Hardens Guide to the Best Restaurants in Royal Oak
Hardens guides have spent 33 years compiling reviews of the best Royal Oak restaurants. On Hardens.com you'll find details and reviews of 7 restaurants in Royal Oak and our unique survey based approach to rating and reviewing Royal Oak restaurants gives you the best insight into the top restaurants in every area and of every type of cuisine.
Featured Royal Oak Restaurants
1. The Orangery, Rockliffe Hall
British, Modern restaurant in Darlington
“A lovely location for a special event” – this five-star property sits in over 365 acres on the North Yorks border, and its more formal dining option (you can also eat in the clubhouse overlooking the golf course) lives up to its name – a tall, striking pillared space with glass roof. Chef Paul Nicholson offers a four-course à la carte menu for £70 per person, or there’s a six-course tasting option for £95 per person, backed up by an impressive 400-bin wine list.
2. Stable Hearth Neapolitan Pizzeria & Enoteca
Italian restaurant in Darlington
Duke Street - DL3
2023 Review: “Great pizza menu served by lovely people” remains the verdict on this award-winning pizza-stop, whose numerous accolades and certifications promise a Neapolitan experience through and through: your selection is cooked at 400 degrees and will be ready in 90 seconds!
3. The Bay Horse
British, Traditional restaurant in Hurworth
45 The Grn - DL2
Marcus Bennett’s fifteenth-century village gastroboozer – a regular on ‘best’ UK gastropubs lists, and a consistent scorer in our annual diners’ poll – is a “very dependable” sort of spot, offering “beautifully presented food, especially game in season”; there was the odd quibble this year (“are prices higher” now?) but it still makes for “a good all-round treat now and again”.
4. The Coach House
British, Modern restaurant in Middleton Tyas
Middleton Lodge Estate, Kneeton Lane - DL10
2021 Review: Set in 200 acres of North Yorkshire, this informal bar/brasserie is an “interesting conversion of stables attached to the main house” (there is also a posher dining option here, ‘The Forge’). An all-day operation, it offers food that’s “reliable and well presented” from a series of menus, including breakfast, afternoon tea and dinner (with the focus on Mediterranean char grills).
5. Barrio Comida
Mexican restaurant in Durham
34 Church Street - DH1
2023 Review: “Permanent home for the excellent Newcastle Quayside pop-up of a few years ago” – this lively taqueria moved into Durham in 2020 and occupies “large premises near a bridge over the river”, with a patio area and fine views. It’s “still delivering high-quality tacos and other Mexican fare”. Top Menu Tip – “special mention to their homemade ice cream”.
6. Coarse
British, Modern restaurant in Durham
Reform Place, North Road - DH1
Chef Ruari MacKay (former head chef of the city’s now defunct Bistro 21) – with collaborators Gemma Robinson and Craig Lappin-Smith – raised £100,000 from crowd-funding to launch this simply decorated newcomer, which launched in late 2022, in a courtyard just over the river from the ancient city centre. The only option is a six-course tasting menu: feedback is still limited but says that “overall for the price it’s excellent, and served by friendly staff”.
7. Faru
British, Modern restaurant in Durham
26 Silver Street - DH1
Jake & Laura Siddle – long-term senior staff at Newcastle’s House of Tides – quit their jobs to launch their own ambitious restaurant in the centre of Durham, with the blessing of their mentor, House of Tides founder Kenny Atkinson. Heaven knows, it’s a town that could use a venue of some ambition. It opened in April 2023 (late in the day to inspire feedback in our annual diners’ poll) and offers a 10-course menu for £98 (lunch is shorter and simpler for £60). Faru means journey in Old English.
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