Westbury On Trym Restaurant Guide

This “very busy Italian neighbourhood bistro” in Westbury Park was set up by floorlayers Olly Gallery and Julian Faiello – and what a success their professional volte-face has proved, with a successive wave of talented local chefs passing through its doors over the past decade. The crowd-pleasing menu – spanning arancini, pasta dishes and sourdough pizzas – features some “very good” food which you can now enjoy on the heated, fairy-lit terrace: a Covid-era addition.

“The neighbourhood restaurant we all wish was around the corner” – Freddy & Nessa Bird opened this “tiny, rather cramped, off-the-beaten-track bistro” in Westbury Park in 2019 and ever since it’s gone from strength to strength (and “they now have a deli down the road too”, as well as opening 1 York Place this year, see also). “It continues to provide attractive, typically French dishes with enthusiastic service” and despite its peripheral location and modest size is the most commented-on spot in Brizzle in our annual diners’ poll (“vying for the top slot in the city, it’s always difficult to get a reservation which says much about its popularity with the well-heeled crowd”). On the downside, bills can seem nothing short of “extortionate for a ‘local’ bistro” (“the food is lovely, but my gosh it works out high on price”).

“Unquestionably the best fish restaurant in Bristol and its surrounds” – Mitch Tonks’s “lovely and romantic” old-school venue (which also doubles as a fishmonger) has graced “the heart of stunning Clifton” for almost two decades now. The “menu changes daily depending on the fresh catch” from Brixham and Cornwall, which is then cooked on the Josper grill to “consistently good” results.

Jan Ostle & Mary Wilson have established their “truly exceptional” if apparently modest Redland outfit as “one of Bristol’s best” in the past nine years, offering “superb clarity of tastes and textures throughout a perfectly judged no-choice menu in a laid-back setting”. Much of the produce is home-grown on their two-acre plot, then transformed by “fine, imaginative and superbly executed cooking”. It is also “a relative bargain”.

“As quirky as ever” – this “imaginative tapas” restaurant occupies the upper floor of a restored and operational mid-Victorian swimming baths in Clifton, so diners have “unique views of the swimmers below, making an interesting change from the standard restaurant experience” – “in summer, life here feels a little Mediterranean”. Top Tip – the £50 all-in swim, spa and eat packages.

“Lovely neighbourhood restaurant worth travelling for” from Craig Summers & Giles Coram (ex-Wallfish Bistro) – “producing superb food with intense and complementary flavours”, backed up by a “wide range of wine available by the glass and carafe”. There’s “lovely relaxed service”, although “more soft furniture is needed – it’s very noisy when full”. All in all, “not cheap, but excellent value given the quality of the cooking”.

This “fun and quirky” Stokes Croft three-year-old from the team behind Clifton’s Nutmeg – chef Saravanan Nambirajan and restaurateur Raja Munuswamy – specialises in the Tamil cooking of southern India and Sri Lanka ‘with a modern twist’, washed down by rum and arrack-based cocktails. Top Menu Tip – the signature ‘share and tear’ dosa made with 48-hour fermented rice.

What does it say about the culinary tastes of the British middle classes that this spin-off chain, with about 40 locations based on the original Theatreland icon, has been such a rip-roaring success? True, there’s some “great people-watching” at the “always buzzing” Chelsea Garden venue (which has one of SW3’s best gardens). And, without doubt, those branches in Kensington, Tower Bridge and Kingston also particularly stand out amongst the rest for their “super atmosphere”. In general though, the knock-off look of their locations “isn’t a patch on the original on West Street, yet pretends to be exactly the same”. And when it comes to their brasserie dishes: although its many followers tout them as “acceptable, albeit nothing special”, their rating-average identifies them as “underwhelming tick-box fare”; all offered by service that’s very “indifferent”. And yet they are “always busy”! In June 2024, it was announced that billionaire Richard Caring had successfully sold his entire Ivy restaurants stake. Now that he is laughing all the way to the bank, it will be interesting to see if ratings reverse, continue or deepen their southward trend.

This “slightly old-fashioned Italian in a splendid room” from Carlo Distefano’s “good-quality chain” is “always packed” as it approaches its 30th anniversary next year – perhaps because it is “so consistently good: never had a bad meal here”. There’s a “reassuring” quality about the whole operation, which is “welcoming to children (and adults), with a stylish ambience and generous portions of traditional Italian food”.

A characterful city-centre building backdrops this “very relaxed” (and trendy) wine bar and osteria – regarded as “one of the best restaurants in Bristol” nowadays. Cosmo Sterck (of London luminaries Brawn and St John) turns out “fantastic Italian food” from a “small menu with great ingredients and lots of nice sharing starters”, while his wife Lily looks after the wines, which are of the organic and biodynamic kind. Kudos for the “bargain set lunch” (two courses £24 per person, three courses £27 per person) – “the price of a main course in many less impressive establishments”.