Ware Restaurant Guide

“Locals and visitors” beat a path to this “lovely pub with top-notch food” from chef James Rix and his wife Bianca, who have transformed it into an “Interesting and exceptionally busy venue” over the past 20 years. Top Menu Tip – “dessert on a whole different level: Paris Brest, choux pastry, praline cream, hot chocolate sauce & toasted nuts of exceptional taste and quality”.

This “French gem” in a “pleasant little pub tucked away in a corner of Ayot Green” serves “good food at sensible prices” in an atmosphere that’s “refined without being daunting”. Patron Laurent Brydniak has “run the place well” for 15 years, and does a good trade at lunchtime feeding walkers visiting the nearby Brocket Hall Estate.

“At last, the Auberge has found its feet again and is now up and running smoothly” following its reopening in May 2023, after a three-year hiatus. While the “beautiful setting” in a hunting lodge on the Brocket Hall Estate remains unchanged, these days chef John Barber (ex-of London’s Mandarin Oriental) is at the helm, his “confident and assured” cooking more modern British than during the venue’s Gallic heyday under Jean-Christophe Novelli – and more democratic too (particularly the “good-value fixed-price lunch”). As ever, “the decor could still do with a refresh but, on a sunny day, a table out on the terrace by the lake is unbeatable”.

This “very comfortable” 15th-century farmhouse half an hour from London makes an ideal setting for a hotel restaurant with a “lively, vibrant atmosphere”‚ “keen and attentive staff” and “plenty of traditional dishes” on its menu. A meal here is usually “enjoyable”, if not gastronomically distinguished.

This “trendy Turkish restaurant in Cockfosters” has given the Anatolian grill a smart makeover over the past decade, and now “has the vibe of a West End restaurant, with a DJ at the weekend” and “faultless service”. According to its biggest fans, “Cockfosters is becoming a destination thanks to restaurants like Skewd!”

In the safe hands of Phil Thompson (whose CV includes becoming Head Chef at the Auberge du Lac at age 24), this decade-old venture continues to do the casual fine-dining thing with aplomb. Reporters “like that there are a number of small rooms” in which to dine (upstairs is the main restaurant, and there’s also an airy conservatory opening onto the Victorian-style courtyard), while the “imaginative cooking” is “creative and beautifully presented” too, whether you opt for the set menus (£55 or £69 per person for two or three courses) or fancier tasting menu (£95 or £115 per person for five or seven courses).

This “good neighbourhood Turkish restaurant” – which serves a “nice variety of interesting dishes” using “fresh and high-quality ingredients” – celebrates its 10th anniversary this year. It now has spinoffs in Berkhamsted and Harpenden – the latter “attracting a younger crowd than usual for Harpenden, which gives it the sort of buzz which is rare in these parts”.

A “buzzy” atmosphere and “welcoming service” are the strong suits of this “expanding group”, with 16 branches in London and another handful nearby. While nobody disputes that they’re “lovely to sit in” and offer “value for money”, the “Middle-Eastern-inspired cooking” divides opinion, with some reporters “pleasantly surprised by the tasty food” and others bemoaning “underwhelming” dishes that “sound better than they taste”.

This Essex institution, founded almost 70 years ago, is still “the best fish restaurant in the area”, offering “consistently great food with even better service”. It’s relatively “formal”, which befits its status as a venue which attracts generations of the county’s notables, from Rod Stewart, Denise Van Outen and Victoria & David Beckham to the TOWIE crowd.

“Another local winner from Lussmanns” – “a small independent group of restaurants in Hertfordshire” (and, as of late, London’s leafy Highgate) “with an emphasis on sustainability”. This “always reliable” outpost is “convenient for the Abbey but off the main tourist trail” and occupies an “interesting and well-decorated” building with a glass roof (“unusual for the group”, which favours more historic surrounds) plus a “courtyard when the weather is kind”.

This small but perfectly formed venue (there’s a small dining area behind the boozer) in the Cathedral Quarter leapt 22 places this year in Estrella Damm’s ‘Top 100 Gastropubs’ list, coming in at a very respectable no. 72. The 15th-century building was taken over by Sean Hughes and family a decade ago, with John Searle overseeing the expertly sourced pub grub featuring specialities such as dairy cow rib and fresh Cornish fish.

“Excellent-quality food at a reasonable price” is behind the 24-year success of Austrian-born chef Julius Oberegger’s Whetstone bistro. The cuisine is “mostly modern European but with an eye on pan-Asian flavours” – which makes it “an oasis” in a part of north London where the standard dining options are Greek, Turkish or pizza.

This “large, well-decorated gastropub” overlooking the village pond in Totteridge, on London’s northern fringe, serves a broad menu that majors in steaks, burgers, seafood and pizza. The odd blip is noted in reports foodwise, but it‘s nominated by a number of locals as their top pub.

“A mini Shinkansen Japanese bullet train that brings your sushi orders” is a UK first at this bright, first-floor Japanese café in Chingford: a fun cheap ’n’ cheerful experience. “Downstairs is a proper pub (the ‘Rusty Bike’) complete with TVs showing sport and a selection of board games: you can order Thai and sushi on both floors. Yum!” (It goes without saying: this is not first choice for culinary purists).

The “Mediterranean/posh Greek” food is “consistently good” at this high-performing spot that is a “fantastic addition to Barnet High Street” – it’s “really buzzy on a Saturday night”, and “new specials are frequently added to the menu”. Former apprentice Gerry Sands was promoted to co-ownership by founder Louis Loizu at the age of just 21.

“A top-notch restaurant in a pretty standard pub” – fans feel “the always excellent food deserves a better location” than this venue on the edge of the Common, run by local lads Matthew Reader (chef) and Michael Singleton. “West End-quality cooking and ingredients mark out the tasting menu” or you can go for the ‘Pub Sharing Menu’: “a short list of daily specials and little sharing plates, fairly priced in light of their high quality”. “Staff are knowledgeable and the dining room feels spacious, despite it being quite small”.

There’s something engagingly “old-fashioned” in approach at Adriano Bernabei and his family’s “lovely local” Italian restaurant in Whetstone (although it’s relatively youthful, having only been founded in 2011). The food is “always well-prepared and always tastes great”. Top Menu Tip – “veal escalope with pasta comes recommended”.

This “excellent high-end Indian restaurant” in Whetstone has earned a more-than-local reputation for its “imaginative cooking and great service” in recent years, having started out as a takeaway.