Sunderland, British, Modern Restaurant Guide

“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”.

“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).