Bistro restaurants in England
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A
Primrose Café
The classic Clifton cafe, as popular for coffee with the Sunday papers as for an evening meal with chums. Pavement tables are dotted around Parisian-style, while the dining room is a cosy grotto of fairy-lights, white linen and church candles. British food with a French accent. A 2-/3-course menu (£15.95/18.95) is available.
reviewed
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Après LXIX
This achingly trendy bistro feels closer to Soho than Salisbury, with an artfully understated dining room filled with exposed brickwork and designer spotlights, and an imaginative menu with a magpie eye - Italian, French and Oriental flavours find their way into many dishes, all based around a solid reliance on good old British produce.
reviewed
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C
Porthminster Beach Café
Fresh from scooping top prize in a recent survey to find Britain's top coastal cafe, the Porthminster boasts a sexy Riviera vibe, a suntrap patio and a seasonal menu ranging from Provençal fish soup to pan-fried scallops. The result? Cornwall's top beach cafe, bar none.
reviewed
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D
Basilica
The menu at this groovy bistro visits more Mediterranean countries than your average InterRailer - expect meze, Parma ham parcels, grilled haloumi and pasta with chorizo. The brick-lined interior is dotted with jars of olives bigger than your head and tables hacked out of single chunks of wood.
reviewed
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E
Bistro de la Mer
An old fave with Falmouth foodies, this snug little bistro brings a soupçon of Gallic flair to Arwenack St. The tables are packed in tight and you'll be elbow-to-elbow with your neighbours, but the menu's authentically French and makes good use of fresh Cornish fish and seafood.
reviewed
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F
Sweeney's Bar Restaurant & Rooms
Count on decent Brit cooking in comfortable surrounds at Sweeney's. It's half chic wine bar, half restaurant-with-rooms: leather sofas and polished tables spread over two floors, with a beer garden for soaking up the rays.
reviewed
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Boathouse
Munch bistro standards (from steaks to spaghetti) and fresh fish at this breezy café on the seafront on the way to Paignton. You can hang out with a cappuccino on the sun-drenched terrace or sip a glass of white wine in chilled surrounds inside.
reviewed
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G
202
It’s hard to tell where the shop displays end and the dining tables begin at 202. Chic but understated, this boutique-come-bistro is a firm favourite of the ladies who lunch, with intriguing deli salads and Asian-tinged main courses.
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H
Zeffirelli's
Affectionately known as Zeff's by the locals, this buzzy pizza and pasta joint doubles as Ambleside's jazz club after dark. Artful lighting and big curvy seats conjure a cool vibe. The movie-meal combo costs £17.95, including a two-course meal and a ticket to the flicks.
reviewed
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I
Fistral Blu
Another great sundowner option, in the glass-and-steel retail complex behind Fistral Beach. Thai and Med flavours mix with Cornish ingredients in the upstairs restaurant while the ground-floor cafe turns out fish and chips and Ben & Jerry's.
reviewed
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Le D2
This bright and airy bistro is always busy, with diners drawn back again and again by the relaxed atmosphere, warm and friendly service, and a menu that takes fresh local produce and adds a twist of French sophistication.
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Frenchgate Café
An all-meals-in-one kind of place, here you can tuck into a tidy breakfast in the morning, a large sandwich or pasta dish at lunch and enjoy the delights of its quasi-Continental bistro menu in the evening.
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Maison Bleu
This superb seafood bistro is justly popular with locals for its imaginative preparations of salmon, skate, monkfish and more. It has crisp white-linen style, chic waiters and colourful marine murals.
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M
Prospect
The flavour of the local restaurant scene. It's a smart bistro, with slick presentation, from the dark varnished bar to the serving of specials like belly pork with local black pudding mash.
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Quarter
A gorgeous little wine bar and bistro with outdoor seating for that elusive summer's day.
reviewed
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David's
Town-house dining with a gentlemanly air. David's has been a big name on the Carlisle scene for some years, and it's still up there with the best. Expect original mantelpieces and overhead chandeliers partnered with suave country dishes.
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Hundred Monkeys Cafe
Surprisingly sleek bistro, decked out with leather sofas, pine tables and a big blackboard listing fresh pastas, salads and mains. If you've a spare half-hour ask about the origin of the name – the original 100th monkey.
reviewed
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Q
Bistro Montparnasse
This classy but cosy bistro serves zesty French dishes with an English twist amid chic décor and polished wood floors.
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Tin Fin
Perran's dining scene is dominated by cheap-and-cheerful pubs and fish-and-chips shops, but if you fancy something more substantial, this bright and breezy bistro turns out the town's best food. Slate floors, multicoloured chairs and light pine tables give it a fresh seaside feel, while the menu is chalked up daily on the blackboard.
reviewed
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Tannin Level
Old terracotta floor tiles, polished mahogany tables and gilt-framed mirrors and paintings create a relaxed yet elegant atmosphere at this hugely popular neighbourhood bistro. A competitively priced menu based on seasonal local produce – think a shank of lamb with honey-roasted carrots, or fish pie with mustard mash and smoked-cheese crust – means that you'd best book a table or face being turned away.
reviewed
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S
Sara's Bistro
Hearty homespun cooking is Sarah's raison d'être – big portions of roast chicken, lamb shanks and apple crumble, served without the faintest hint of fuss.
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Sam's
This much-loved locals' diner has long been a favourite for Fowey punters, but a recent refit has added extra space upstairs and new premises down by Polkerris Beach. Both offer a similar ’60s–retro vibe, with booth seats and big specials blackboards: the Samburgers are particularly worth a mention. No bookings.
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Olive Shed
Another popular place for waterside eating, serving mainly tapas and Med food in a bright and attractive setting.
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Lucy 4 at the Porthole
The homey old Porthole has been overhauled courtesy of Lucy Nicholson, of Lucy's of Ambleside fame. It boasts the same laid-back atmosphere, pick-and-mix tapas menu and wine-bar feel as the original Lucy 4, only this time steps from the Windermere shoreline.
reviewed
