Ludlow Restaurant Guide

2019 Review: “Simple, fresh and so, so tasty pasta and pizza – perfect in all ways”, say fans of this independent pizzeria in foodie Ludlow, whose toppings show an unusual level of sophistication. “They just do everything right”.

“The food can be exceptional”, while “service is spot-on without being overbearing and condescending” in chef Wayne Smith’s oak-panelled dining room – a lingering taste of Ludlow’s former heyday as a gastronomic destination. The cuisine may not quite match the heights of Claude Bosi’s late, lamented Hibiscus, which used to occupy the same premises – but “it is certainly value for money”.

Maybe avoid the culinary fireworks for which this foodie town is known, and head to this gorgeously situated café, with a “really nice outdoor space” near the River Teme and beneath the walls of Ludlow Castle. Run by local food heroes, the Crouch brothers (who also operate in Shrewsbury) it provides tea, coffee, cakes, breakfast, lunch and dinner on Friday night.

2021 Review: Just across the River Teme from Ludlow Castle, a short walk from Dinham Bridge, this small hotel incorporates a conservatory restaurant extension with garden views, and terrace for the summer. Reviews of Ian Pugh’s modernised but relatively traditional cooking are very positive: “consistently delivering a good quality dining experience, with an imaginatively presented, seasonal menu”.

“Absolutely lovely surroundings, worth a 6/5 for ambience!” – this medieval-to-Georgian country house with its own cider press, just outside Ludlow, is a “glorious” setting for newly installed chef Nick Bennett’s “tip-top”, “creative, inventive and delicious” cooking; and his “set menus offer just enough choice over a 3-night stay”. Pippa & Willem Vlok are “such friendly owners”.

2021 Review: Between Ludlow and Leominster, this sixteenth-century, black and white pub was taken over and revamped in spring 2018. Feedback on the new regime is too limited as yet for a full rating, but all of it is upbeat.

A “delicious spot in the Herefordshire undergrowth” that’s “well worth a detour” – Peta Darnley “has created something really special with innovative, seasonal, regional fare” served in a converted barn on her family’s Netherwood Estate – earning a “very rare Michelin Green star for sustainability” – while head chef Chris Simpson (ex-Nathan Outlaw and Gidleigh Park) “conjures delicate flavours from local ingredients, many grown in their own kitchen garden, that build in intensity throughout the meal”.

2022 Review: Rescued by local regulars from the threat of demolition six years ago, this 200-year-old former drovers’ pub (‘bait’ as in ‘bite’ or ‘snack’) is now an upmarket pub-with-rooms on the Herefordshire-Worcestershire border, serving food of a “consistently high standard”. “The lamb dishes are particularly delicious” (Kate Lane, one of the co-owners, farms sheep). Building on their success here, Kate and her lawyer husband Andrew Cornthwaite now have a growing collection of reinvigorated village pubs.

“Consistently good unpretentious food” has long been the hallmark of this country inn on an old drivers’ route. Steve & Nicola Reynolds retired last year after more than two decades and it’s now “settling down under the new ownership” of London-born hospitality veteran Muralidhar Shanmugam, known as ‘Shan’ – and “the food is still first class”. Top Menu Tip – “unbeatable bread and butter pudding”.