West Clandon Restaurant Guide

This smart gastroboozer is “a jolly nice place to go, whether à deux, or as a large group”; its “outstanding” British menu sets the local “benchmark for fish ’n’ chips” and “the fact that it is always busy says it all (even we, as regulars, who always book way in advance, sometimes cannot get our first-choice table!”).

This “reliable and busy Thai” has been a highlight of the local dining scene for over 45 years. The comfortable ‘Khan Tok’ dining room has been revamped, its cushions replaced by lounge seating – and is very popular.

“Set in a delightful village” in the Surrey Hills, this 17th-century red-brick cottage now houses a “delightful restaurant” where the “mild Moroccan influence on modern British food makes for a superb dining experience” (“I live in London and go specially”). “The staff cannot do enough to make your meal enjoyable – and that includes the charming owner”, Jack Forrest Foster.

2023 Review: A “stunning location… from a car park rooftop!” provides “amazing views over Guildford and the hills beyond” at this long-established fixture, known for its “wide selection of quality Thai dishes”.

“The view is unbeatable” (and what it overlooks is incorporated into the name) of this highly rated link in Richard Caring’s national chain; as for the rest, you can expect the usual “pretty” decor and a “decent menu selection” (“including healthy choices that don’t feel like a sacrifice”); “it isn’t cheap though, so save it for an occasion”.

The second link in the growing Brucan Pubs group, set up by James Lyon Shaw and Jamie Dobbin, who met during their days at the famous Ivy. By all accounts the three-year-old venture is “surprisingly good for a somewhat unprepossessing area”, and with “good-value set menus” to boot. Top Menu Tip – “in my experience the best dishes are the slow-cooked ones”.

2023 Review: “Good solid food” and a “large outdoor space for eating” makes this country pub a handy refuelling spot for visitors to the RHS gardens at nearby Wisley.

The “fancy burgers” usually hit the spot this year at TV chef Gordon Ramsay’s growing diffusion chain, with nine sites in the capital as of mid-2023 (and where the frozen chips are provided by another prominent chef now retired from front-line stove action: the venerable Pierre Koffmann). The odd “mixed experience” or “haphazard service” was still reported, but overall ratings were up.

In the chic Tunsgate Quarter, this “vibey” pan-Asian has set local tongues wagging since its spring 2022 opening; it’s a “fun place to visit” – the Ivy Asias being even more flamboyant than Richard Caring’s other (brasserie) spin-off chain – and the eclectic mix of Japanese and Chinese inspired dishes is ably abetted by “super serving staff who greet you like their favourite customers”.

“How nice to have a decent restaurant to round off your visit to the RHS gardens”, with a “short menu of good-quality food” in “attractive surroundings”. Wisley can get enormously busy, though, and service can struggle to cope with the sheer numbers.