York is renowned for its rich history and vibrant culinary scene, making it a must-visit destination for food lovers. The Good Food Guide’s list of a selection of the best restaurants in York celebrates the city’s diverse dining options, showcasing everything from traditional British cuisine to innovative modern dishes. Whether you’re seeking a fine dining experience or a cosy meal in a charming setting, the best restaurants in York offer a wealth of exceptional choices to suit every taste. This guide is your key to discovering the city’s outstanding gastronomic offerings.
Turkish chef Ali Açikgül opened this tiny bakery, pastry shop and café to specialise in various types of cheesecake – notably coffee, chocolate, pistachio and the beautiful shiny-topped Basque or San Sebas… Read more
Turkish chef Ali Açikgül opened this tiny bakery, pastry shop and café to specialise in various types of cheesecake – notably coffee, chocolate, pistachio and the beautiful shiny-topped Basque or San Sebastián versions (a top pick). In addition, he also sells cakes and cookies, bread and savoury börek, plus decent coffee, infusions and other soft drinks. There are a couple of tables inside the shop if you want to linger, although it's the cheesecake you're really here for. Note that the owner hosts regular workshops for baking novices.
Loved by locals and tourists alike, this Yorkshire institution promises smart, warm and remarkably consistent service across five sites including Harrogate, Northallerton, Ilkley and York. The latter opened in 1936 after founder F… Read more
Loved by locals and tourists alike, this Yorkshire institution promises smart, warm and remarkably consistent service across five sites including Harrogate, Northallerton, Ilkley and York. The latter opened in 1936 after founder Frederick Belmont sailed to America on The Queen Mary and, inspired by its opulent Art Deco interiors, drafted in the same craftsmen to design a splendid new tea room. Nine decades later, the charm lives on and refurbishment to the first-floor Belmont Room will see original features restored to their former glory. The Swiss-style menu rarely changes and covers breakfast (served all day), lunch dishes such as rösti or schnitzel, afternoon tea (bookable) and, of course, a cake trolley loaded with tempting fruit tarts and fondant fancies. Expect to queue at peak times and pay handsomely, but tucking into a warm fat rascal piled with butter and a pot of tea served in traditional silverware will always be worth the wait.
A relaxed restaurant with local produce at its heart
It was good news when we heard that Florencia Clifford, Hugo Hildyard and chef James Gilroy from brunch spot Partisan had taken over the premises formerly occupied by Rattle Owl for their second opening on Micklegate. Named after … Read more
It was good news when we heard that Florencia Clifford, Hugo Hildyard and chef James Gilroy from brunch spot Partisan had taken over the premises formerly occupied by Rattle Owl for their second opening on Micklegate. Named after the Romanian sculptor Constantin Brâncusi and open for brunch (Friday to Monday) and evenings (Thursday to Saturday), it features many well-tried Partisan classics (think Persian eggs, French toast, eggs Benedict) as well as a host of imaginative new ideas.
In the evening, you might start with a Basque pintxo such as a cocktail stick threaded with anchovy, olive and pickled pepper – a salty, green, explosive snack that we paired with a glass of crisp Basque Txakolina. Then mix-and-match small and larger plates from a line-up that features both meat and fish – maybe chalk stream trout with crab hollandaise, or crisp pheasant goujons served with a creamy peppercorn sauce, or tender beef short ribs matched with celeriac rémoulade.
Vegetables are at the heart of the menu, locally sourced from community food market Food Circle York, and inspired by a belief that food doesn’t have to be complicated to be good – try their lovely potato and Gruyère gratin, an artichoke heart tartine or squash with brown butter, sheep's curd and hazelnuts. For dessert there could be orange and cranberry sorbet or a chocolate pot with black-treacle ice cream, white chocolate and tofu ganache. Wines start at £26 a bottle.
It’s often a bit of a squeeze getting in, but if you push your way past the counter, you’ll discover a cosy dining room, plus a hidden outdoor courtyard and some excellent food. Mannion & Co specialises in brunch, … Read more
It’s often a bit of a squeeze getting in, but if you push your way past the counter, you’ll discover a cosy dining room, plus a hidden outdoor courtyard and some excellent food. Mannion & Co specialises in brunch, lunch and afternoon tea (plus occasional evening meals) and everything from eggs Benedict to their mighty ciabatta sandwiches is top-notch, beautifully produced and generously served. Blackboard specials change daily, their ‘deli boards’ are legendary, and at teatime you can choose between sweet or savoury scones. Loose-leaf tea is served from individual black cast iron teapots and their excellent coffee comes with a biscotti – a nice touch.
Long-known locally as an absolute banker for food, wine and hospitality, Melton's is synonymous with the idea of a treat. Inside, the Art Deco detailing, wood panelling and giant mural endure – even as surrounding Bishy Road… Read more
Long-known locally as an absolute banker for food, wine and hospitality, Melton's is synonymous with the idea of a treat. Inside, the Art Deco detailing, wood panelling and giant mural endure – even as surrounding Bishy Road thrusts forward, trendier than ever. Michael Hjort's head chef Calvin Miller is no stick-in-the-mud, however. Fresh as well as classic flavours make up generous set menus – witness dashi vinegar paired with smoked eel and Granny Smith's apple or Japanese milk bread added to a plate of Yorkshire lamb. Likeable bits and bobs show off a skill with baking (treacle and sesame bread with wild garlic butter, and tiny Cheddar shortbread sandwiches, for example), while starters might see a seasonal rally of charred asparagus, fluffed-up brown-butter hollandaise and bijou onion petals in a delicate tartlet. Pearly East Coast cod is matched with the restrained, vegetal flavours of maitake mushroom (aka hen of the woods), celery oil and bundled ribbons of celeriac, with a whey sauce pitched perfectly to bring it all together. Puddings such as caramelised pear soufflé with candied pecans and brown-butter ice cream are more straightforwardly luxurious. A short wine list covers most bases but the Melton's cellar has hidden depths, to which co-owner Lucy Hjort is an affable and enthusiastic guide.
A delightful daytime favourite on Micklegate, this indie café and arts space scores with its vintage decor and relaxed, slightly bohemian vibe. There are two smallish rooms, upstairs and down – the big marquee in the … Read more
A delightful daytime favourite on Micklegate, this indie café and arts space scores with its vintage decor and relaxed, slightly bohemian vibe. There are two smallish rooms, upstairs and down – the big marquee in the garden is for overspill and best considered on warm days. Brunch is the main event and the line-up is global, from sobrasada and goat’s cheese toast to a homely Persian chicken stew accompanied by a plain tortilla. They serve good-quality coffee too. Expect queues of shoppers outside, eager to snap up Partisan’s excellent sourdough loaves, cakes and pastries (we were tempted by their rhubarb pastel de nata).
After three decades under the same ownership, The Grange (a go-to spot for weddings, christenings and funeral teas) was put on the market in 2022 and snapped up by Tristan, Tom and James Guest. The brothers have transformed the or… Read more
After three decades under the same ownership, The Grange (a go-to spot for weddings, christenings and funeral teas) was put on the market in 2022 and snapped up by Tristan, Tom and James Guest. The brothers have transformed the original Regency townhouse into a quirkily decorated boutique hotel now named No.1 York (part of their GuestHouse collection), with Pearly Cow as its standalone restaurant. While there's a nod to vegetarians, the kitchen majors in 45-day salt-aged steaks, cooked over charcoal, served with a marrow bone and paired with peppercorn or béarnaise sauce – perhaps with a side order of the crispest beef-fat chips. There's plenty of seafood too: hazelnut-crusted halibut with saffron potatoes, fennel and orange was spot-on, although a sauce would have finished it off beautifully. Opening dishes are rather confusingly lumped together as ‘snacks, ‘ice’ and ‘small plates’, which can lead to over-ordering and an unexpectedly large bill. That said, a snack of creamy salt cod in a crisp taco and a wonderfully fresh tuna tartare (with soy and bonito wrapped in sour cream) both hit the high notes. Other winners range from charred mackerel with pomegranate and fennel to their signature beef tartare embellished with oyster cream, beef jam and Exmoor caviar. For afters, our textbook raspberry soufflé outshone a rather prosaic white chocolate parfait. The well-spread wine list includes a Yorkshire sparkler, and we like their original take on afternoon tea, too: billed as 'afternoon sea', it delivers oysters, mussels, prawn cocktail, crab on toast, garlicky scallops and smoked salmon scones for £38 (add £20 a head for bottomless rosé). Despite a few minor misgivings, Pearly Cow is a very creditable addition to York's restaurant scene.
High-profile chef Tommy Banks and his family (the team behind the Black Swan at Oldstead) have renovated and transformed what was the old Bay Horse Inn in York (the name is still carved over the door) into a destination restaurant… Read more
High-profile chef Tommy Banks and his family (the team behind the Black Swan at Oldstead) have renovated and transformed what was the old Bay Horse Inn in York (the name is still carved over the door) into a destination restaurant. The restoration of this rambling, Grade II-listed Victorian inn has cleverly retained enough of its original character while adding a relaxed, contemporary feel with wool kilims, Scandi-style chairs and oak tables – their legs a tangle of metal ‘roots’. Having experimented with small plates, large plates, sharing plates and a successful business in takeaways, they have settled on a tasting menu making use of ingredients and foraged pickings gleaned from the 20-acre family farm and the countryside around Oldstead. Diners are likely to find the likes of pine, sea buckthorn and hyssop scattered throughout the menu. The signature menu swings along with a dozen small courses presented and explained by a young, well-drilled team. Naturally, it reflects whatever is being harvested at the farm, along with a productive line in preserves and ferments. In spring, this might mean a brined and barbecued onion, garnished with wild garlic buds, shallot powder and lemon thyme leaves – all embellished with earthy chanterelles and a rich whey and fermented onion sauce and a mushroom beurre noisette. Venison loin is cooked in minerally juniper and served with smoked beetroot purée with sweet notes from a flowering currant jus, while crab ‘custard’ gets a vibrant green parsley and mussel sauce, complemented by a finger of lightly fried brioche topped with crabmeat and finished with a parsley and elderflower emulsion – a sort of posh toastie. Drinks are taken seriously, with an imaginative menu of pre-dinner cocktails utilising a whole range of herbs and foraged elements including lemon verbena and woodruff. Wine-matching packages are offered, as well as by-the-glass selections from an expansive list that starts at £45 (or £13 for a 250ml can). It’s a three-hour tour de force that, like many multi-course menus, can get arduous, but there is no debate over the skill, originality and sheer chutzpah shown by Tommy Banks, head chef Will Lockwood and his team.
Neil Bentinck took York by storm when he arrived in 2016 and started serving exciting, inventive modern dishes with a pan-Asian twist. Since then, he has barely put a foot wrong, earning Skosh something of a cult following –… Read more
Neil Bentinck took York by storm when he arrived in 2016 and started serving exciting, inventive modern dishes with a pan-Asian twist. Since then, he has barely put a foot wrong, earning Skosh something of a cult following – scoring a table means booking well in advance. There’s nothing showy about the 40-seater restaurant, a palette of grey and yellow, rustic hand-thrown crockery and wooden tables, with a row of stools at the chef's table overlooking the open kitchen. The name Skosh is a contraction of the Japanese word sukoshi (meaning small), a clue that the kitchen delivers small plates – around 25 of them at prices ranging from a few pounds for a Lindisfarne oyster with cucumber and jalapeño granita to just under a tenner for miso-glazed hake with courgette, pickled lemon and sunflower-seed pesto. You could limit yourself to three dishes per person, but it's worth splashing out – especially when the line-up promises fried popcorn chicken (with a sweetcorn sauce and Thai basil), cauliflower pakoras with mint, tamarind and yoghurt, or tandoori pigeon skewers. It’s only a mouthful, but a cube of sea trout cured in kecap manis (sweet soy sauce), topped with marshmallow and finished with peanut and lime is outstanding, while their lovely sourdough is served with Acorn Dairy butter and gunpowder salt. And if there is one unmissable item, it’s ‘hen’s egg’, a dish that has been on the menu since day one: a ceramic eggshell is filled with a mousse of Summerfield's cheese, but dig down and you'll find a mix of egg yolk, crunchy crumbs, leeks, black vinegar and sweet sherry (ingredients are tweaked from time to time). Drinks are equally eclectic, from seasonal cocktails and craft beers to a slate of global wines.
Back in 2013, Andrew Pern (chef/patron of the Star Inn at Harome) turned a dilapidated old engine house beside the Ouse into a splendid riverside restaurant in one of the best locations in the city. Its outdoor terrace is perfect … Read more
Back in 2013, Andrew Pern (chef/patron of the Star Inn at Harome) turned a dilapidated old engine house beside the Ouse into a splendid riverside restaurant in one of the best locations in the city. Its outdoor terrace is perfect for drinks or for dining (there are lovely views down the river), while indoors you can eat in the gloriously sunny garden room furnished with rich red velvet banquettes, vintage lampshades and white linen tablecloths. It's all very classy for what is essentially an informal brasserie – though with full-on restaurant prices. Business begins with breakfast until midday, when the kitchen switches to an all-day menu with elegant starters of home-cured salmon and crème fraîche or white asparagus with ewe’s curd and a frisée salad. Mains include Indian-spiced roast celeriac, lamb shoulder with whisky and rosemary gravy, and an outstanding dish of halibut served with Whitby crab on crushed new potatoes and a langoustine bisque. Jelly, cheesecake, chocolate syllabub and sticky date pudding are among a choice of desserts, while the substantial wine list offers plenty by the glass. The restaurant has always welcomed families, so expect an attractive children’s menu of Yorkshire pudding with gravy, chicken goujons, and mac 'n' cheese too. Andrew Pern knows how and who to please.
Andrew Pern (the Star Inn at Harome, et al) has the knack of securing the most superior locations for his restaurants. His latest acquisition, in the former York Minster choir school, is a stunning Gothic listed building within th… Read more
Andrew Pern (the Star Inn at Harome, et al) has the knack of securing the most superior locations for his restaurants. His latest acquisition, in the former York Minster choir school, is a stunning Gothic listed building within the precincts of the mighty cathedral. While an all-day menu delivered mixed results, the real winner here is the location and the sweeping outdoor terrace. A table in the sunshine with a chilled glass of Hattingley Valley sparkling wine, plus a dish of roast merguez sausage or a burger with skinny fries from the ‘light bites’ menu (12-6pm) is hard to resist – especially with a close-up view of the Minster thrown in.
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