The best restaurants in Bristol

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 - from the sea straight to your plate, quite literally.

Starting life as a food truck at Glastonbury festival, The Thali Cafe team has come a long way but kept its cool roots. The restaurant offers a taste of everyday Indian food with a laid back atmosphere.

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. There are still meat and fish plates available, but sustainability and seasonality are the watch words here.

In many ways Bokman feels like a microcosm of Bristol’s food scene - authentic, a little off-kilter, and heaps of fun. Expect creative Korean comfort food served up by husband and wife team Duncan Robertson and Kyu Jeong Jeon.

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 real highlight in the summer too. 

A compact menu of osteria dishes with a biodynamic wine list to match, Marmo is a modern Italian restaurant that is right on trend. The towering ceilings and tall windows make this a beautiful airy spot for dinner or opt for the great lunch set menu.

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.

Step on board this harbourside boat and tuck into plates of delicious Mediterranean tapas at Under The Stars. It makes the list as one of Bristol’s most romantic dinner spots, with the upstairs deck being embellished with fairy lights, but also lends itself as a great place for sharing copious amounts of small plates with friends.

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. Be sure to book well in advance as the restaurant is open four days a week and reservations for the tasting menu are in high demand.

Co-founders Elliott and Tess Lidstone manage to conjure some very special food from the smallest of spaces here, dishes like charred hispi cabbage with lemon butter, and duck breast with puy lentils, rustic but well executed. 

Revered fine dining institution Casamia may have gone, but from the ashes comes Casa - a more relaxed, easy going Italian restaurant that still delivers the same quality and precision we've come to expect from the Sanchez-Iglesias family. 

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 a rising star in Bristol. 

Allow the husband and wife team of Bravas to take you on a tour of Spain, via Bristol, if you will. They take the authenticity of their dishes very seriously, taking their staff to Spain yearly for research. Where do we apply for jobs? 

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.

The team behind renowned bars Hyde & Co and The Milk Thistle also head up The Ox. With seasonally evolving menus, incredible cocktails and loud music, this hidden basement is the place for a late night steak soiree.

This all-day restaurant boasts an inventive, international small plates selection and a cracking weekend brunch offering. The setting is lovely too - an old red brick Lloyds Bank building, with huge windows and smart interiors.

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 small eatery with a big identity. Tare is a 22 cover restaurant situated on Bristol’s harbour-side development inside an unassuming shipping container. This is incredible food with real finesse, and none of the usual pomposity.

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

Renowned Tom Hunt is the executive chef at award winning Poco tapas. Thanks to cratefulls of locally sourced produce, an open kitchen and communal tables, Poco is one of the most inviting restaurants in Bristol.

Paco Tapas, one of the most picturesque waterwise spots, serves up food and drink even better than the view - superb tapas and a carefully curated sherry menu to go with it. No less than one would expect from Michelin-starred Peter Sanchez-Iglesias.

This former police headquarters hosts incredible views across the harbour. The extended dockside terrace offers unrivalled alfresco eating in the city while you can expect a warm welcome and a cool, laid back atmosphere.

George Livsey’s spin on seasonal British dining makes this spot perennially popular. This Michelin Starred restaurant may be neatly tucked away but is by no means hiding. Every foodie in Bristol has visited or wants to.

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. 

Wilsons has long been revered among Bristolians. Much of the produce that ends up on the menu is home-grown, before ending up in smart dishes like warm Jersey Royals with girolles, or English blueberries with crème fraîche and shiso.

Salt & Malt offers fish and chips to rival anything in Bristol. There is real attention to detail here, which adds up to proper crispy batter, perfect chips, as well as scampi, sausages, mushy peas and all your usual accoutrements. 

With an often-changing menu of fun mezze dishes alongside beers and wines from Turkey and North Africa, Souk Kitchen is one of the best places in the city for group get-togethers and occasions. Be sure to indulge in the brilliant sweets and desserts.