Cafes, Pubs and Restaurants in York
Ideas for Eating Out in York

Our ideas and recommendations for eating out in York...

We'll help you to find your own favorite York restaurants, cafes and pubs...

Looking for places to eat out, and restaurants in York? I've got the unofficial low-down on all the York restaurants we've tried for ourselves...

You'll see well-known restaurant chains, alongside lots of lovely, unique cafes, tea-rooms and restaurants, all jostling for space, in amongst the ancient buildings of York...

It's nice to know what you're getting with the bigger restaurant chains, and well known names...

...but it's even better to explore and discover for yourself some of the true hidden gems - some lovely, personal and very intimate cafes and restaurants in York...

...you are sure to find your own favorite... or maybe more than one favorite!

Sadly, I can't say that we've personally tried every single York restaurant, tea-room and cafe - but we're having a pretty good go!

...and we love to eat out and enjoy the many different cafes and restaurants in York.

We'll help you to choose the best York restaurants and cafes to try for yourself...

You're definitely spoiled for choice for eating out in York...

Where do you want to go?

Fossgate
Around the Minster
Around Stonegate
Around Goodramgate
Shambles and King's Square
Around Coppergate
Around Davygate
Lendal
More to try further afield

It probably just means we haven't tried it yet, or maybe I just forgot about it when writing the list. Do feel free to try it for yourselves, and let us know what you thought, and which are your own favorite restaurants in York!

Fossgate

By far the best street for restaurants in York is Fossgate (leading into Walmgate).

This seems to have developed really well over the last few years into a real restaurant-quarter, so, if in doubt, come here first to browse the menus in the windows, and choose your favorite restaurants in York...

Some we can recommend:

• The Hairy Fig - unique delicatessen cafe
• Masons - trendy bistro restaurant
• The Blue Bicycle - very fine dining! Quite expensive, but very good, and worth it for a treat. Ian's been (good reports) but I'm still waiting!
• Loch Fyne - probably the best York seafood restaurant - fashionable and bustling, but well respected.
• Melton's Too (Walmgate) - a great bistro, good food, and good value - a must-try!

  Also try 'Melton's' on Scarcroft Road, a little way out of the city centre, but still walkable!

• El Gaucho (Walmgate) - a great steak restaurant - Ian recommends.
• Barbakan (Walmgate) - Eastern European food - a little further up Walmgate, but definitely worth the 5 minutes extra walk. Friendly, relaxed and very informal atmosphere. Great service and well-cooked food.

  More about our visit to The Barbakan Polish Restaurant

Around the Minster

Try:

• La Cremaria - High Petergate - a lovely and friendly little cafe/tea-room, with ice cream specialities and gluten free options.
• The Hole in the Wall - High Petergate - a traditional English pub, with great meals. One of our favorites.

  Read our review of The Hole in the Wall Pub, here...







The tall thing is a Yorkshire Pudding!
Sunday lunch at The Hole in The Wall Pub
(Veg served separately)
• Plunkets - High Petergate - a lovely old building and a popular, well-established and well-respected restaurant - can get busy.

Around Stonegate

Try:

• El Piano - Grape Lane - a completely vegetarian/vegan and gluten free cafe, in a relaxed and slightly quirky Spanish style. Very friendly and good food. One of our favorite restaurants in York!

  More about our visit to El Piano Restaurant







El Piano
• Bar 1331 - Grape Lane - stylish bar serving food, quite trendy, with a relaxed air.
• Lucia - Swinegate Court East - a stylish and sophisticated bar, with a nice vibe. Serves meals. Try the lovely courtyard.
• La Tasca - Back Swinegate - Spanish tapas in a bustling atmosphere. Friendly service.

  Read more about our visit to La Tasca, here...







Spanish tapas at La Tasca
• Little Betty's Cafe (Betty's Stonegate) - Stonegate - a lovely, quaint, little tea-room.

  The main Betty's Cafe is just at the end of Stonegate, in St Helen's Square.

  Betty's is a must-do for fine teas and cakes, but be prepared for a long queue!

• Olde Starre Inn - Stonegate - a York landmark - lovely, historic inn.
• The Punch Bowl Inn - Stonegate - a lovely old building, and a friendly pub (reputedly haunted)
• Stonegate Yard - Little Stonegate - busy and bustling bistro
• Mulberry Hall - Stonegate - traditional English coffee house in a beautiful old building.

Around Goodramgate

Try:

• Goji Vegetarian Restaurant - Goodramgate - we had a great meal here, in the covered courtyard. A lovely choice for restaurants in York - whether or not you're actually vegetarian!

  Read our Goji Vegetarian Restaurant review, here...







Goji restaurant - covered courtyard
• National Trust Cafe and Tea-room - Goodramgate - always has a gluten free option.
• Kafeneion - Goodramgate - smart cafe for light snacks and coffee-stops - gluten free available here, too.

  Read our review of Kafeneion, here...

• The Old White Swan Pub - Goodramgate - one of our favorites - a lovely historic building, and, like so many York buildings, said to be haunted. Drop in for a drink, at least.
• Siam House Thai Restaurant - Goodramgate - a great Thai restaurant - Ian goes there regularly with work - and does keep promising to take me sometime, too!

Shambles and King's Square

Try:

• The Earl Grey Tearooms - Shambles - historic tea rooms, right in the Shambles - lovely and cosy!

  Read our review of The Earl Grey Tea Rooms in Shambles, York, here...







Historic and quaint - The Earl Grey Tearooms in the Shambles
• Ristorante Bari - Shambles - a great, atmospheric little Italian restaurant, in the Shambles.
• Cafe on the Square - King's Square - a good cafe for lunches.






Lunch at The Cafe on the Square
• Cafe Harlequin - King's Square - fantastic food and speciality coffess. Can get busy, though.

  Read our review of Cafe Harlequin, here...

Around Coppergate

• My favorite for lunches and a tea around Coppergate, Clifford's Tower and the Castle Museum is actually the restaurant in Fenwick's Department Store (Coppergate Centre) - good food, great window-seats for people watching and gluten free cakes are available.
• M&S (Coppergate Centre Store, not Parliament Street Store) also has a good, but usually bustling, cafe, good for a quick stop.
• Jade Garden - Tower Street - a good Chinese, with great service - used to be quite a local for us when we lived nearby!
• The Go Down Restaurant - Clifford Street - also comes highly recommended.

Around Davygate

• Try Brown's Department Store Davygate - we've had a great breakfast here!
• Also try All Bar One on New Street.
• You can also pop round the corner to explore the many offerings around Stonegate

Around Lendal

Try:

• Harkers - St Helen's Square - well respected, smart bar and pub with restaurant
• Lendal Cellars - Lendal - a cosy and intimate, traditional English pub.
• Judges Lodging - Lendal - luxury hotel with cellar bar, with good food.
• Pizza Express - Museum Street - chain pizza restaurant, but in a lovely old building, right by the river.

Some More Restaurants in York a Little Further Afield

• Melton's - Scarcroft Road
• Lal Quila - Bishopthorpe Road - this has always been our favorite York Indian restuarant, since we moved near here in 1997.

  Read our review of Lal Quila, here...

• Akash - North Street - another of our favorite York Indian restaurants - it's where my husband and I had our first date! And it was actually the first Indian restaurant I ever ate in!
• Lee Garden - Blossom Street - used to be our local Chinese takeaway, and we had a few meals in here too.
• Bar Convent - Blossom Street - lovely, relaxing cafe in a historic location, with gluten free options. Try sitting out in the garden if the weather is nice.
• The Dormouse - Clifton Park Avenue, Shipton Road - big out of town pub serving good food, with a relaxed atmosphere.
• Chiquito's - Clifton Moor - good Mexican style food, close to the Vue Cinema at Clifton Moor - big, quite noisy and busy, but good for a pre-film meal.






Enjoying a meal at Chiquito's in York
• Frankie and Benny's - Clifton Moor - another busy restaraunt at Clifton Moor. Ideal for pre-cinema meals.
• Flying Legends - Clifton Moor - pub with food and a Wacky Warehouse. Great for kids.
• Riverside Farm - Shipton Road, Skelton - large pub serving food and with a Wacky Warehouse to entertain the kids.
• At Nether Poppleton (retail estate):
  • Wetherby Whaler - fish and chips
  • Maxi's Chinese Restaurant
  • Bengal Brasserie Indian Restaurant
  • The Millfield, Beefeater Restaurant
  • Busy restaurants, but all good, and all popular restaurants in York, convenient for the ring-road and ideally located for the Premier Inn, here
• The Tanglewood - Malton Road (A64) - a bit outside of York but a large pub with good food.
• Thompsons Fish and Chips at Hazelbush - Malton Road (A64) - out of town, but we've stopped here many a time for fish and chips on the way home from Scarborough
• Hazlewood Castle - Hazlewood (A64 towards Leeds) - a luxury country hotel - gorgeous for special meals, we went here for my parents' ruby wedding anniversary - a lovely treat!
• The Balloon Tree - Stamford Bridge Road, Gate Helmsley - recommended for the farm shop, and their very good food. A firm favorite with locals. Go for morning coffee, a full lunch, or afternoon tea. It's nice to eat out in the garden, if it's fine. Can get busy!

Your York Eating Out Recommendations

Jumbo's Chinese Restaurant in York ('Gourmet George's' review)

Is your mouth watering yet? It should be!

I hope amongst all these lovely restaurants in York which we recommend, you'll find your own favorite...

Do let us know which restaurants in York you've eaten in and enjoyed too...

We'd love to try them, if we haven't already!

Share your restaurants in York reviews here...

Find more things to do in York, here...

Look for ideas for eating out at the coast, here...

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