The best restaurants in Bristol

This relaxed wine bar and bistro has been leading the way for the rejuvenated dining scene south of the river.

Cracking authentic Italian plates are simple but brilliantly executed, and served alongside an all-natural wine list. Just great food and drink with no frills.

The Pony Chew Valley combines a seasonal British restaurant with cookery school, kitchen garden and event venue, bringing Josh Eggleton's wonderful cooking back to Bristol.

Produce comes from no-dig beds, a polytunnel and an orchard in the surrounding land, so ingredients that hit the plate at The Pony are hours removed from the soil. 

A step from sister restaurant BANK, Lapin swaps live-fire cooking for playful French dishes rooted in West Country produce.

Warm lighting and bottle-lined walls give the feel of a Parisian brasserie, with every wine on the list available by the glass. The prix fixe menu is one of the best deals in the city. 

This all-day restaurant boasts an inventive, international small plates selection and a cracking weekend brunch offering. 

Housed in an old red brick Lloyds Bank building with huge windows and smart interiors, it's one of Totterdown's best reasons to cross the river.

An open-kitchen smokehouse built around coal-fired grills, bespoke clay ovens and a custom smoker, with hand-cut steaks taking centre stage.

The glass-fronted dining room looks straight over the Avon Gorge to the Clifton Suspension Bridge, making this arguably the most visually arresting dining room in Bristol. Perfect for special occasions. 

The team behind renowned bars Hyde & Co and The Milk Thistle also run this hidden basement steak restaurant.

Seasonally evolving menus, incredible cocktails and loud music make it the place for a late-night steak soiree in the city centre. It's also fantastic for larger parties, and the food is exceptionally good. 

A compact menu of osteria dishes with a biodynamic wine list to match, Marm's on-trend, modern Italian cooking has earned it a Michelin Bib Gourmand.

The towering ceilings and tall windows make this a beautiful airy spot for dinner or opt for the great lunch set menu.

Is Bosco the best pizza in Bristol? The people have spoken, it seems - both restaurants are full on most evenings and if you’re not into pizza there’s a selection of excellent antipasti, meat and pasta dishes to choose from too.

A reliable, unpretentious choice for a casual Italian night out.

Tucked under Spike Island's flyover with picturesque harbour views, Noah’s gives classic fish and chips a slick, seafood-kitchen upgrade.

Yes, there's the exceptional battered cod, but don't miss out on other treats like butter-drenched scallops, and chilled wine on the sunny terrace.

Husband-and-wife team Kieran and Imogen Waite take Bravas' authenticity seriously, sending staff to Spain each year for research.

The result is a genuinely convincing tour of Spanish tapas via Cotham Hill, without a hint of the watered-down version found elsewhere. The little al fresco terrace gets busy, but in summer it's one of Bristol's loveliest outdoor spots.

Things are hotting up south of the river thanks to this exciting bistro in Bedminster.

Owners Mark and Karen Chapman have curated a menu that treads gently between comforting and creative with mushrooms on brioche with armagnac and grilled cuttlefish with chimichurri and lemon.

MasterChef Turkiye 2024 winner Onur Uresin is shaking up Whiteladies Road with Table Five by Cappadocia - a more intimate, elevated spin-off from Cappadocia Bristol.

Smashed aubergine, pistachio lamb chops and miso salmon showcase more modern, elevated Anatolian cooking in a sleek, understated Clifton dining room. A must-visit.

The kitchen at Adelina Yard is bursting with talent - co-owners Olivia Barry and Jamie Randall worked at the likes of The Wolseley and Odettes before founding this quay-side spot. 

Open only four days a week, with tasting-menu tables in high demand, so book well ahead for one of Bristol's most accomplished modern European kitchens.

Wilsons has long been revered among Bristolians. It currently holds Bristol's only Michelin star and was named SquareMeal's UK Restaurant of the Year for 2026.

Perhaps the best value restaurant in the country, with exceptional cooking coming across wildly affordable tasting menus, with much of the produce home-grown by the team on a nearby small holding.

Adding to Bristol’s already burgeoning reputation for vegan and vegetarian food, Root offers a modern, veg-centric menu, all cooked in a cosy shipping container in Wapping Wharf.

Meat and fish plates remain on offer, but sustainability and seasonality are the guiding principles behind every dish that leaves the kitchen.

Family-run and unmistakably vibrant, this Turkish spot in the city centre fills a genuine gap in Bristol's cuisine spread.

Charcoal grills, colourful mezze and an upstairs private dining area make it equally suited to a relaxed lunch or a big celebration.

Dubbed the best seafood in Bristol, The Spiny Lobster serves a daily changing menu dependant on the fisherman's catch of the day. The spoils of this catch are then cooked on an open fire.

It's about as close to sea-to-plate as dining in the city gets.

In many ways Bokman feels like a microcosm of Bristol’s food scene - authentic, a little off-kilter, and heaps of fun. 

Husband-and-wife team Duncan Robertson and Kyu Jeong Jeon serve creative Korean comfort food from this Cotham spot, the restaurant that first put Bristol's Korean cooking on the map.

Sit poolside in this picturesque lido restaurant (yes, we're still in Bristol) and dive into fuss free, Mediterranean inspired food.

Alternatively, throw yourself into the deep end with an early swim followed by a delicious brunch. Memberships or one off visits available but we'd recommend booking as it gets very busy.

This long-running Stokes Croft favourite has changed hands since our last update, with new owners retaining much of the original team.

The daily-changing British tapas menu is still as brilliant as ever, though. Thanks to cratefuls of locally sourced produce, an open kitchen and communal tables, Poco remains one of the most inviting restaurants in Bristol.

This bright and breezy restaurant serves up a compact menu of modern European dishes, made using the best local, organic produce available.

The menu changes up often as a result, but the top quality cooking has made Caper and Cure one of Stokes Croft's most reliable places for genuinely thoughtful, ingredient-led cooking.

Kandyan brings decades of Sri Lankan hospitality to Bishopston, with many of the restaurant's spice blends made from herbs grown in a kitchen garden just a few feet from the tables.

Expect homely, authentic cooking, from midweek dhal and spinach curry to celebratory buriyani. Lots of the menu is veggie and gluten-free, too, making it great for groups with dietaries. 

Freddy Bird’s slick Clifton spot nails modern neighbourhood dining with punchy, cross-European plates built for sharing.

Go for ice-cold martinis, scallops drenched in vermouth butter, and four-hour slow-cooked Pyrenean lamb. Cosy, vibrant, and notoriously tough to book, this is unpretentious seasonal cooking at its absolute finest.

Freddy Bird’s neighbourhood restaurant has a real emphasis on authenticity - Little French remains faithful to quality ingredients and French tradition, including some whole roast meat and fish to share.

The spacious outdoor courtyard is a genuine summer highlight, making this Bishopston spot one of the best reasons to eat outdoors in Bristol.

Co-founders Elliott and Tess Lidstone manage to conjure some very special food from the smallest of spaces here, a converted shipping container holding a Michelin Bib Gourmand.

Expect rustic, well-executed dishes like charred hispi cabbage with lemon butter and duck breast with puy lentils.

The follow-up to Bokman, Dongnae builds on the same ideas with real focus.

Expect homely Korean flavours built around fermentation, preservation and barbecue - cooking that has pushed the restaurant into the UK's top national rankings and made it one of Bristol's most talked-about tables.