Best restaurants in Northumberland: where to eat, drink and stay
Best restaurants in Northumberland
Hjem, Wall
Dream destination
One Michelin star restaurant with rooms where Swedish chef Alex Nietosvuori and Northumberland-born Ally Thompson skilfully blend Scandinavian and Northumbrian influences in design, food and even Hjem’s name. Pronounced ‘yem’, this Scandi word for home is also used colloquially in the north-east. High-end local produce underpins a tasting menu in which resonant flavours are handled with precision and flair, in dishes such as BBQ North Sea squid, rostï, parsley gremolata and razor clam sauce, or waffles with brown butter ice cream, coffee caramel and a hazelnut milk and crumb. Look out for forthcoming Hjem spin-off, Freyja, later in 2025. restauranthjem.co.uk
The Rat Inn, Anick
Epic country pub
This 18th-century drover’s inn ticks all the boxes. In winter, hunker down by open fires amid exposed stone, oak beams and antique curiosities. In summer, drink in the Tyne Valley views from its gardens. Throughout, chalkboard menus display seasonal, local produce (and harvests from the inn’s kitchen garden) in winning dishes such as breaded lamb, Gem lettuce and sriracha mayo, or pork loin, cider apple sauce and honey mustard glazed Hispi. Cracking roasts, too. theratinn.com
The Old Boat House, Amble
Seafood catch
This attractive harbour restaurant makes deft use of the ocean’s bounty, including Lindisfarne oysters and lobsters, langoustines and haddock landed in Amble itself. Dishes range from fish and chips, and hot dressed North Shields crab, served under a parmesan crust with garlic butter and focaccia, to a blow-out sharing seafood platter. Nearby sister venue, Fish Shack, was constructed using sections of Sea Quest, an old boat once used as a training vessel in Amble. boathousefoodgroup.co.uk
Audela, Berwick-upon-Tweed
Fab fine dining
A smart, comfortable restaurant offering consistently accomplished cooking, Audela has many fans among locals and visitors alike. Its menus mix crisp, modish plates of, for example, Borders’ venison, pearl barley, beetroot and pickled walnut, or North Sea halibut, nori, Delica pumpkin and citrus beurre blanc, with irresistible classics such as Audela’s twice-baked cheese and leek soufflé. audela.co.uk
Lord Crewe Arms, Blanchland
Rural retreat
Originally a guest house for a 12th-century abbey, this handsome pub, restaurant and hotel oozes historic character. It sits within amazing walking country. So much so that guests can pick up maps and Lord Crewe fudge before heading out to Pow Hill Country Park or Kielder Forest. Ravenous ramblers will find chef Paul Johnson’s venison cottage pie or roast lamb, jerusalem artichoke, Roscoff onion and chimichurri just the ticket on their return. lordcrewearmsblanchland.co.uk
The Feathers Inn, Hedley on the Hill
Chef favourite
Quiz chefs or local foodies about the Northumbria scene and this gorgeous pub will soon come up. A cosy redoubt of log burners, warm welcomes and on-point cooking, its gutsier dishes (black pudding with poached egg and devilled gravy; beef slow-cooked in ale with shallots, carrots and creamy mash) are precisely what is needed over winter. But it shines in summer, too, when a pizza kitchen also opens to serve those enjoying the rays in its cute outdoor areas. thefeathers.net
Morwick Dairy, Acklington
Sweet itinerary
From Doddington Dairy’s retro Milk Bar at Wooler or Amble parlour, Spurreli, to Pilgrim’s Gelato and its vegan oat milk ‘geloato’, you’re never far from interesting ice cream in Northumberland. At Morwick Dairy’s farm shop you can choose from 20 of its award-winning gelato flavours, including Italian black cherry, fior di latte and its take on Scottish dessert cranachan: a raspberry rippled, whisky based scoop made with local distillery Ad Gefrin’s Tácnbora whisky, finished with honey toasted oats. morwickdairy.co.uk
Pine, East Wallhouses
Hot seat
Stylish barn conversion restaurant where chefs Cal Byerley and Ian Waller design Michelin-starred tasting menus from ultra-local ingredients, with a firm focus on sustainability. Whole-animal butchery, foraging, preserving and Pine’s kitchen garden are key to its dishes of cured beef and nasturtium, or mallard, blueberry and woodruff. Pine’s garden is nourished with compost created from waste coffee grounds and such, and pollinated by Pine’s own bee colony. restaurantpine.co.uk
The Ship Inn, Low Newton-by-the-Sea
Much loved coastal inn
From film to folk nights, this beach-side village pub is a hive of activity, and includes its own on-site microbrewery. The lunch menu features acclaimed Jarvis Pickle pies and sandwiches on the northeast’s beloved stottie cake, a type of large, round bread loaf. By night, plates range from hand-picked local crab, herb salad and sourdough, to lamb koftas with couscous, ezme salad, sumac onions, feta and flatbreads. shipinnnewton.co.uk
The Kirkstyle Inn, Slaggyford
Rising star
Given a spruce makeover in 2023, this pub with rooms on the CumbriaNorthumberland border is gaining a stellar reputation for chef Connor Wilson’s ambitious cooking. Moorland game and seasonal produce from surrounding farms is central to that work. Dishes might range from North Sea halibut, mussel, leek and kohlrabi to partridge with parsnip, trompette and pear. theksi.co.uk
Foodie activities to do in Northumberland
Cheviot Brewery Tap, Slainsfield
Located in Till Valley’s Ford and Etal Estates, in the shadow of the Cheviot Hills, this brewery, bar and glamping site sits in a peach of a location. Brewery tours are available for those who want to dig into how beers, such as citrussy session ale, Sea Stack, are made. From spring onwards, a wood-fired pizza kitchen and fire pits (with s’mores for the kids) are another attraction. As are the resident alpacas, Malt, Porter and Hops. cheviotbrewery.co.uk
Northumberland Cheese Company, Blagdon
Whether bagging traditionally smoked Craster kippers at L Robson & Sons, tasting Lindisfarne mead or observing Northumberland Seafood Centre’s lobster hatchery, this region has many fascinating foodie diversions. Those keen to know more about the cheesemaking process can book tours at Northumberland Cheese Company to explore its brine baths and maturing rooms, and taste award-winning cheeses such as the smoked goats’ cheese, Chesterwood. Includes afternoon tea in the Cheese Loft Café. northumberlandcheese.co.uk
Turnbull’s Food Hall, Alnwick
The Turnbull family has had a butchery in Alnwick since 1880 but, in 2019, radically expanded its work with this large food hall at Willowburn Retail Park. A butcher’s counter and busy bakery (it produces thousands of handmade pies each week) are complemented by Northumbrian products, from cheeses to gins. Look out for fascinating collabs, including the Turnbull’s smoked bacon old fashioned, created with Amble cocktail maker, Hummingbird Drinks. turnbullsfood.co.uk
Foodie town in Northumberland
Hexham and surrounding area
Pretty, historic Hexham is both a jumping off point to reach many of Northumberland’s best restaurants (and attractions like Northumberland National Park and Hadrian’s Wall) and a hub of good flavours in itself. Shop at artisan bakery The Grateful Bread, Robson & Sons butcher (established 1894), The Natural Grocer Market & Social and, on the second and fourth Saturday of each month, Hexham Farmers’ Market, which draws in makers of anything from kimchi to honey. Just a few miles down the road, the handsome village of Corbridge is also home to the highly rated Corbridge Larder (a deli including 100-plus cheeses, downstairs, with The Heron Café up top), Grant’s Bakery, chocolate truffle makers Coffuffle, and Corbridge Cookshop, a treasure trove for kitchen kit. In season, you can take the kids fruit picking at nearby Brocksbushes, too – which is also home to a swish new farm shop. Back in Hexham and looking for dinner? Bouchon Bistrot has you covered for all the French classics; and there are good things happening on the Josper grill and across contemporary dishes of tuna ceviche or mint and nettle risotto at The Beaumont Hotel restaurant. For something more casual, check out Fire & Dough’s wood-fired pizza truck in Hexham Abbey car park on Saturday nights.
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