Aylsham Restaurant Guide

“Interesting art” (from the likes of Tracey Emin, Lucian Freud and Damian Hirst) is par for the course at art dealer Ivor Braka’s foodie getaway – launched in 2011, and no stranger to ‘Top 50’ UK gastropub lists. The stately home sits on a 1,000-acre deer park, with ex-Hix alumni Stuart & Simone Tattersall overseeing a vigorous menu spanning the Gunton’s own venison plus seafood, mussels and crab caught in nearby Cromer. A few reports of “slightly complacent” service of late, but even cynics “could not fault the food and setting”.

2021 Review: “An excellent breakfast” is the top tip at Hannah Springham and Andrew Jones’s good-looking, Georgian restaurant with rooms: sibling to Norwich’s Farmyard. For other occasions, feedback on its straightforward, brasserie-style fare (fish pie, côte de boeuf, burger) is still too limited for a rating.

“A north Norfolk staple” from brilliant chef Galton Blackiston of Morston Hall fame – with the choice of “great traditional fish ’n’ chips” (“the best we’ve ever eaten”) downstairs, or upstairs a “fabulous fish restaurant with a great range of freshly cooked local seafood” accompanied by “lovely views overlooking Cromer beach and out to sea”. “Deservedly very popular with families, you will need to book at high season”.

“A triumph!” – “Exquisite food, meticulously prepared and as stunning to look at as it is to taste”, all alongside “delightfully attentive but unpretentious service and interesting wines too”, are the key strengths of Greg Anderson and Rebecca Williams’s “exceptional” three-year-old. “We loved Rebecca and Greg when they were at Morston Hall, and their talents truly shine in their own restaurant”. “Greg has a lightness of touch that many chefs don’t achieve” and “working out of a small kitchen, he uses local produce wherever possible to produce delightful food. He is ably partnered by Rebecca, who charmingly runs the three delightful rooms and front of house as well as being an excellent sommelier. The wine flight that she organises is a delicious adventure every time”. Most reporters also like the “minimalist” decor, and think “it’s a great touch having the cutlery cunningly concealed in a drawer in the table”. A large number of top gastronomic experiences are reported here. “We will definitely be back next time we’re in Norfolk”.

2021 Review: “After nearly 30 years under the same ownership” owner James Sawrey-Cookson retired and this “well-loved Norwich institution” changed hands last year: bought by a number of business-minded regulars. Chef of three years’ standing, Iain McCarten is “well into his stride, but what makes this place so popular is the whole atmosphere (there is a real sense of belonging”). “Hopefully the new owners don’t ruin the formula” although change is certainly afoot, with a new outside terrace and adjoining brasserie section opening in autumn 2019.

“Great local Norfolk ingredients are used to good effect” at Richard Bainbridge’s inviting if simply decorated destination that’s “probably still the joint best restaurant in Norwich”, and as such “well worth a visit” for its “consistently good” cooking from a series of set menus that are pleasantly ambitious but without the excessive flummery of a classic tasting menu format.

“French-inspired fine dining in a cosy room” – using “high-quality ingredients” and “intricately presented” to showcase “the skills of the chef” – has won a national reputation for this long-running fixture “in one of the well-preserved historic quarters of the city”. The ratings slipped a touch this year, accompanied by a couple of reports from erstwhile local fans who bemoaned staff turnover post-Covid and an experience that was “disappointing” compared with past years. But they are still outweighed by those who say: “We have dined a good few times over the years and the high standards have remained consistent”.

2021 Review: “Exceptional” Indian vegetarian and vegan cooking wins high ratings for this “beautifully decorated” little restaurant on a central Norwich backstreet – a family-run business operated by “people who really care”.

“An unpretentious, well-run pub: long may it never change!” – “informal, laid-back but efficient staff”, “good gastropub food” and a “cosy ambience” make a meal here “a thoroughly relaxing and enjoyable experience”, with “the option for outside eating overlooking the salt marshes in better weather”.

This village boozer-with-rooms par excellence overlooking the green was taken over by the Chestnut Group in 2022. While there are those for whom the “favourite” pitstop “has actually been improved since the takeover” and is now a “top-end gastropub”, there are also critics, for whom “the change of ownership has led to a diminution of standards”.

2021 Review: Fans are “happy to report the continued success and popularity of owner Desmond’s venture on the north Norfolk coast” – lionised in a BBC TV series, and combining “really good freshly cooked” farm food with “lots of outside space to run around in”.

“Superb locally sourced seafood” is the highlight of the menu at this family-run operation founded by Angela Long and her late husband Richard, which has a “carefully built and locally supported reputation over many years” – “value for money and a great attention to detail is a special combination” that “attracts both locals and the many visitors to the North Norfolk coast”.

Art dealer Ivor Branka’s spin-off to the nearby Gunton Arms is certainly “doing something slightly different in this part of Norfolk” at this “fun” venture opposite Gunton station, from the boudoir-esque top bar with excellent cocktails (and an MO of “extremely comfortable loucheness”, as an impressed Jay Rayner put it in his March 2024 review) down to the restaurant specialising in Spanish tapas, on which reports range from “reliable but not special” to “faultless”.

“Wonderful crab and lobster” and “beautifully cooked, really fresh fish” are on the menu at this 19th-century former brick kiln in a “great setting on the cliff overlooking the sea”, which was converted into a restaurant 10 years ago by local traditional fisherman Richard Matthews and his wife Alison.

“A fresh and vibrant menu with a fusion of local foods and inspired cooking” inspires enthusiastic (if limited) feedback on Jimmy Preston’s funky two-year-old, which started as a pop-up and went permanent in late 2021. In early 2023, The Observer’s Jay Rayner also raved over its “face-slapping flavours” and “cheeky, magpie-like romp across Asia” (including XO seasoning which includes Frazzles, Scampi Fries and Monster Munch).

Launched in 2020 by Frenchman Thomas Aubrit, son of a cook and nephew of a butcher, and English wife Gemma (FOH), this “very small” but very good Gallic outfit in Norwich Lanes has cemented its popularity with “simple good food” from a short menu featuring all the expected classics (e.g., onion soup, boeuf bourguignon). Thanks to the “very attentive” hosts, a “warm atmosphere” pervades both the miniscule downstairs bar and the 20-seat upstairs dining room.

“Oli Boon’s cookery makes every visit a treat” – “fabulous fresh pasta” is the key attraction on a “limited but delicious Italian menu”, which “changes constantly – at this “high-quality addition to Norwich” which is entering its fifth year; and the food is consistently a flavour explosion”. (“Oh, and Oli’s brother Ben has never worked here: he’s a lovely chap, but is just in the name”). Top Menu Tip – “the parmesan croquettes are to die for”.

This “gorgeous 14th-century inn” is now a “lovely restaurant-with-rooms” – “one of the best places to eat in this part of Norfolk” – with “excellent” food from chef-patron Daniel Smith, who got his first break as a teenager working for Le Gavroche: he marked its closure last year by treating diners to Michel Roux Jr’s signature dish, soufflé suissesse.

Excellent feedback this year for ex-Alimentum chef Mark Poynton’s dining room in a country-house hotel a ten-minute drive from Norwich. The odd reporter feels that “the venue doesn’t match the food just yet”, but all agree that “you’re made to feel special as soon as you enter the restaurant” and that the food – which is exclusively from a tasting menu – is “fantastic”. At six courses for £49.50 per person, the entry-level option is particularly affordable.