Modern British restaurants in Europe
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Owens
Set in a 15th-century building that's decidedly modern inside, this place is a welcome change from Tewkesbury's tearooms. The menu features big, honest flavours and a modern take on classic British and French cuisine. Try the excellent two-course set lunch for £10.
reviewed
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Priors Croft
A grand folly opposite the theatre with quality pub-style food for enjoying inside or outside in the sunny garden.
reviewed
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Recruiting Sergeant
Close to the lovely village of Coltishall is this award-winning gastropub serving a fine selection of locally sourced meat and fish dishes. There's no contrived design style here: just honest food deftly cooked and served in hearty portions.
reviewed
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River Bar & Restaurant
Head chef Oliver Thomas won the 'Taste of Manchester' award in 2010 for his outstanding British cuisine, which emphasises the use of local produce and traditional cooking methods. The result is terrific: how about grilled native lobster with garlic butter and chips, or Welsh Salt Marsh lamb with sweet potato, apricots and sugar-snap peas? Floor-to-ceiling glass panels flood the room with light during the day, and make for romantic evening dining, with the twinkle of the city lights.
reviewed
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Roger Hickman's
Understated, classic elegance is what this place is all about: pale floorboards, white linen, bare walls and professional, unobtrusive service. In fact, there's nothing to distract you from the top-quality dishes such as smoked venison with fig chutney or spring lamb with sweetbreads, made with flair, imagination and a simple dedication to quality.
reviewed
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Tailors
Set in a former gentlemen's tailor shop, this elegant eatery serves prime ingredients – guinea fowl, pork belly and lamb from named farms – presented delicately in neat little towers.
reviewed
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Tatlers
This converted Victorian town house is home to one of the city's best eateries, where local suppliers and ingredients are as important as the final menu. The truly divine dishes are served in a series of unpretentious dining rooms. Come for the set lunch, an excellent-value choice, but be sure to book in advance.
reviewed
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Trout
This charming old-world pub, 2½ miles north of the city centre, has been a favourite haunt of town and gown for many years. Immortalised by Inspector Morse, it’s generally crammed with happy diners enjoying the riverside garden, though if you wish to eat, come armed with patience.
reviewed
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Vanilla
Relaxed basement restaurant popular with locals.
reviewed
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World Service Restaurant
Set in the courtyard of a 17th-century mansion and decked out with a eclectic selection of Asian ornaments, World Service feels rather colonial, but the tantalising food is firmly modern British with plenty of local produce – come at lunchtime for cheaper set menus. Bookings recommended.
reviewed
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Market
This fabulous restaurant is an ode to great, simple British food with a a hint of European thrown in. The light and airy space with bare brick walls, steel tables and basic wooden chairs reflects this simplicity. The menu manages to make classic cookery memorable with delights such as roast poussin with baby spring vegetables, and whole plaice with caper butter and chips.
reviewed
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HIX
Celebrity chef Mark Hix’s eponymous restaurant is all about seasonal British food. You’ll find such classics as fish and chips and sticky toffee pudding given an elaborate makeover, as well as more unusual fare: lamb’s tongue or silver mullet with whipped cauliflower. The decor is an eclectic collection of artworks from such renowned British artists as Tracy Emin and Damian Hirst.
reviewed
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Dinner by Heston Blumenthal
The most eagerly awaited restaurant opening of recent years, sumptuously presented Dinner, on the ground floor of the Mandarin Oriental, is a gastronomic tour de force, taking diners on a tour of British culinary history (with inventive modern inflections). Dishes carry historical dates to provide context and a sense of tradition, while the restaurant interior is a design triumph, from the glass-walled kitchen and its overhead clock mechanism to the large windows onto the park. The broth of lamb (c 1730) is a lovingly prepared infusion of flavour, and the cod in cider (c 1940) is a joy, but unless you order the set lunch, your bill may quickly spiral out of control. Book…
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Old Brewery
A working brewery with splendidly burnished 1000- litre copper vats at one end and a high ceiling lit with natural sunlight, the Old Brewery is perfectly located after staggering around Greenwich’s top sights. Right next to the Discover Greenwich exhibition, it’s a cafe by day, transforming into a restaurant in the evening, serving a choice selection of fine dishes carefully sourced from the best seasonal ingredients. The brickwork bar is an appetising prologue to dinner.
reviewed
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Restaurant at St Paul’s
The quality of the dishes at this restaurant, set in the crypt of St Paul’s, does a fair job of living up to the grandeur above. The short and simple menu offers two- or three-course lunches, including such dishes as potted lemon and thyme chicken and pork loin chop with a rarebit glaze. It also does a good-value daily express lunch (£15, including a glass of wine) and afternoon tea (served until 4.30pm Monday to Saturday).
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Create
A new social enterprise restaurant that not only serves superb British cuisine, but also provides jobs and work experience for homeless and marginalised people.
reviewed
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Farmer Browns
This excellent newcomer is making quite a reputation for itself, thanks to its commitment to Norfolk ingredients and an ever-changing, creative menu. The lunchtime menu is a bargain, the service is friendly and efficient, and you can expect the likes of Bingham blue and apricot gnocchi, pigeon breast with Turkish delight, or anything else that Stuart the chef concocts.
reviewed
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Farmhouse
This hip, multipurpose venue just outside the city centre is Canterbury's coolest retreat morning, noon and night. The day-time restaurant plates up cooked-to-order mains, all bursting with seasonal Kentish flavour, amid '60s cabinets, old wireless sets and other retro fittings. After dark the focus switches to the moody bar, which at weekends pounds to live bands. The tuned-in owners organise Canterbury's very popular Lounge on the Farm music festival.
reviewed
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Hart's Restaurant
Adjacent to Hart's boutique hotel, this contemporary restaurant has plush booths, extremely attentive service and surprisingly affordable prices, considering it offers central Nottingham's finest cuisine (deconstructed prawn cocktail, bacon-wrapped monkfish and so on).
reviewed
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Edward Moon's
Named after a famous travelling chef who cooked up the flavours of home for the British colonial service, this snug and just-refurbished eatery serves delicious, hearty English dishes, many livened up with herbs and spices from the East.
reviewed
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Michaelhouse
Sip fair-trade coffee and nibble focaccias among soaring medieval arches or else take a pew within reach of the altar at this stylishly converted church, which still has a working chancel. The simple lunch menu features quiche, soup and salads, as well as more substantial hot dishes, and has a good range of vegetarian options.
reviewed
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Vintner Wine Bar
Set in a town house from 1600, this quirky place is full of beams, exposed brickwork, and low ceilings on which to bang your head. Locals as well as out-of-towners come here for good food (mostly steaks, salads and roasts) and lively conversation.
reviewed
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No 21
A mellow eatery with subtle art on the walls and subtle lights on your food. There are imaginative fish, meat and veggie options - try the sea bass and chorizo or open mushroom ravioli.
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Columbine Restaurant
On the lane leading down beside the town hall, this understated restaurant is the top choice among in-the-know Buxtonites. The chef conjures up imaginative dishes using mainly local produce as well as sinful puddings. Bookings recommended.
reviewed
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Purnells
Exquisite, inventive dishes (such as ox cheek with lentils cooked in toffee) are served in an airy Victorian redbrick building with a striking modern interior. Run by celebrated chef Glynn Purnell.
reviewed