445 Best Restaurants in England

This sophisticated and popular restaurant on the corner of the Circus has an enticing, seasonally changing menu that covers everything from morning coffee to late-night dinners. The husband-and-wife team prioritize locally sourced ingredients, and wines come from old-world small growers. The colorful modern art on the walls always makes for a great conversation topic.

This unpretentious but charming family-run Vietnamese street-food café offers delicious quick bites and takeout dishes for lunch. Try the pho, banh mi, or spring rolls.

Long lines and lots of satisfied finger licking attest to the deserved popularity of this excellent fish-and-chip shop in the center of town, where all orders are takeout. Everything is freshly fried, the batter crispy, and the fish tasty; the fried mushrooms are also surprisingly good. There's no seating, so your fish is wrapped up in paper and you eat it where you want, perhaps in the park. This place closes at 7 pm.

A largely corporate crowd comes here for the Manhattanesque views of The City and chef Jason Atherton's masterful but straightforward cuisine. Impressed diners look out from Level 24 of Tower 42 on a majestic panorama that takes in illustrious buildings like the Gherkin and the Walkie Talkie. Dinner options include sea bass and Jerusalem artichoke or a generous hunk of beef "Josper cooked" on the grill. The soufflé is a total winner for dessert, while the service—like City Social itself—is stratospheric.

A location close to Kenilworth Castle and some good hand-pulled ales help make this pub a nice spot for lunch. You can order home-cooked food, including steaks and grills from the bar or fish-and-chips. Another option is to sample more upmarket fare with an international slant at the next-door Harrington’s on the Hill restaurant, under the same management.

A nicely old-fashioned air pervades this 17th-century building, now a café and tearoom, on the main square. Drop in for a tasty breakfast or a lunch with options such as sandwiches, salads, and hot mains—or just have a slice of cake. It also has a pleasant little housewares and gift shop attached.

Although there are lovely rooms in this 1850s Victorian redbrick building near Ludlow Castle, the main draw is the food. Two modern dining rooms, The Terrace and the Orangery, have lovely views (the former of a garden, the latter of the countryside), and both serve high-quality, seasonal dishes such as pea and asparagus risotto or rack of lamb with dauphinoise potatoes. The lounge bar is a great spot for pre- or post-dinner cocktails.

As the name implies, this casual eatery in the heart of Clifton village specializes in pork products, with special attention given to the humble British "banger." Sausages range from the traditional Gloucester Old Spot to Cotswold lamb, mint, and apricot; pork, leek, and stilton; and beef and ale, and all come with plain mashed potato or "champ" (mashed potato with spring onions). The menu also includes a tender slow-roast pork belly with plenty of crackling; wild mushroom and tarragon risotto; and a fish special featuring whatever seafood has been brought in from Cornish ports. The bright, modern restaurant is furnished with solid wooden benches and tables and has outdoor seating, too. Local beers are served, and you can get dishes to go.

Styled as a collaboration between star designer Tom Dixon and chef/entrepreneur Assaf Granit, this delightful restaurant is full of infectious joie de vivre and, most important, to-die-for food. With a mix of shared plates and main courses, the menu is a playful, refined celebration of Israeli cuisine, with dishes that range from the most delicious sea bass carpaccio to grilled octopus on Yemeni pancakes with a truffle harissa sauce. Leave room for the tahini ice cream.

Located in a former pharmacy, this small independent café sources its beans from single estates, aiming to bring the best flavors to the people of Cheltenham. It also serves cakes and snacks from local suppliers. If you're not sure which coffee to purchase, the staff will "prescribe" something for you.

The kind of smooth-running, welcoming all-day brasserie that is difficult to find in Paris these days, Colbert offers well-prepared bistro favorites like croque monsieur, escargot, and steak haché, along with bigger plates like pan-roasted sea trout with samphire and seaweed or confit duck. The service is professional but friendly and the atmosphere is stylish but comfortable. Although a neighborhood favorite, it's a swanky neighborhood, which is reflected in the prices, but a prix-fixe menu (two courses for £24.75 and three courses for £29.95) offers good value.

Located near Corbridge Roman Town, the best deli for miles around is filled with all manner of local produce, as well as specialty foods from small-time artisans across Europe. The lovely café upstairs serves delicious breakfasts, soups, and sandwiches.

This reliably good brasserie, one branch in an English chain, serves decent French-influenced cooking in a contemporary setting. Start with an order of excellent calamari, fried in bread crumbs with a subtle infusion of garlic, before moving on to a main of fish parmentier (pie with a potato topping) or a classic steak in peppercorn sauce served with french fries. Desserts are rich and tempting, although the simple French cheeseboard, taken with the last of the excellent bottle of red you had with dinner, can make for an unexpectedly fine finish. Reservations are recommended, especially on weekends.

It's worth negotiating the maze of lanes leading to this cozy, 17th-century, country pub 6 miles west of Henley-on-Thames. Choices could include John Dory with anchovy beignet and duck leg and lardons cooked in red wine. British cheeses and filling desserts round out the meal. There's a garden for open-air dining and live music on many evenings. Fixed-price lunches are a good deal. The restaurant is popular, so book ahead.

Originally a watering hole for foundry workers, this lovely old inn is now a welcoming gastropub, with industrial-chic exposed brick, wooden beams, flagstone floors, and open fireplaces. The menu changes daily, and the unfussy, reliably good dishes—noted for their use of fresh, local ingredients—might include beer-battered haddock with triple-cooked fries or pan-roasted sea trout with spring onion potatoes and tender-stem broccoli in a butter sauce. In summer, you can sit in a sunny courtyard with a glass from the varied wine list or a pint of local ale.

This successful chain serves up delicious juices and smoothies, as well as sandwiches, soups, and wraps.

The clue's in the name here—this popular local restaurant specializes in fresh, upscale seafood. Dishes are prepared with a European touch and frequently come with butter, cream, and other sauces, such as sardines served with lemon and parsley butter. Hot and cold shellfish platters are popular, as are the mussels in white wine and oysters in red wine shallot vinegar. The interior has a casual nautical theme with wooden floors and tables, porthole windows, and red sails overhead.

Locals and visitors alike make a beeline for this gastropub in a 16th-century building with a number of small dining spaces done in spare, contemporary-country style. Elegantly presented dishes might include dry-aged moorland sirloin in a peppercorn sauce, beer-battered haddock, or butternut squash with cauliflower tempura and curry broth. Set-price menus are sometimes available, and there are gluten-free options and a separate vegan menu. If you don't want to go the whole hog at lunchtime, wholesome sandwiches are also served (every day but Sunday). Three spacious guest rooms make it possible to linger.

Everyone feels a zillion times more glamorous just stepping inside this candlelit restaurant attached to the swank Georgian-era hotel of the same name. Straightforward but endlessly fun retro British favorites include classic English pea and ham soup, primary school-style mince and potatoes, smoked haddock soufflé, and sticky toffee pudding. You'll also find quaint English scones and crumpets for afternoon tea and nostalgic 1970s-style fish finger sandwiches for traditional early evening high tea.

With its oak-paneled, candlelit dining room and open fires, this traditional inn is an inviting rural dining spot. Old favorites such as duck breast in a port reduction, crispy pork belly with black pudding, or traditional Sunday roasts are served with vegetables fresh from the kitchen garden. There are also eight comfortable rooms that continue the traditional theme (£125 per night). Dogs are welcome and in fact have their own menu. The inn is 10 miles north of Skipton in the town of Grassington.

Medieval English cuisine meets molecular gastronomy in this reassuringly luxurious Blumenthal flagship, with two Michelin stars, within the Mandarin Oriental hotel. Try the signature "Meat Fruit" appetizer (last popular in the 16th century, it's a ball of ultrasmooth chicken liver parfait encased in a citrus-flavored gel "peel") or the much-more-appetizing-than-it-sounds "Rice and Flesh," a 15th-century dish of yellow saffron rice with beef cheeks and red wine. For dessert, don't miss the signature Tipsy Cake (circa 1810)—brioche soaked in Sauternes, brandy, and vanilla cream, with slices of pineapple slowly roasted on the restaurant's open-fire spit. A three-course set lunch (£59) offers good value, relatively speaking.

The only pub in Britain to be licensed under two names (the more informal one came courtesy of American GIs who were stationed here during World War II), this is one of Stratford’s most celebrated and consistently rated pubs, attracting actors since the 18th-century days of thespian David Garrick. Along with your pint of bitter, you can choose from the extensive pub-grub menu of fish-and-chips, steaks, burgers, and grills; there are also good-value light bites. Now part of the well-established Greene King Inns, it's not the most characterful of pubs. Still, the lovely veranda that overlooks the theaters and the river makes it worth a visit.

This lively Italian trattoria in the center of Rochester specializes in pasta and pizza, the best of which is the simple Napoletana pie, topped with mozzarella, anchovies, capers, and tomato sauce. If that's just not enough to satisfy your appetite, try a hearty calzone stuffed with two types of Italian cheeses, spicy salami, and tomatoes. There's also a good range of pasta, fish, and meat dishes. Best of all, the prices are very reasonable.

Being a hotel restaurant, Dovetale provides a whole-day experience worth sampling at any hour. The modern European, produce-led menu delivers on every level, with langoustine and your pick of steak cut from the Josper grill as two of the highlights. The breakfast is a big favorite with the Mayfair-based hedge fund crowd, who dress noticeably sharply for the first meal of the day, possibly enjoying the spiced-oat porridge. The dinner service retains a cozy yet elegant ambiance, with the low lighting perfectly suited to the lounge-like space where booths and banquettes rule.

This family-run traditional pub that dates back to the 16th century has flagstones, bare stone walls, an inglenook fireplace, an open fire in winter, and a beer garden in the summer. The homemade food leans toward the traditional, with superior versions of old favorites like fish pie. You'll also find more exotic selections like a vegan three-bean chili as well as Purbeck-brand honeycomb ice cream for dessert. The inn has 11 rooms for guests who want to stay the night. Wareham is 4 miles north of Corfe Castle via A351. 

Opposite the cathedral, this child-friendly tearoom and restaurant spread over two floors is ideal for lunch, coffee, or snacks. You can also sample one of Devon's famous cream teas, served with jam, scones, and clotted cream, or show up earlier for eggs Benedict or a cooked English breakfast. For lunch, try the Mediterranean-style couscous salad (with spring onions, tomato, red peppers, and focaccia), a "Devon fire burger," or just a sandwich. There's a good range of vegetarian, gluten-free, and dairy-free options, plus West Country beers and ciders. Tables are available outside in Cathedral Close in fine weather.

Close to St. James' Church, this traditional tavern known for its food has low beams, a flagstone floor, and a small courtyard. The long menu includes daily specials, local ales, and dishes like steak-and-ale pie and deep-fried fish-and-chips. Freshly baked ciabatta sandwiches served at lunchtime are easy on the wallet. The service is swift and ideal for those in a rush. There are also six rooms where you can stay.

Set back from the harbor, this elegant, Michelin-starred eatery offers sophisticated but relaxed dining, with views over Torbay from its Georgian windows. To start, you might have the option to try barbecue lobster with lobster custard, apple, and sorrel or cured Brixham mackerel with fennel yogurt and cucumber, followed by such main dishes as roasted rump of lamb or line-caught bass with shiitake and Thai green sauce. The highly skilled kitchen team is matched by the pleasant and attentive wait staff. At lunch, you can choose between the set menu (£32.50–£38.50), a multicourse tasting menu (£58), or a set-price à la carte menu (£57.50 or £75), which is also available in the evening alongside the evening tasting menu (£98.50).

Chef Philip Howard is committed to seasonality, bringing together well-matched ingredients in this relaxed, loftlike space that leans toward the modernist and minimalist. The deeply flavored, accomplished dishes have earned the restaurant a Michelin star (their vegetarian game is especially strong).