Stoke D'abernon Restaurant Guide

This “popular gastropub stalwart” is “always busy, even if you were to go on a Tuesday lunchtime”. It occupies a listed 300-year-old former courthouse which featured in a Sherlock Holmes story, ‘The Adventure of the Speckled Band’. The food here is consistently well-rated and commented on as being “better than average”.

There’s no doubting the “fantastic location” of this link in Raymond Blanc’s Heartwood Inns collection – a nook and cranny-filled boozer on pretty Downside Common with a heated outdoor tent and beer garden for added measure. Its victuals aren’t fancy but are “generally good” by common consensus, and continue to be of note for their moderate price tags (especially now they’ve relaunched their bargainous seasonal set menus).

This Surrey branch of The Ivy’s stylish national brasserie offshoot is an “incredibly popular” sort of place, where the most appealing location to eat is the Orangery. From providing one reporter’s “worst dining experience of the year” to another’s “dazzling delight”, it continues to split opinion, but the majority verdict is that “the atmosphere and ambience (which “exude fun and enjoyment”) excel more than the food” (which is “acceptable but nothing special”).

This red-brick steak restaurant and bar is part of the carnivorous, three-strong Rare Breed Dining group, with its own in-house smokery and butcher overseeing prime cuts of meat (part of a trendy package that also includes on-site wreath- and candle-making classes); results from the menu (relayed via daily specials boards) are “tasty” and there’s a “lovely outdoor area for al-fresco dining in summer”.

This comfortably decorated national chain feels akin to dining in a hotel, but minus the bedrooms; and its two London branches – near the Tower and in Putney – benefit from attractive Thames-side locations, where “it’s lovely to sit outside on a warm day by the river, or year-round in one of their igloo pods”. “There’s a warm fire inside with cosy armchairs”, too, which make the venues “fine for coffee or snacks”, although for more substantial meals “the food is only OK”.

Taken over by Simon King and Matt Larcombe, ex-head chef of The Crown at Bray, three years back, this smart red-brick former beer house in the Surrey ‘burbs enjoys a “lovely setting” (“the opening of the beautiful garden last year is a lovely addition for warm summer evenings”). At the pass, “new chef Dan (Lee) has done brilliantly to retain the standards of this ‘fine-dining’ pub”, turning out “outstanding” and modern takes on British pub grub – though a visit can get “pricey” (especially if you avail yourself of the rarer vintages on the wine list).

2022 Review: In a village near Leatherhead, this well-established Indian (opened in 1983) – nowadays run by the son of the founder – is strongly applauded by its local fans.

2023 Review: “Good solid food” and a “large outdoor space for eating” makes this country pub a handy refuelling spot for visitors to the RHS gardens at nearby Wisley.

“Newly reopened after an extensive refurbishment” (to the tune of £2m) in December 2023, this 140-year-old pub in a “lovely setting overlooking the West End green” now boasts a glamorous 48-seat orangery, outdoor bar, firepit and heated terrace amongst the gardens. The “interesting and varied” cuisine focuses on sharing-style plates (but not just), and there’s a “buzzy but not noisy atmosphere” that adds to the fun of a visit.

“Yes, just a local pub – but owned by José Pizarro”, godfather of Spanish cuisine in the UK. Unsurprisingly, the maestro’s first gastroboozer-with-rooms (and first venture outside the Big Smoke) is “mainly tapas” and by most reports it’s “well worth a detour” to the Surrey ‘burbs, with “very good outdoor spaces” a further boon. Top Menu Tip – “especially good pork rib paella”.

“Better-than-average Chinese” cuisine (“not cheap though”) and a “lovely atmosphere” ensure that this upscale Oriental remains “a local favourite”. The original branch of the now eight-strong (otherwise London-based) chain opened on the King’s Road in 1979, with this Esher spin-off opening just a little later – and, while the menu hasn’t changed much since that era, absolutely no one seems to mind.

2021 Review: A refurbishment/relaunch a few years ago added to the charms of this good all-round boozer, handy pre- or post catching the nags at Sandown Park, whose food was consistently well-rated last year.

“There’s no finer way than a visit to impress a business colleague or, indeed, anyone for that matter”, according to fans of “the magnificent Beaverbrook estate – a wonder to behold and with a Dining Room featuring the very best in Japanese food”. The dining room itself has been super-tastefully updated; and in it Wojciech Popow (founder of the Polish Association of Sushi Chefs!) creates a menu of sushi, sashimi and the finest surf ’n’ turf robata’d on the Josper grill. “Before and after dining, the spacious grounds are a joy to take a leisurely stroll in”.

Originally slated for spring 2024, this exciting-sounding project was still in ‘watch this space’ territory six months later. On launch, it will mark the kitchen return of chef Ashley Palmer-Watts, for almost 20 years Heston Blumenthal’s no. 2 as head chef of the Fat Duck and launch chef at the Mandarin Oriental’s Dinner by Heston. It’s to be a multi-faceted project, incorporating a 35-seat restaurant, along with a bigger wine bar, café and bakery (and, eventually, accommodation).

“A well-deserved success for the RHS” – this large venue at their Wisley HQ provides a “glorious setting for lovely lunches”. The gardens are hugely popular all year round, so it’s “always advisable to book”. Top Tip – “don’t forget, you do need to pay to enter the gardens in order to eat at the restaurant” (about £20 per adult).

2022 Review: Having opened high street hit Osso Buco[s] in 2011, owner Elena Vahedi and her husband ventured into more trendy, casual eating territory in the same location with this equally popular Italian, born in 2018. “Top pizza” of the wood-fired variety (and wonderful pasta too) has earned it a real local following.