Hardens Guide to the Best Restaurants in Ilkley
Hardens guides have spent 34 years compiling reviews of the best Ilkley restaurants. On Hardens.com you'll find details and reviews of 37 restaurants in Ilkley and our unique survey based approach to rating and reviewing Ilkley restaurants gives you the best insight into the top restaurants in every area and of every type of cuisine.
Featured Ilkley Restaurants
1. Sukhothai
Thai restaurant in Leeds
15 South Parade - LS1
“Consistently good food and service” again wins praise for this city-centre branch of Ban Kaewkraikhot’s small Yorkshire chain of glam-looking Thai eateries (although the odd reporter finds its approach “formulaic”). The business started in Chapel Allerton, but this is now the flagship, boasting a 200+ dish à la carte menu.
3. The Fell Hotel
British, Modern restaurant in Skipton
Burnsall Village - BD23
The restaurant at The Devonshire Fell holds two AA Rosettes and is the place to be to enjoy truly exceptional cuisine. Immensely popular with locals and guests alike, the restaurant has an elegant, relaxed atmosphere with sweeping rural views and stunning décor.A...
4. Tattu
Chinese restaurant in Leeds
29 East Parade, Minerva House - LS1
This branch of a glitzy Manchester-based group closed down for several weeks last summer for an overhaul of its decor to combat too much copycatting by rivals of its super-successful Insta-friendly looks. It looks like it worked: the “lovely ambience” was singled out for praise in our survey this year – and the mashup of Chinese and Japanese cuisines earned consistently good ratings (if with the occasional accusation of “style over substance”).
5. Sukhothai
Thai restaurant in Leeds
8 Regent St - LS7
“Sawasdee Ka! Welcome to Sukhothai — the home of authentic Thai food in Leeds and Harrogate.
Sukhothai Chapel Allerton is the original Sukhothai restaurant and now part of the way of life for the people of north Leeds.
After undergoing a major refurbishment, as part of our co...
6. The Angel
British, Modern restaurant in Hetton
Michael Wignall is fully re-establishing this beacon of the North as one of the country’s best dining destinations. It was one of the top-10 most commented-on destinations outside London in our annual diners’ poll this year, and one or two local cognoscenti “go so far as to say that Michael’s food is now almost the equal of Simon Rogan’s”. The pub was long famous (for example, featuring in ‘The Trip’ in 2010) but has really re-established itself since Wignall’s 2018 purchase and his ongoing improvements. “It has a fabulous setting in the national park” and has received a “Scandi-interior make-over” which is “taking it further upmarket”. “When he first took it over it was really very, very good. Four years on, it is much, much better” although prices are on the march too, with the evening à la carte at £105 per person and the evening tasting menu at £160 per person. This is “faultless cooking with intense flavours that takes your breath away”, sometimes with “stunning Japanese influences” and with “strong British ingredients”. “Superb!” Top Menu Tips – “how can you get so many textures and flavour from little carrots” – “lots of utterly delicious components, and a real tour de force of kitchen technique”; “noteworthy Japanese-style milk bread served with lardo, local butter and the smoothest smoky taramasalata”; “not often these days that the main course is a real star (as the main lump of protein in a meal, the starters are often more exciting, I find), but this pigeon really was cracking stuff”.
7. Prashad
Indian restaurant in Leeds
137 Whitehall Rd - BD11
“So good my partner does not know it’s vegetarian after several visits!” – Bobby and Minai Patel’s former pub is nowadays one of our annual diners’ polls most commented-on Yorkshire destinations thanks to “outstanding multi-layered and spiced food” that “even your carnivorous friends will love, as it has so much flavour”. “It’s just outside of Bradford city itself and can get busy, so it’s worth making a reservation”.
8. Fleur Restaurant and bar
restaurant in Leeds city centre
Inside the lights - LS1
Award-winning Master Chef Finalist, Great British Menu-famed chef Bobby Geetha and Team provides a stunning contemporary British cuisine inspired by world flavours.Fléur Restaurant was the finalist for best Brunch in Leeds. Reviewed as Top 3 best Bottomless...
9. Tharavadu
Indian restaurant in Leeds
7- 8 Mill Hill - LS1
“You’d walk past and miss the food if you didn’t know about it” – this highly popular Keralan is “one of the best restaurants in Leeds” and “a must-try” if you like south Indian cuisine. (“We heard that this is where Virat Kohli and his wife choose to eat when there’s a Test Match in Leeds. If it’s good enough for Kohli, it‘s certainly good enough for us! We had an excellent meal here in April 2024, buzzy atmosphere, the best Masala Dosa we’ve eaten since visiting India. Waiting staff all delightful – an all-round wonderful experience”). Now after 10 years of operation, they are on the expansion trail having taken over a top-floor space elsewhere in the city that can seat 350.
10. Aagrah
Indian restaurant in Leeds
St Peter’s Sq - LS9
UK's Largest Chain of Kashmiri Restaurants...
11. Sukhothai
Thai restaurant in Harrogate
17-19 Cheltenham Pde - HG1
“Consistent food and service” continues to win praise (although feedback was relatively limited this year) for this well-established “large and buzzy” Thai venue from owner Ban Kaewkraikhot (who ran a successful restaurant in Bangkok for eight years before relocating to the UK, and now owns three restaurants in Yorkshire).
12. The Tannin Level
British, Traditional restaurant in Harrogate
5 Raglan St - HG1
“Very enjoyable tasty food and friendly service” underpin a formula that’s won enduring success for this stalwart cellar in the lower ground floor of a solid Victorian mansion which celebrates its 40th year in 2025. The traditional-ish cuisine aims for ‘Yorkshire on a plate’ and the sensibly priced and focused menu covers all bases, including a selection of steaks.
13. The Box Tree
French restaurant in Ilkley
35-37 Church St - LS29
Seemingly “sailing on unperturbed by changes in ownership and chef” – Adam Frontal has owned it only since 2022 and Aussie chef Brayden Davies was appointed in early 2024 – this ‘Gavroche of the North’ inspires ratings in line with its historical performance, and one regular notes that “if anything, it seems to be harder to get a table these days: I‘ve tried a couple of times recently without success”. Located in one of the town’s oldest buildings, it has operated as a restaurant since 1962 and – unlike the cooking – the interior is very “traditional” if with some updating that’s not universally popular (“It might seem a bit fuddy-duddy to moan about tablecloths, but in such an old-fashioned environment, polished table tops seem out of place”). Foodwise, though, it’s ever-more “contemporary” and there’s a feeling that recent innovations are for the better (“new chef, new tasting menu, very much to our taste”). “As well as the inevitable hike in prices, the style seems to have changed, with only one main course (but served in 2 or 3 parts)”. Service is generally “good and knowledgeable”, particularly from sommelier Didier Da Costa (who has been in post since 2009). Top Menu Tip – “the traditional Box Tree soufflé for dessert is still superb”.
14. The Garden Room, The Devonshire Arms Hotel and Spa
British, Traditional restaurant in Skipton
Bolton Abbey - BD23
This “elegant” hotel dining room (FKA The Burlington) in a “beautiful Daleside setting” at the Duke of Devonshire’s country getaway is a bright and relatively relaxed – given the poshness of the surroundings – spot overlooking the gardens and wider Bolton Abbey Estate. Chefs have come and gone over the years (including notables Michael Wignall and Peter Howarth), as have the Michelin stars, but for “as good a Full English as you can enjoy”, fancy afternoon tea or their new summer seafood tasting menu, there’s much to like – and “staff are happy to show the open-plan cellar” that fuels their “very extensive wine list”. The premises also hold a more informal brasserie and bar.
15. Mumtaz
Indian restaurant in Bradford
386-410 Great Horton Rd - BD7
“Whether it’s a quiet meal for two or a large family celebration, it’s always a treat” to eat at this Bradford institution, which has grown over 45 years from a tiny Kashmiri shop into a vast restaurant accommodating 500 guests. Founder Mumtaz Khan based his original menu on his mother’s recipes, and has entertained guests including the late Queen. He now has a branch in Leeds, a national brand of ready meals and a halal baby food brand with global sales.
16. Akbar’s
Indian restaurant in Bradford
1276 Leeds Rd - BD3
This “buzzy, busy” subcontinental started out here as a tiny 28-seater, but its waistline has expanded over the years in sync with what is now a ten-strong national chain (the most recent offshoot of which, opened in early 2024, is the flagship of Blackburn’s £50m Cultural Quarter). The “seriously yummy food” (“always cheers us up!”) features epic naans, baltis and a special section of old-school classics; if you can’t get enough of it, try the ‘Chef’s Challenges’: the quantitative ‘For the Big Man’ and qualitative ‘For the Brave’ (you face a plate ‘hotter than a dragon’s breath’). Breaking news… RIP the founder of the chain, Shabir Hussain, who passed away aged 56 in October 2024.
17. Salvo’s
Italian restaurant in Leeds
115 & 107 Otley Road - LS6
This “Headingley institution” has provided good-quality pasta, pizza and Sicilian specialities for almost 50 years. John & Gip Dammone were both awarded MBEs last summer, having spent their entire working lives at the restaurant their father Salvatore founded in 1976. They sold up in 2023, and the new owners are not making big changes.
18. Orchid
Pan-Asian restaurant in Harrogate
28 Swan Road - HG1
“Not what you expect to find in a small boutique hotel” – “delicious pan-Asian cooking, with exceptional dishes hailing from Japan, Thailand, Malaysia etc.” have established this local favourite over two decades of operation (it opened in 2001).
19. Drum & Monkey
Fish & seafood restaurant in Harrogate
5 Montpellier Gdns - HG1
“A true beacon in the North” and a “great Harrogate fixture” – this “classic fish restaurant” has been a feature of the Montpellier Quarter for over 50 years (est. 1971) and has been run by the Carter family since 2013. All the many reports we receive (it’s one of the top-100 most commented on places outside London in our annual diners’ poll) say it “always delivers high quality and a very reliable menu choice”: “I keep thinking it must start to fail, but each time we go, it’s just as good as always. Been going for years and never fails to impress with the delicious seafood and the friendly helpful service”. Top Menu Tip – “always good oysters”.
20. Royal Baths
Chinese restaurant in Harrogate
Central Hall, Crescent Rd - HG1
The owners of this Cantonese spent an eye-watering £1.5m on its conversion and, while “the food is almost incidental to the splendour of the surroundings” (a “Victorian spa – full of wonderful tiling and soaring arches”), nevertheless “it’s not bad”, being “a notch above standard Chinese fare”, with the added joy that “they have a number of large round tables, so all the diners can enjoy the fun of working the lazy Susan”.
View full listings of 37 Ilkley Restaurants
Popular Ilkley Restaurant Searches
Ilkley Restaurant News