Member perks at 2023’s Best Local Restaurants Published 30 May 2024
2023's Best Local Restaurant winners are ready and waiting to welcome Good Food Guide members with a little something extra. From complimentary Champagne and snacks at Pompette in Oxford to 20% off your bill at Quince in Kent, explore all the perks on offer at Britain's best locals.
Member perks are available exclusively to members of The Good Food Guide. Not a member? Join today.
Playing a starring role at the Artisan Market in Edgbaston, Chapter covers a lot of bases in one stylish, streamlined package. Weekend breakfasts should start the day as you mean it to go on, a smart bar with glitzy cocktails open… Read more
Playing a starring role at the Artisan Market in Edgbaston, Chapter covers a lot of bases in one stylish, streamlined package. Weekend breakfasts should start the day as you mean it to go on, a smart bar with glitzy cocktails opens out to a terrace for drinking in the Birmingham sun, and dining takes place in a smartly attired room with op-art banquettes and an open kitchen. It all looks great (or 'annoyingly photogenic, if your partner insists on snapping') and the whole show is run by a team of impressively knowledgeable staff. Menus (fixed-price or carte) deal in the kind of modern brasserie dishes that city-dwellers love to eat: Caesar salad made with smoked mackerel; ham hock rarebit; chicken ballotine with couscous and chimichurri; market fish in, say, curried cream or lemon and caper butter. Simple bistro desserts won't lack for takers when it comes to strawberry pavlova or a chocolate and pistachio mousse topped with raspberries and a brandy snap. Sunday roasts are an invaluable local amenity, especially for locals who are partial to crackled pork rack or dry-aged beef rump with Yorkshire pud, perhaps served with a side of cauliflower cheese. Drappier Champagnes head up a by-the-glass wine list that isn't pedantic enough to give vintage dates, even for the reds.
Hebden has gone hip while our backs were turned. It has always been a place of laid-back cafés and cake shops, but a boho wave has rippled through the stone-built town centre: one well-travelled visitor almost felt their&nb… Read more
Hebden has gone hip while our backs were turned. It has always been a place of laid-back cafés and cake shops, but a boho wave has rippled through the stone-built town centre: one well-travelled visitor almost felt their compass-needle juddering towards Hoxton. That said, the town is still Yorkshire through and through, and here is a place that suits it to a nicety. It helps to pronounce Coin in the French manner, as it's on a corner site – a flatiron wedge of a building that was once (what else?) a bank. The decor also lends itself to that high-end vibe, with exposed brickwork, ironwork and plenty of space between the wooden tables. Young, casually dressed waiting staff are a delight, and efficiently on top of their game. An inspired sharing menu has plenty of modern brasserie energy, opening perhaps with a clutch of Carlingford oysters to be doused in the house chilli sauce (imagine a thicker Tabasco). Asparagus and sorrel splashed in PX vinegar is fresh and delicious, and we did enjoy the pin-sharp green sauce for all its liberally applied ubiquity – especially with the excellent charcuterie. Wandering into the more robust precincts of the menu, one might stumble on a juicy onglet with Garstang Blue in red wine, a better bet than the chicken-thigh version of cassoulet, which lacked seasoning and punch when we visited. By contrast, the puffed choux chips dusted in finely grated Parmesan should definitely not be passed up. Classic desserts major on set creams and custards. Fondue Sundays sound like fun, likewise the adventurous list of low-intervention wines.
Rightly valued by locals who feel 'so lucky' to have this airy, family-run bistro on their doorstep, Four & Twenty is a true indie. In a Lakeland town, that means being something to everyone – which is accomplished by br… Read more
Rightly valued by locals who feel 'so lucky' to have this airy, family-run bistro on their doorstep, Four & Twenty is a true indie. In a Lakeland town, that means being something to everyone – which is accomplished by bringing local ingredients and good technique to every occasion. Consequently, a celebratory dinner with good-value matched wines looks just as 'seasonally superb' as a speedy (and terrific value) set lunch. The 'spectacular' signature Cheddar cheese soufflé, twice-baked and incredibly light, is a reliable way to start, or try a house-made pressed terrine of Cumbrian pork and chorizo (perfect with a glass of Penny Lane Pinot Noir from New Zealand). To follow, the 'attention to detail' that customers love sees smoked butter added to a pile of crushed potatoes in a dish of well-timed cod, summer vegetables and chive butter sauce, or some locally produced St James cheese added to the veggie lasagne (packed with wood-roasted peppers and spring vegetables). Everything is generously served, including desserts such as sticky toffee pudding or an airy upside-down strawberry cheesecake, scattered with shortbread crumbs and accompanied by a scoop of strawberry ripple ice cream; if that's too much to contemplate, coffee and (local) toffee might fit the bill.
The intersection of Fourth Avenue and Church Road provides the distinctly American-sounding name of this popular wine shop and eatery opposite the old Hove Town Hall. With its bottle-stacked shelves and counter seating, the whole … Read more
The intersection of Fourth Avenue and Church Road provides the distinctly American-sounding name of this popular wine shop and eatery opposite the old Hove Town Hall. With its bottle-stacked shelves and counter seating, the whole place feels assiduously dedicated to the business of serious (but fun) eating and drinking, and while the ethos of mixing and matching plates has effectively evolved backwards (as elsewhere) into the considerably more antiquated mode of a smaller plate followed by a larger one, the net is still flung wide for inspiration. Pickling and preserving are enthusiastically favoured. Cured chalkstream trout with saffron-pickled endive in blackcurrant-leaf oil might compete with aubergine miso in katsu with pickled carrots or prosciutto di Parma with flat peach panzanella and black garlic glaze. Among the larger possibilities may be rump of Herdwick hogget with goat's curd in lamb and basil dressing, or sea bass offset with a torrent of assertive flavours from seaweed gnocchi, sorrel and fermented blueberries. And with a whole world of appetising nibbles ranging from whipped cod's roe to houmous with preserved lemon, zaatar and lavosh crackers, no appetite need go unsatiated. Just make sure to leave room for the banana parfait, fennel-pollen panna cotta or affogato with a tot of Pedro Ximénez. If you enjoyed the glass or two of wine you tried with the food, buy a bottle to take home. The stylistically arranged list has been chosen with an authoritative nose and palate. Small glasses start at £7, half-bottle measures at £18.
Spreading like proved dough over two floors of a Grade II-listed building on thriving Trinity Square, Hearth comprises a bakery (open through the day at the back end of the week) and a first-floor dining room in the hands of Ryan … Read more
Spreading like proved dough over two floors of a Grade II-listed building on thriving Trinity Square, Hearth comprises a bakery (open through the day at the back end of the week) and a first-floor dining room in the hands of Ryan Telford, who has stints with big-name chefs including Bruce Poole and Phil Howard under his belt. Each area of the place has its own allurements: perhaps take in a blood-orange Margarita before beginning your ascent. The format of small plates preceding larger ones may be familiar enough, but the smaller items are quite substantial in themselves. A merguez Scotch egg with harissa cherry ketchup catapults an old favourite into the glamour bracket, or you might begin with barbecued mackerel in green sauce with an enterprising yoghurt of burnt spring onion. If you've paced yourself sufficiently, move on to teriyaki monkfish with kimchi greens and puffed wild rice, or ox cheek cooked 'low and slow' with a cloud of buttery mash and crisp-fried onions. On Sundays, there are roasts to beat the band (including one involving cod loin), prior to gingery rhubarb and apple crumble or a bread and butter pudding fashioned from croissants. The good-hearted friendliness of the staff is commended by one and all. Slates of tangy whites and savoury reds by the glass lead off a wine list that inspires confidence.
‘Geordie comfort food’ is the tagline at this seafront venue, and they’re not kidding. Belt-loosening portions of north-eastern home cooking are served with abundant good cheer, and readers are united in their pr… Read more
‘Geordie comfort food’ is the tagline at this seafront venue, and they’re not kidding. Belt-loosening portions of north-eastern home cooking are served with abundant good cheer, and readers are united in their praise. ‘Great value for money without any compromise on quality’ thought one, while others point to the ‘lovely welcoming service’. Hinnies (sibling to Dobson & Parnell and Blackfriars in Newcastle) is certainly a cut above the usual kiss-me-quick fish and chip joints. The café-like front area by the bar has smart wooden tables, an attractive rough-hewn wooden wall, and views (of a sort) across the road to the sea. Further back is a more sedate area with lower lighting and banquettes. A typical meal might start with caramelised red onion tart and goat's cheese mousse, or an intensely flavoured mushroom soup enlivened by a dribble of truffle oil. Pan haggerty, the classic Northumbrian hotchpotch, often makes an appearance among the mains, or you might choose a large bowlful of well-stewed beef casserole, served with pleasing mash, lightly cooked shredded cabbage and a 'cobbler' dumpling cooked to fork-challenging crispness. Puddings, too, are as comfy as a cosy couch: mulled fruit crumble, a wonderful wintry riff on the theme, comes with crunchy granola covering the stewed fruit and a scoop of ginger ice cream. Workmates out on a treat, lunching ladies and the odd tourist keep things convivial even in winter, while in summer a front terrace comes into play. Weekend brunch includes the aptly named ‘Hinnies belta’ full English. To drink, bottled ales (try Tyne Bank’s Northern Porter with the beef) make a worthwhile alternative to the varied choice of wines and cocktails, all served with northern geniality by bright young local staff. Canny!
* Tom Kitchin has announced that Kora will be closing permanently at the end of Janaury 2025.*
Kora is an alternative name for Persephone, the Greek goddess of spring and new beginnings, and it seems that the deity has answered t… Read more
* Tom Kitchin has announced that Kora will be closing permanently at the end of Janaury 2025.*
Kora is an alternative name for Persephone, the Greek goddess of spring and new beginnings, and it seems that the deity has answered the prayers not only of Edinburgh diners but also the restaurant’s owners Tom and Michaela Kitchin. Opened in 2018, then forced to close during the pandemic, this re-born bar and dining room is, arguably, even better than ever. It's the sort of neighbourhood bistro that suits once-a-week locals as well as customers coming from further afield. A crack team of Dominic Jack (chef-director of the Kitchin Group’s four restaurants) and head chef James Chapman (formerly at Kitchin’s Stockbridge pub, Scran & Scallie) deliver a genuinely seasonal Scottish menu – a dish on offer one week may be gone the next. We were impressed by everything we ate at our relaxed lunchtime visit – thanks to the friendliness of staff. Snacks included broccoli tempura with an Asian dressing involving four stems of tender veg in a light, salted batter with a ginger-zingy chilli sauce for dipping. A trio of hand-dived Orkney scallops, lightly bronzed from the pan with each sliced in two for ease of eating, rested on a bed of salt-baked celeriac purée with an assortment of intense miniature toppings (tiny golden raisins to amplify the sweetness, caperberries and diced green apple to cut through the richness) – complex flavours, expertly handled and generously portioned. A fleshy pair of bacon ribs to follow, supplied by Shaws Fine Meats of Lauder, came with a fried egg, pineapple salsa, cabbage and Koffmann fries – a namecheck to Tom Kitchin’s famous mentor at La Tante Claire. The fall-off-the-bone meat, stickily glossy, found its foil in the chunky salsa (a classic match of sweet and sour), though less might have been more here: either the excellent egg-topped cabbage or perfectly salted chips would have been enough by themselves. There was no faulting a 'floating island' with custard and crunchy pralines zigzagged with caramel sauce, either. With more than 30 wines available by the glass and advice from a knowledgeable sommelier, individual tastes are easily accommodated; a glass of chilled Beaujolais Villages was a smashing match for the ribs.
Neighbourhood French fancy catering for north Oxford locals
Summertown locals are lucky to have family-run Pompette on their doorstep and they’re eager to applaud every aspect of this little slice of French bonhomie in the north of the city. With its walls emblazoned with artwork, a … Read more
Summertown locals are lucky to have family-run Pompette on their doorstep and they’re eager to applaud every aspect of this little slice of French bonhomie in the north of the city. With its walls emblazoned with artwork, a gorgeous summertime terrace and professional but personable staff, no wonder it is reckoned to be ‘an extra special place’. And that’s before we get to the food.
Chef/co-owner Pascal Wiedemann spent 14 years shaking the pans in big-name London kitchens (from Racine and Terroirs to Six Portland Road), before bringing his vision of bourgeois French cuisine to Oxford.His menu is entrenched in the classics, but with the odd detour across the border. Fish soup, champignons à la grecque and côte de boeuf share the billing with ham and Manchego croquettes, white crab with ajo blanco, and grilled rabbit with Bomba rice, chorizo and piquillo peppers.French farmhouse cheeses, poached apricots and canelés de Bordeaux with salted rum caramel (Friday and Saturday nights only) round off a simple, satisfying offer.
Alternatively, drop by for poulet frites on Wednesday nights or steak frites on Thursday, if you prefer; they even do a proper petit-déjeuner from 10am. Pompette is the charming French word for tipsy, so we do need to mention the libations: Ricard, Lillet Blanc, Picon Bière and Normandy cider all get a look-in alongside a list of patriotically French wines (plus the odd interloper).
‘Brilliant cooking, kind owners, great team, seriously reasonable pricing,' commented a fan of this well-liked venture from Ben Hughes and Rafael Lopez (formerly at the Goods Shed in Canterbury). The intimate, simply decorat… Read more
‘Brilliant cooking, kind owners, great team, seriously reasonable pricing,' commented a fan of this well-liked venture from Ben Hughes and Rafael Lopez (formerly at the Goods Shed in Canterbury). The intimate, simply decorated restaurant in a small Victorian seaside town two miles east of Margate really is a breath of fresh air. Seasonality is at the heart of the compact menu – this is where local means local – and the two chefs prove their pedigree by following the calendar unerringly. They also have no truck with bizarre marriages of ingredients or avant-garde techniques. Game season, for example, has delivered a fabulous roast partridge breast and confit legs accompanied by nothing more than a dollop of bread sauce, watercress (fresh and puréed) and roasting juices. This dish came from the excellent-value set lunch (preceded by a delicate Crown Prince squash and Shropshire Blue tart), but the brief, regularly changing carte exudes an elegant simplicity in presentation and flavour, too. A starter of beautifully judged, meltingly tender ox cheek with cauliflower and mustard cream could be followed by a perfectly timed hake fillet with salsify and mussels in a pool of rich, pungent, aromatic saffron sauce. We also lapped up the showstopping finale – a cheese course of creamy, semi-soft Burwash Rose, turned into something extraordinary with the addition of a slice of carrot cake and a dash of sweet quince purée. This is triumphant cooking, displaying an instinctive feel for what is right and natural on the plate. The wine list is built on interest, appeal and value, with good choice by the glass and bottle (from £25.75).
It might not boast sea views, but this low-slung little restaurant in a pretty coastal village on the shores of the Moray Firth does have a sunny little beer garden, while the interiors exude a cool, vintage seaside-chic… Read more
It might not boast sea views, but this low-slung little restaurant in a pretty coastal village on the shores of the Moray Firth does have a sunny little beer garden, while the interiors exude a cool, vintage seaside-chic vibe. Ruth and Barry Scott care about provenance, with a blackboard by the door highlighting local producers from Moray and beyond: haddock and monkfish from Peterhead, 'langoustines straight from the harbour' and the 'best hand-dived scallops ever tasted'. Starters on the all-day menu include a moreish salad of roasted beets, braised leeks, lightly whipped feta and walnuts alongside deliciously spicy Thai-style Shetland mussels. To follow, the seafood chowder with crispy gnocchi and zhoug in a fiery chilli and coriander sauce is a creamy medley of piscine pleasures, while steaks and seasonal game provide a more meaty alternative. Dessert might bring an orange and almond cake with tart raspberry sorbet or indulgently retro knickerbocker glory. Bread and cakes are baked in-house, and there's a range of artisan, stone-baked pizzas and pizzette topped with, say, salty anchovies and salsa verde or rosemary, sea salt and olive oil. To drink, the craft beer is from the Spey Valley and the Salty Dog house gin is made by the Benromach Distillery in Forres, although the wine, produced by the owners' friends at Albet i Noya in Catalonia (the first organic vineyard in Spain), has further to travel. Factor in 'beautiful' cocktails and 'service from cheerful and knowledgeable staff,' and the Bothy make a great little pit stop.
What might once have been the rectory of the euphoniously named village of Slaggyford has been a hostelry since Victorian times. Outdoor tables will be a definite summer lure to hikers on the nearby Pennine Way, but the considered… Read more
What might once have been the rectory of the euphoniously named village of Slaggyford has been a hostelry since Victorian times. Outdoor tables will be a definite summer lure to hikers on the nearby Pennine Way, but the considered transformation of the Kirkstyle Inn into a modern dining pub with rooms seals it as a valuable regional asset. Nick Parkinson (formerly of the Royal Oak, Paley Street) was persuaded to forsake the embrace of Berkshire for these wilder environs by an enterprising property developer, but the new home feels like a perfect fit. The cons, including fitted wine shelves, are all definitely mod but the makeover doesn't seem ersatz; the flagstone floors are undisturbed and, most importantly, the kitchen is off and running. A starter of North Sea crab, peas and chopped fermented asparagus was a bravura dish, the various green elements in perfect balance with the creamily dressed, fresh crustacean. Elsewhere, loose-textured duck liver parfait was offset by the sharpness of blackberries and the textural snap of granola. An aspirational main course of halibut, which came with beurre blanc cut with fragrant dill oil, plus a mishmash of brown shrimps, chanterelles, pickled grapes and samphire, turned out to be a safer wager than the more prosaic fish and chips; alternatively, you might opt for breast and confit leg of guinea fowl with crushed potatoes, morels and leek. To finish, rhubarb and pistachio crumble with rhubarb sorbet was pleasantly tart and fresh, while cherries and almonds offered inspired contrasts to a dark chocolate crémeux. Drinking is a particularly happy experience, especially as prices begin at a mere £3 for a small glass of Chilean Merlot. Even the 'classed growth' claret and white Burgundy are offered at prices that will have city types green with envy.
Free-spirited chef and restaurateur Deri Reed set up the Warren as a community hub – a funky local venue driven entirely by renewable energy and run by a bevy of ‘patient and kind’ staff. Inside is a labyrinth of… Read more
Free-spirited chef and restaurateur Deri Reed set up the Warren as a community hub – a funky local venue driven entirely by renewable energy and run by a bevy of ‘patient and kind’ staff. Inside is a labyrinth of little rooms lit by candles and fairy lights, with exposed beams, vintage trappings and shelves of homemade provisions – a perfect backdrop for a rolling programme of quizzes, open-mic nights and sundry get-togethers. The cooking is wholesome and honest to a fault but also a bit leftfield, garnering influences from around the globe while championing local organic produce with a 'low carbon footprint’. At lunchtime that might mean anything from Câr-y-Môr crab cakes with tomato bisque, roast courgettes, pickled samphire and steamed seasonal greens to bowls of XO noodles with marinated tofu or a toasted sandwich ‘melter’ stuffed with Hazelwell Farm organic beef, Haford raw-milk cheese rarebit and tomato relish. In the evening, the kitchen also brings on board the likes of aubergine and lentil moussaka, rump steak or baked whole sea bass with Pembrokeshire new potatoes and seaweed butter. For afters, perhaps order some Perl Las cheese, Conti’s ‘Italian/Welsh’ ice cream or gooseberry, elderflower and mint fool. To drink, there’s a modest choice of artisan wines and Farmhouse Pilsner from Sobremesa in Talgarth – although one fan swears by the nettle tea. In addition to helming the Warren, Reed also runs Cegin Hedyn, a ‘pay what you can canteen’ that operates weekly from the nearby Lammas Street Community Centre.
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