• Mark Birchall’s Moor Hall in West Lancashire beats Simon Rogan and Alain Roux to the top spot.
• The North West is the region with the most Top 100 entries outside of London (with 12 restaurants making the list).
• Edinburgh is the city with the most Top 100 restaurants outside of London, closely followed by Glasgow, Manchester, Birmingham and Nottingham.
• High number of new openings going straight into the Top 100 suggests the quality of restaurant openings is better than ever.
Moor Hall in Aughton, West Lancashire has been voted the UK’s best restaurant in the 35th year of the carefully curated annual Harden’s Top 100 Best UK Restaurants diners’ poll.
Just pipping Simon Rogan’s 2024 winner L’Enclume and Alain Roux’s Waterside Inn Bray to the top spot, Mark Birchall’s revamped Grade II 13th century manor house just a short drive north of Liverpool rose to the top of the list from last year’s position of 74. Feedback from diners hailed it as “not just a meal, it’s an experience” and one that is “superb from beginning to end”. Practically all reports acknowledge the food as “faultless in every way” and “all simply pitch perfect”.
Peter Harden, guide editor and co-founder of Harden’s, comments: “Moor Hall has been a recurring name in the Harden’s Top 100 UK Restaurant’s list for many years now – a testament to the high quality of the food, service and location. It’s
wonderful to see Mark and his talented team reach this year’s pole position and, whilst diners who took part in our national survey did often flag the higher price point, it appears to be a venue regarded as well worth it, albeit for a rare treat.”
Chef-patron of Moor Hall, Mark Birchall adds: “I’m honoured that Moor Hall has been awarded the No. 1 spot in this year’s Harden’s Top 100 UK Restaurants list. This has already been a landmark year for us, and I’m delighted to see the team’s dedication recognised once again. Our success is driven by the talent, consistency and commitment of everyone who contributes to the experience at Moor Hall. It’s a wonderful acknowledgement of their hard work and passion, and we’re proud to share this achievement with everyone who dines with us.”
Celebrating 35 years of polling diners for their views on the nation’s best places to eat, the latest edition of the Harden’s guide, published this week (ISBN: 978-1- 0684576-1-6, price £20: also available as apps for Apple or Android), is one of only two surviving established UK restaurant guides made available in print, and the only one based on feedback from normal diners rather than a group of professional inspectors. A total of 30,000 reports are submitted from a survey of 2,500 diners. Restaurants at all price levels are included: from street food vendors to the country’s most ambitious dining rooms, with 2,800 restaurants listed in total.
With Moor Hall and runner up L’Enclume leading the charge, restaurants in the North West have had a stellar showing in this year’s ratings with 149 venues making it into the prestigious guide, 12 of which are in the Top 100 including Manchester’s Skof and Mana; Heft in Newton in Cartmel; and Moor Hall’s Aughton neighbour sō-lō – the first solo venture from chef Tim Allen. Cumbria cemented its place as the county with the most Top 100 listings outside of London, with seven placements in total compared to last year’s five.
In contrast to the pattern of recent years, when restaurants outside London have led the charge in terms of price rises, the situation has reversed this year with London standing out for top-end price rises with a sharp jump in the number of restaurants charging £250+ per head (up from 14 to 24 establishments). This increase has seen London surge ahead for the number of restaurants falling into the most expensive price bracket, probably reflecting the relative robustness of the power to spend in the capital compared with elsewhere in the country.
Reflecting on the last 12 months, Peter Harden says: “It’s understandable that over the last year the hospitality industry has been toiling away under a cloud of gloomsterism. Hit by food inflation, rising wages, relentless rent increases and soaring utilities – some long-term operators say that 2025 is the toughest year they can recall.
“However, what our survey results and data-crunching from across the sector shows is the remarkable resilience at work from those in the trade: our number ofentries remains very steady and strong newcomers are emerging in each area of a quality that is probably better than ever.
“What is challenging for suppliers can be good for consumers. Customer expectations are so high now, restaurants have to work ever-harder to cut through and we’re seeing a number of new openings from across the UK going straight into the Top 100. This really is testament to the rigorous standards, hard work and innovation being put in by front and back of house teams throughout the nation who are impressively determined to find a way in difficult circumstances and continue to raise the bar to bring diners high quality experiences.”
The Harden’s 100 ranking of the UK’s best restaurants in full
The Top 100 restaurants derived from the 30,000 reports with ratings submitted by 2,500 diners who contributed to the Harden’s annual survey.
