Hardens Guide to the Best Restaurants in Berkhamsted
Hardens guides have spent 32 years compiling reviews of the best Berkhamsted restaurants. On Hardens.com you'll find details and reviews of 46 restaurants in Berkhamsted and our unique survey based approach to rating and reviewing Berkhamsted restaurants gives you the best insight into the top restaurants in every area and of every type of cuisine.
Featured Berkhamsted Restaurants
1. Caldesi in Campagna
Italian restaurant in Bray
Old Mill Ln - SL6
“Within walking distance of the Monkey Island and Bray high street” – Giancarlo & Katie Caldesi’s “relaxed sister establishment to Caldesi in Marylebone” occupies a converted house complete with “a great bar and attractive glasshouse-type” addition. The dishes from its “excellent, typically Italian menu” are, say fans, “fantastic” and “the cost is rather like loose change compared to the nearby Fat Duck”.
2. The Dining Room at Cliveden
International restaurant in Taplow
Cliveden Rd - SL6
The “spectacular drive up to the property” is all part of the experience at this majestic ancestral pile of the Astor family (host, in its day, to the events behind the Profumo scandal; where Meghan stayed before marrying Prince Harry; and nowadays owned by the National Trust). The dining room occupies a “gorgeous hall” primely located within the property and with “great views”. As you might expect, a visit is an experience as much as it is a gourmet spectacular, and although cooking from chef Chris Hannon (replacing Paul O’Neill in October 2021) is generally well-received, feedback follows the up-and-down pattern established over many years here. A typical example: “lovely room, pretty good food actually but it isn’t a restaurant that wows. Some dishes were very good but it was a case of hit-and-miss, especially for the high price, and service was good but not outstanding”. Top Tip – “perfect afternoon tea for special occasions”.
3. Sindhu
Indian restaurant in Marlow
The Compleat Angler - SL7
“Incredibly original Indian cuisine served gracefully in a wonderful location” makes this well-commented-on Marlow destination one of the country’s top grand Indians outside the capital. “A beautiful dining room overlooking the Thames” and with a “fabulous view of Marlow Weir” (gorgeous in daytime, perhaps less impactful at night) is the venue for “an enormously enjoyable, fine-dining take on Indian cuisine that’s beautifully presented,: “with lovely spicing, but never being overwhelmed by too much heat”. It’s “one of those experiences where practically everything is spot on”.
4. Paris House
British, Modern restaurant in Woburn
Woburn Park - MK17
“An incredible location, with a fabulous driveway through herds of deer” helps set an impressive tone at this striking mock-Tudor, timber building (originally built in France in 1878), which sits in the grounds of Woburn Abbey. It’s long been known as a foodie destination, and on current form, reports acclaim “perfection in food and setting” with “slick service and food that’s to die for”. “Why that one Michelin star is so elusive to regain is a mystery. (We have been eating at Paris House since it very first opened in 1983! After the happy days of Peter Chandler it went through a difficult phase. But Phil Fanning the chef stayed with it and eventually acquired the business. He hasn’t looked back. It remains a favourite and the food and wine are superb)”.
5. Hawkyns by Atul Kochhar
Indian restaurant in Amersham
16 High Street - HP7
If you remember ‘Four weddings’, this very characterful, beamed sixteenth-century pub in the town centre was the filming location for the bit where Hugh and Andie first start getting it together. Its food in recent years has been overseen by star Indian chef, Atul Kochhar, and is a highly rated curry favourite in (nearly) all reports.
6. Artichoke
French restaurant in Amersham
9 Market Sq - HP7
Laurie Gear’s “exceptional restaurant nestling in Old Amersham” has been “a favourite for two decades” and – having opened in 2002 – was “belatedly awarded a Michelin star” in 2019. “The best restaurant for miles” in this part of the outer burbs, it is one of the most commented-on restaurants in our annual diners’ poll. One or two reports did include some ‘rough edges’ this year (“a return to form after a former disappointment…”; “a couple of dishes were odd, but never boring!”) but the main theme was of “divine” food, “exceptional value tasting menus” and “delightful matching wines”, all delivered by “attentive and knowledgeable staff”. “I almost hate to give a good review as more people will find this true gem!”
7. Zaza
Italian restaurant in Berkhamsted
21-23 Lower Kings Road - HP4
2022 Review: Set in a “lovely building” with tables under a 200-year-old olive tree, this restaurant – one of eight in a local chain – is frequently packed with regulars, who come back for its “good honest Italian fare at a reasonable price”. There’s “something for everyone on the menu”.
8. The Gatsby
British, Modern restaurant in Berkhamsted
97 High St - HP4
2021 Review: “Well cooked and presented meals” – and “good value”, too – are served at this unusual venue in the foyer of the beautifully preserved 1930s Rex cinema. There’s also a cocktail bar with live pianist – and a particularly strong lunch and pre-film menu.
9. The Alford Arms
British, Modern restaurant in Frithsden
An “absolute favourite pub” – this “lovely spot” in a wooded valley just north of London is a “good local standby” that “is very popular at weekends, when booking is advisable”. “We would go back, less for the food perhaps, but certainly for the location and ambience”.
10. Crocker’s Table
British, Modern restaurant in Tring
74 High Street - HP23
“Fabulous food” (including “outstanding vegetarian options”) brings people together at chef Scott Barnard’s sociable chef’s table. “Think of sitting round a table with your friends cooking in front of you, chatting and explaining what they’re doing. When you’ve finished your 6 or 12 courses, you will have spoken to most of the guests at the same sitting as you (15 maximum)”. There’s a separate cellar bar and dining room. The spin-off restaurant-with-rooms in Henley closed down just as we went to press.
11. The Bricklayers Arms
British, Traditional restaurant in Flaunden
Hogpits Bottom - HP3
Emphatically “not your most ordinary pub” – this ivy-clad Georgian boozer in a “lovely countryside setting” has been well run by Sally & Alvin Michaels for twenty-odd years, and boasts a “good menu of delicious food”.
12. Tom Yum
Thai restaurant in Amersham
101 Sycamore Road - HP6
“Really good Thai cooking” inspires high ratings and positive feedback for this simple local fixture. “It’s a bit cramped when it’s full, but the take-home is good”.
13. Gilbey’s
British, Modern restaurant in Amersham
1 Market Sq - HP7
A fixture of Old Amersham for more than 30 years, this bistro from Michael Gilbey of the gin dynasty is a “fab example of old-school dining” – quite literally, given that the seventeenth-century premises were originally part of Dr Challoner’s Grammar School. Even long-time fans, though, have begun to grumble that “having been a favourite for years, it has become more ordinary – not bad but no longer worth a journey”. There’s a sister branch in Eton.
14. The Grocer at 15
British, Modern restaurant in Amersham
15 The Broadway - HP7
2022 Review: The Grocer at 91 pivoted to being a food shop during the pandemic and all the eating now happens at this intimate sibling café, whose 24 covers are expanded by three tables outside, and where the mostly vegan menu spans satisfying, well-priced salads, toasties and locally made cakes. Their Gerrards Cross branch is now under new management, operating as Huddle.
15. Centurion Club
French restaurant in Hemel Hempstead
Centurion Club, Hemel Hempstead Road - HP3
2019 Review: “A modern interior, with views of the golf course” sets the scene at this Galvin Brothers yearling, which on most – if not quite all – accounts provides “a good welcome”, “high quality” cooking and a “relaxing” atmosphere. It’s a popular haunt for business entertaining, for which “there’s a perfect setting alongside the 18th fairway and a delightful lounge that feeds into the restaurant, where you can talk shop pre-, post- or during lunch”.
16. Pluma
Spanish restaurant in Amersham
18 High Street - HP7
This “stylish and buzzing local” serves good-quality tapas and other Hispanic dishes “that wouldn’t look out of place in London”, making it a “very welcome addition to the Amersham scene”. “The food is great (the Iberico pork is amazing), cocktails are really innovative and service is top-notch”. It was launched two years ago in a former high street Chinese take-away by experienced hospitality professionals Charlie Baxter and Arantxa Fuentes (ex-Heston B’s Hind’s Head).
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