South Shields Restaurant Guide

“Permanently busy in this lovely town – the takeaway is worth the wait for super fresh fish ’n’ chips” according to fans of this locally acclaimed chippie. “The adjacent restaurant is the same but more relaxing, with more varieties of seafood… just brilliant!”

“Really interesting small plates” that are “imaginative and generous considering the price point” are the attraction at this Ouseburn venue from self-taught chef Anna Hedworth, who started out with supper clubs and worked at Rochelle Canteen before launching initially in a shipping container, moving into permanent premises eight years ago. “The menu varies to suit the season, available ingredients and the chef’s inspiration, and you can always guarantee something a bit different or unusual”. Top Menu Tip – “beef shin croquette served with a blue cheese cream is a star dish”.

Nothing but praise for Masterchef: The Professionals finalist Dave Coulson’s ambitious but “down to earth” outfit, est. 2013 on a Jesmond shopping parade. The punchy modern British cooking is “always first-class”, with a “great variation of dishes” and a “reliably interesting tasting menu, all with a North-East twist” (and notably good value too). Numerous best meals of the year are reported here by a more-than-local fan base.

2022 Review: You wouldn’t necessarily expect it from the unassuming façade, but former River Café alum Nick Grieve's “small but adventurous” bistro on the main road through Jesmond turns out some “outstanding quality” food – currently in the format of a six-course, no-choice menu (£59).

Tucked away in Jesmond, this old-style Italian (est. 1983) with its tricolour awning is “still going strong, and whilst prices continue to rise, it still offers good VFM and a fun environment where families are welcome”. The menu takes in your usual pizzas and pastas, but there are also blackboard specials to peruse, and the overall package, being a winner, tends to attract crowds on weekends.

2024 Review: This “lovely hotel” in a “beautiful” Grade II-listed Arts and Crafts house remains a satisfying getaway, being particularly “perfect for afternoon tea”. There are several dining spaces, ranging from a bar offering light snacks to the dedicated Fern Dining Room for heartier meals.

2022 Review: Scant reports – too few for a rating – on this ‘upmarket neighbourhood dining room’ from ex-House of Tides chef Danny Parker, in the venerable Jesmond Dene location once part-owned by Terry Laybourne. In addition to dinner service and Sunday lunch, daily afternoon tea is a feature.

2023 Review: “A very pleasant change from some of the run-of-the-mill Asian offerings elsewhere in Newcastle” – this “very nice South Indian restaurant” which doesn’t have the greatest entrance (“entry is via a door on a different street and up a flight of stairs”). “An excellent range of dosas” is the highlight of its “excellent value and very consistent food”. Top Tip – “Sunday buffet is especially good value and a great introduction to South Indian cuisine for those unfamiliar and/or unsure what to order”.

2022 Review: “Delicious, interesting dishes” inspired by the street food delivered by Mumbai’s ‘dabbawala’ bicycle delivery men, are to be found on the menu at this brightly coloured Jesmond venue with an open kitchen and verandah. It’s a spinoff of the city-centre original.

“Really impressive” Quayside pub from local food hero Terry Laybourne with cooking that is a “significant upgrade on the usual fare” while “also in these very difficult days exceptionally generous with its portions”. “Everything is beautifully cooked, and they’re especially great at frying” – “you could recommend this place to anyone”. Top Menu Tip – “don’t miss the excellent bar snacks”: “Lindisfarne oysters and crispy pigs ears”; “cauliflower fritters with curry mayonnaise; deep-fried monkfish cheeks with homemade tartare sauce; crab with fennel and crackers”.

“Such a cool, vibey place to eat”, on the Quayside, replete with “moody lighting” and “knowledgeable, friendly and attentive” staff. Inspired by the South of France and Italy, it’s part of the local empire of NE culinary star Terry Laybourne, who received his Freedom of Newcastle scroll – the city’s highest honour – in 2025; on the menu, a “fantastic, well-explained, and unpretentious wine list with useful information, e.g., how to remove red wine stains from your shirt” and “adventurous food” (it’s “always worth ordering off the specials board”). It’s particularly recommended as a “great location for pre-theatre dining right next door at the Live Theatre, whose toilets it shares!”.

A “lively Quayside establishment” (formerly local beacon ’21 Queen Street’) that has been in the hands of Andy Hook and chef-patron Troy Terrington for nearly a decade now; it’s named after two stalwarts of the city’s Victorian architecture, who designed the building in 1863. Reports in recent times have been a tad up and down, but there was mostly praise this year for the “excellent food and staff”, with “some unusual dishes” on the menu (the latter being better suited to carnivores than vegetarians).

2022 Review: This Art Deco (1938) landmark (incorporating Newcastle's only surviving indie cinema) closed for much of the COVID-19 pandemic and started a phased reopening in August 2021. The coffee rooms are in the final phase following a new floor and refurbishment of furnishings throughout the building.

“Still going strong after more than 30 years”, Roberto & Walter Pani’s “buzzing Sardinian café/restaurant in the heart of Newcastle still cuts the mustard for a good night out with friends or a quick pre-theatre meal” that features “delicious Sardinian and Italian cooking”, with “a list of specials so there’s always some variety”. Top Tip – “it’s worth trying the unusual Sardinian wines”.

“Well established now as THE place in Newcastle for a reliable top gastronomic experience” – Kenny & Abbie Atkinson’s Quayside venue opened in 2010 and its fame precedes it nowadays (despite competition from its upstart sibling and neighbour, Solstice). It occupies a 16th-century townhouse near the Tyne Bridge and provides “Michelin star quality to all aspects of the meal combined with a friendly, unstuffy atmosphere making all diners feel comfortable and well looked after”.This year’s worst critique was that culinary results are “sound if slightly underwhelming”; more common, though, was praise for “very elegant and well-presented food. with amazing tastes and textures”.