Food critics at a prestigious national guide have had their say on the best restaurants and gastropubs in and around Bristol. The AA Restaurant Guide 2023 has been released, with ten eateries making the cut either in the city or in the surrounding countryside.
The 29th edition of the guide features more than 1,400 restaurants, which have all been awarded Rosettes for culinary excellence by the AA’s professional inspectors. North Yorkshire, Devon and Cumbria were named as the UK’s leading counties for foodies in the guide.
London had 172 restaurants featured this year, followed by North Yorkshire (68), Devon (59), Cumbria (57), Cornwall (42), Gloucestershire and Norfolk (38), and Hampshire (36), Suffolk (32), Kent (31) and Oxfordshire (30). In and around Bristol there were ten restaurants and pubs that made it this year, listed below.
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Simon Numphud, Managing Director of AA Media, said: “We are delighted to publish the leading guide to the UK’s top dining destinations, with 150 new establishments added to The Restaurant Guide 2023. From Northern Stars to the Heart of England, Scotland to the capital, the restaurants in this year’s Guide demonstrate the high quality of culinary experiences across the country, offering delicious food and service of the highest standard.”
We asked the AA for the Bristol list and have rounded them up below. Full details and descriptions are in the Restaurant Guide 2023, available to buy for £17.99.
The Ethicurean
Located in Wrington in Somerset, the highly-rated Ethicurean promises to "wow the senses and be connected with nature" and "take you on a culinary journey, celebrating the finest ingredients from our garden and beyond".
Berwick Lodge
Also an acclaimed wedding venue, Berwick Lodge near Cribbs Causeway is home to a fine-dining restaurant currently serving up seasonal mains like venison saddle with blackberries, and herb-crusted hake with clams and butter beans.
Paco Tapas
Paco Tapas is one of Bristol's best-loved restaurants, known for combining comforting yet dynamic Andalusian flavours with a flair that won a Michelin star within its first year of opening.
Second Floor Restaurant
Second Floor Restaurant is located inside Harvey Nichols in Bristol, and describes itself as "the perfect place to enjoy brunch, a light lunch, afternoon tea or an intimate dinner while admiring the view of Quakers Friars from the floor-to-ceiling windows". We reviewed its posh roast dinner.
Tare
This small but mighty restaurant is located at one of the shipping containers at Wapping Wharf, serving up a set seven-course menu and a set seven-course vegetarian menu with dishes changing seasonally throughout the year.
The Star and Dove
This Totterdown pub is well-known for its delicious food, including its Sunday roasts. In the 2022 AA guide last year, inspectors wrote: "The Star and Dove offers pleasing modern vintage styling in a traditional Victorian city pub.
"The pub ambience is retained in one half where locals enjoy a pint with friends, while the stylish restaurant on the other side provides a selection of top quality dishes utilising local and seasonal produce to its best."
Hotel du Vin Bristol
This swanky city centre hotel, close to the Christmas Steps, describes its bistro as somewhere offering a "majestic dining experience". In last year's guide, an inspector hailed it a "simple and successful brasserie cooking with first-rate wines".
The Bird in Hand
Long Ashton's Bird in Hand is just outside Bristol and promises diners "pub food at its best with a few surprises".
The Ox
The basement restaurant on Corn Street is heaven for steak lovers but is also popular for its cocktails and Sunday roasts. It opened in 2013 and has maintained its reputation for serving up scrumptious meat despite newer steak restaurants now competing for custom.
The Spiny Lobster
This highly-rated seafood restaurant and fishmonger changes its food offering daily and has been a quality fixture on Whiteladies Road for the best part of two decades. In 2018 our reviewer declared it the best seafood restaurant in the city.
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