Cambridge Restaurant Guide

“Wonderfully subtle-tasting Indian food” (“go for their tasting menu…so good”) is now the order of the day at this former pub turned dining room; it’s “not the cheapest but the menu is always interesting”.

Look out for the bright yellow Citroën van, if you want to try veteran restaurateur Regis Crépy’s latest venture, selling Alsatian pizza-type Flammekueche in a Cambridge food court. For a tasty, cheap ’n’ cheerful snack that’s a little out of the ordinary, these “light”, “fresh-tasting” and “reasonably priced” wafers of bread dough complete with toppings are just the job.

In April 2019, former MasterChef finalist Alex Rushmer, who closed his Cambridge restaurant Hole in the Wall in 2017, took over a former Subway shop a little outside the city centre, with his former sous chef, Lawrence Butler. Focusing on local, ethical food, it offers a fixed five-course vegetarian menu which changes daily and features a chef’s table where diners sit at a countertop pass for four with views over the open kitchen. Its fanclub is still small as things stand but couldn’t rate it more highly, saying its “very inventive non-meat cuisine” is “well-sourced and just perfect”. Don’t plan on dropping in though: bookings are released on the first Thursday of the month, two months in advance!

“Amazing… every time” is still the most typical assessment of this acclaimed Victorian villa – one of the UK’s most renowned eateries – which is very picturesquely situated across the Cam from the Varsity’s boat houses and bordering Midsummer Common. Daniel Clifford and his team deliver “a superb overall dining experience: the number and quality of amuse-bouches, the sourdough bread, each individual course… the service… all of the highest order”. Even many fans feel that the “exuberant bill is hard to justify”, however, and to its critics the “staggering costs” are plain OTT, with toppish wine prices a particular gripe (“some more reasonable ‘house’ options would be welcome”).

2017 Review: “They do not come more cheap ’n’ cheerful than this” – an “outstanding-value” joint, in the city centre, that’s also noted for its “fast and boisterous atmosphere”.

2018 Review: Typical corner pub from the outside, and strikingly modern gastroboozer (with bottles inset into the ceiling) inside – this lavishly revamped pub (est. February 2017) is the latest addition to the local City Pub Company. Feedback is limited so far, but reporters praise its “superb Sunday lunch”, and you can expect top beers from its sibling the Cambridge Brew House.

“Definitely above average for a touristy part of Cambridge” – it’s set opposite the Great Gate of the namesake college – this “lovely little” establishment has worked up a loyal following since opening a few years back, and is a top tip for a “good-value early dinner”.

Solid marks again for this sibling to the Cambridge Chop House, in a cute, two-floor seventeenth-century house behind St John’s College, and similarly majoring in meaty mains with ales and wines to wash a meal down. Top Tip – worth heading here for their set lunch menu.