The best restaurants in Hertfordshire

Tucked into the hamlet of Frithsden on the Ashridge Estate, this early gastropub pioneer still delivers - bubble and squeak with hollandaise, rabbit pot-au-feu, char-grilled rib-eye - backed by a well-chosen, mostly-by-the-glass wine list.

It's a proper pub that's been serving the community for 25 years. You'll also find a bookable heated terrace here for summer dining. And it's dog-friendly!

Owned and run by its head chef since 2004, this family-friendly gastropub near Harlow serves a modern European menu with rustic Italian and French leanings, plus Josper-oven steaks and whole ribs of beef for its popular Sunday roast.

This one's a reliable, well-loved local that residents come back to time and again. 

Perched above a Tring townhouse, this copper-walled counter puts chef Scott Barnard within arm's reach as he talks guests through each course.

Expect playful, technique-driven modern British cooking, including a Japanese-inflected dessert of chocolate, miso and yuzu - best preceded by a cocktail in the Cellar Bar downstairs.

Nearly 500 years old and Grade II listed, this restored coaching inn pairs a walled garden and dog-friendly courtyard with a modern British menu built on local suppliers - dry-aged Herefordshire beef, North Sea cod, a rotating list of seasonal sides.

The pub area suits a quick drink just as well as a full meal.

An award-winning gastropub on the village green near Letchworth, with a kitchen built around named local suppliers - Staithe Smokehouse, Stagenhoe Estate, North Norfolk fishermen.

Expect Cromer crab linguine and 40-day aged sirloin, served across breakfast, lunch, dinner and a dedicated Sunday menu.

A Victorian pub in Harpenden run by siblings, with racing-green banquettes, a copper-topped bar and confident modern British cooking built around bold flavours.

Its tasting and sharing menus, plus a well-regarded Sunday lunch, have often earned it a place among the country's best gastropubs.

Set inside a former ballroom in Hitchin, with arched ceilings and a floor-to-ceiling window, this is contemporary British cooking with real range - Cromer crab crumpets and lobster risotto through to charcoal-oven lamb chops.

Brunch and Sunday roasts are equally strong, and the room shifts from bright by day to atmospheric after dark.

Inside a Georgian country-house hotel near St Albans, Omboo trades pub classics for sushi, wagyu skewers and a 'when ready' approach to serving.

It's the most distinctly international kitchen in the county, best suited to a dressed-up dinner rather than a casual weeknight visit.

A 15th-century farmhouse outside Hitchin growing its own vegetables in an organic no-dig garden, with a head chef turning that produce into smokehouse salmon, pork chops with mustard sauce and a well-regarded Sunday roast.

The private dining rooms, with exposed beams and inglenook fireplaces, suit intimate celebrations.

A Grade II listed pub with rooms in a characterful old village - Chrishall appears in the Domesday Survey - offering seasonal menus, themed nights (Tuesday's fish and chips is a local fixture) and a warm, traditional dining room.

A worthwhile stop for the Royston end of the county.

A conservatory dining room overlooking five acres of gardens gives this St Albans townhouse hotel a romantic setting, whether for a seasonal set dinner, or a Sunday roast of sirloin with all the trimmings.

This is also home to one of our favourite afternoon teas in Hertfordshire, but make sure you book ahead to avoid disappointment.

The Centurion Club is a sleek modern European restaurant overlooking St Albans' golf greens, serving confident modern European cooking via a well-priced prix fixe and one of the best Sunday lunches in Hertfordshire.

A polished alternative to the county's pub-led scene, suited to business lunches as much as celebratory dinners.