking dining rooms, J Sheekey always charms with a ravishing menu of fresh Atlantic prawns, arctic herring, salmon burgers, and the famous Sheekey Fish Pie. Better yet, sip pink Billecart-Salmon Champagne and shuck half a dozen Lindisfarne oysters at the chic 1930s mirrored oyster bar for the ultimate in true romance.

In one of Lincoln's oldest buildings, a rare extant example of 12th-century Norman domestic architecture, this restaurant is worth a visit for more than just its outstanding cosmopolitan menu. Typical main dishes include roasted rack of lamb with rosemary confit carrots or wild turbot with caviar hollandaise. For dessert, you might be offered pistachio sponge with mixed berries. The restaurant is a much more sedate place than its colorful and sometimes dark history suggests (the name is medieval—check out the story while you're here).

Seemingly everyone involved in West End theater world hangs out at this legendary subterranean spot for its alluring blend of New York brasserie comfort food (think posh hot dogs, shrimp burgers, and mac n' cheese). Established elsewhere in Covent Garden in 1977, enduring classics include Joe's finger-licking slow-braised smoked baby back ribs, New York strip steak and chips, a not-so-secret off-menu hamburger, and a PB&J ice-cream sandwich.

In a small stone building dating to the 18th century, this quirky, family-run restaurant was originally Grasmere's first shop. The food is an eclectic mix of international and traditional British; think baked salmon with prawns, beetroot and goat cheese gnocchi, or Lebanese lamb stew with egglant. A dedicated local fan base means the place always buzzes, and the owners' enthusiasm is contagious.

Earthy northern Thai cuisine bursts out of the charcoal-fired kiln and hot clay pots at this barbecue-focused wonderland in Soho. Take in the action in the fascinating tiny open kitchen and you'll spy sizzling cumin-dusted cull yaw mutton skewers and chargrilled chicken thigh bites, along with other local Thai village-style dishes that crackle with influences from Laos, Myanmar, and Yunnan in China. Pick up pungent wafts of Thai parsley and Burmese wild ginger in a slew of authentic dishes such as lime-bathed langoustines or claypot-baked glass noodles with Tamworth pork belly and chewy crab meat.

When you arrive at Kinaara, the ambient lighting, aroma of spices, and very warm welcome tell you instantly that there is something special about this Indian eatery. With its extensive menu, it's best to let the professional and knowledgeable staff guide you, and a tasting menu is undoubtedly the best way to sample the divine flavors that head chef Imamuddin Khan conjures up. Start with crispy, shredded duck, watermelon, cashew nuts, and black radish, followed by salmon and prawn cooked in the tandoor oven and accompanied by the delectable coriander with mint, tomato, and mustard sauces. The lamb biriyani comes to the table covered with its own pastry top, which is peeled back dramatically to provide both aromatic theater and something to dip into the rich sauce. A chili mandarin palate-cleansing sorbet is wonderful before the chocolate and ginger dessert. With wine pairings for every course and a stunning vista from its elegant and elevated position at the InterContinental London O2, the gilded setting is as sumptuous as the food is. It's very smart to book a table ahead of time.

Despite the fact it has no hot meals, no waiters, and no tables, Knoops has been one of Rye's most consistently popular "restaurants" for years. Step inside and it's easy to see why: this unassuming little shop serves perhaps the best hot chocolate in England. You can select your chocolate from a dizzying array of clipboards that highlight cocoa percentages and tasting notes, and then add all manner of extra flavors, from herbs and spices to fruits. Knoops has become very successful, with stores across the country, but this is where it all started.

Windswept lines wait patiently outside on Frith Street, and inside there may only be 25 counter seats, but everyone's still smitten with the steaming bowls of hot broth and house-made udon noodles at this quirky but consistently brilliant walk-ins only Japanese joint in the heart of Soho. Favorite udon combos like cured cod with wakame seaweed duke it out with sweet tofu, pork miso, and lamb mince and cumin alternatives, all vying for the affections of regulars and slurpy udon aficionados alike. Check, too, the cult English breakfast udon, which famously comes topped with a fried egg, bacon, and marinated mushrooms. 

The village of Cartmel has earned a place on England's culinary map with this ambitious Michelin three-star restaurant with rooms, where Chef Simon Rogan's innovative food incorporates long-forgotten herbs and cutting-edge techinques. The restaurant is in what was once a forge, now converted to a bright, contemporary, and airy space with dark wooden beams, stark white walls, and splashes of color. The set menu comes with up to 16 courses and may includes delights such as West Country duck with salted elderberries, and a fritter of Duroc pig and smoked eel with lovage. L'Enclume's 16 elegant rooms are in three different buildings around the village.

Cuttlefish shells piled in the window and a Nordic-style wood-paneled interior give a clue as to the culinary style of what is quite possibly the most awarded restaurant in Ambleside. About 80% of everything green on the menu is foraged; the remainder comes from the highest-quality, mainly local suppliers. Every dish is imaginatively conceived and expertly put together, revealing a variety of global influences. There are two set menus (eight and twelve courses) each night, or a shortened five-course menu. Wine pairings are available, and the restaurant can cater to most dietary preferences. Reservations are essential as there are just nine tables.

Sit downstairs to appreciate the hardwood floors and oak beams of this local epicurean favorite in one of the town’s oldest buildings; upstairs, the look is a bit more contemporary. The updates of tried-and-true dishes include herb-crusted rack of English lamb and pan-fried calf's liver with creamed potato and crisp shallots. Desserts are fantastic, and daily specials keep the menu seasonal. The two- and three-course fixed-price menus (not available for Monday lunches) are good deals.

This unpretentious restaurant prides itself on not being trendy, but it is, nevertheless, popular—considered one of the best in Yorkshire if not in all of Britain. Although the menu changes, it always includes elevated versions of Italian meat (perhaps oxtail stew with chickpeas) and seafood classics. Opt for seasonal specials incorporating white truffles or game (October through February) or locally sourced vegetables. With only 30 seats, it books up quickly.

The villages of England are awash with cream tea cafés, but none are as quaint and cute as this one. Having converted the ground floor of the 15th-century timber-framed cottage into a café, the proprietor set about making a name for the place with the best cream teas and door-stop sandwiches this side of the Broads. And if you can't manage another cream tea then indulge in a classic ploughman's lunch, a quintessential country lunch of cheeses, cold meats, pickles, and bread. 

One of the original gastronomy-focused hotels, Le Manoir was opened in 1984 by chef Raymond Blanc, whose culinary talents have earned the hotel's restaurant two Michelin stars, now held for an incredible 39 years and running. The fixed-price menus start at a steep £245—with a six-course £220 lunch that's marginally easier on the wallet—and offer a culinary tour of innovative French creations concocted by Blanc and his team. There's a separate vegetarian menu as well. With more than 1,000 wines in stock, mostly French, you'll find the perfect glass to accompany your meal. You need to book up to three months ahead in summer. Elegant guest rooms are available, but at upwards of £1,000 a night in summer for even a standard double, you could just as well get a taxi back to almost anywhere south of Scotland. The pretty town of Great Milton is 7 miles southeast of Oxford.

Acclaimed Aussie chef Brett Graham’s chic, intimate restaurant showcases modern European cuisine at its finest. The sheer inventiveness and quality of the food makes for a very special night out. Graham’s legendary attention to detail is such that he even grows the restaurant’s own fungi in a moisture-controlled cabinet that diners can view en route to the basement bathrooms. Six- and eight-course tasting menus place ever-changing seasonal produce at their heart, although game staples, such as Berkshire muntjac, often make an appearance. Bookings are accepted three months in advance.

Tucked away off St. James's Street, this tiny Kemptown tea room is one of Brighton's gems. Impossibly cute decor, traditional British crockery, and faultlessly friendly service make it a timeless haven in the heart of the city; even better, the toasties, cakes, and scones are to die for. It's so small and so popular, you may need to book in advance.

Set in a sea-facing Georgian building on one of the West Country's most enchanting stretches of coast, this restaurant with rooms run by an Anglo-Italian husband-and-wife team offers modern reinventions of classic Italian dishes executed with consummate artistry and originality. The five-course set menu (£75, reservations essential) might include such antipasti as Tropean onion tatin or Forest Broth with Parmesan pudding, which you might follow with risotto ai funghi or tegliatelle alla Portofino, and such mains as dry-aged trout or guinea fowl with salt-baked beetroot. The desserts are equally enticing, such as strawberry and rhubarb and Exmoor Black Forest chocolate bomb. All dietary preferences are catered for, and there's a fine Italian wine list. The dining rooms are hung with flamboyant modern art, while upstairs, the four guest rooms display the same flair, combining a traditional style with modern design and restful hues.

Recently awarded its first Michelin star, Luca's formula is simple: modern Italian classics made from the very best British seasonal produce. Add to that the superchic setting—from the Art Deco--esque dining salon to the marble-top bar and the stunning glass-walled conservatory—and this popular Clerkenwell haunt is very much a triumph of both style and substance. Dishes include conchiglie of ragu bianco with Brussels sprouts, chestnuts, and Parmesan of potato and grilled Cornish squid served with chickpeas, datterini tomatoes, and 'nduja.