Sunderland 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”.

“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).

Step back from the wheel-thrown ceramics of this craft-inspired ‘Bar, Café & Pottery’ – which occupies a very ‘now’, brick-lined, post-industrial space in Ouseburn; and whose owners supply tableware to top local destinations – and you can sample some straightforward, but excellent cooking here. Till mid-afternoon, it’s a brunch spot (you might eat three-cheese pide or a Merguez patty melt); into the evening, the offer is an eclectic mix of skewer and grill plates. It’s often recommended for/by vegetarians.

“This little restaurant offers a genuine slice of southern Italian regional fare”, and has picked up a lively following in two years for its “authentic” modern Italian dishes – footballers from promotion-chasing Gateshead FC have been seen ‘carbo-loading’ on good-value pasta or pizza the evening before a match.

“It’s all about the smoke and fire” produced by the Josper grill at this “ambience-laden” and “really unique” Quayside Indian just under the Tyne Bridge – “think Dishoom, but less production line”; “menus exude wonderful and exotic flavours” that are “good value for money too”, ensuring it’s “always busy with a wide variety of diners”.