Best restaurants in York
Published 01 May 2024

Turkish chef Ali Açikgül opened this tiny bakery, pastry shop and café to specialise in various types of cheesecake – notably coffee, chocolate, pistachio and the beautiful shiny-topped Basque or San Sebastián versions (a top pick). In addition, he also sells cakes and cookies, bread and savoury börek, plus decent coffee, infusions and other soft drinks. There are a couple of tables inside the shop if you want to linger, although it's the cheesecake you're really here for. Note that the owner hosts regular workshops for baking novices. 

Loved by locals and tourists alike, this Yorkshire institution promises smart, warm and remarkably consistent service across five sites including Harrogate, Northallerton, Ilkley and York. The latter opened in 1936 after founder Frederick Belmont sailed to America on The Queen Mary and, inspired by its opulent Art Deco interiors, drafted in the same craftsmen to design a splendid new tea room. Nine decades later, the charm lives on and refurbishment to the first-floor Belmont Room will see original features restored to their former glory. The Swiss-style menu rarely changes and covers breakfast (served all day), lunch dishes such as rösti or schnitzel, afternoon tea (bookable) and, of course, a cake trolley loaded with tempting fruit tarts and fondant fancies. Expect to queue at peak times and pay handsomely, but tucking into a warm fat rascal piled with butter and a pot of tea served in traditional silverware will always be worth the wait. 

It was good news when we heard that Florencia Clifford, Hugo Hildyard and chef James Gilroy from brunch spot Partisan had taken over the premises formerly occupied by Rattle Owl for their second opening on Micklegate. Named after the Romanian sculptor Constantin Brâncusi and open for brunch (Friday to Monday) and evenings (Thursday to Saturday), it features many well-tried Partisan classics (think Persian eggs, French toast, eggs Benedict) as well as a host of imaginative new ideas.

In the evening, you might start with a Basque pintxo such as a cocktail stick threaded with anchovy, olive and pickled pepper – a salty, green, explosive snack that we paired with a glass of crisp Basque Txakolina. Then mix-and-match small and larger plates from a line-up that features both meat and fish – maybe chalk stream trout with crab hollandaise, or crisp pheasant goujons served with a creamy peppercorn sauce, or tender beef short ribs matched with celeriac rémoulade.

Vegetables are at the heart of the menu, locally sourced from community food market Food Circle York, and inspired by a belief that food doesn’t have to be complicated to be good – try their lovely potato and Gruyère gratin, an artichoke heart tartine or squash with brown butter, sheep's curd and hazelnuts. For dessert there could be orange and cranberry sorbet or a chocolate pot with black-treacle ice cream, white chocolate and tofu ganache. Wines start at £26 a bottle.

It’s often a bit of a squeeze getting in, but if you push your way past the counter, you’ll discover a cosy dining room, plus a hidden outdoor courtyard and some excellent food. Mannion & Co specialises in brunch, lunch and afternoon tea (plus occasional evening meals) and everything from eggs Benedict to their mighty ciabatta sandwiches is top-notch, beautifully produced and generously served. Blackboard specials change daily, their ‘deli boards’ are legendary, and at teatime you can choose between sweet or savoury scones. Loose-leaf tea is served from individual black cast iron teapots and their excellent coffee comes with a biscotti – a nice touch.

A stalwart fixture of York's dining scene since the beginning of the 1990s, Melton's is a tribute to Michael and Lucy Hjort's commitment to the city's lively gastronomic culture. Against the famous backdrop of a delightful French-style mural that must by now have earned heritage status, Lucy still runs the front of house with admirable warmth and lightly worn wine knowledge – as was appreciated by the diner who learned a lot from her disquisition on an Australian Saperavi.

The stoves have been at the command of Calvin Miller for the better part of a decade, and the cooking has ploughed inventive furrows all across the modern British field. Stimulating combinations distinguish first courses such as smoked eel and Umai caviar with nashi pear and lovage, or a meatily satisfying muster of stuffed morel, confit chicken wing, white asparagus and wild garlic. Textural contrasts are the watchword of main dishes that might see halibut crusted in hazelnuts and truffle, served with salsify, leeks and chanterelles, while salt-aged pork acquires sharp edges from caramelised apple and soured cabbage. The vegetarian alternative could be something like confit carrot with cashews and sea buckthorn in vadouvan sauce.

Desserts such as Yorkshire rhubarb with spiced pain perdu, blood-orange and yoghurt offer an almost Matisse-like splash of colour, but if you're looking for a brown study, there's dark chocolate délice with salt caramel and hogweed ice cream. A tasting-menu tour of the horizon is a useful resource. The enterprising wine list has helpful notes throughout and offers fine drinking at surprisingly generous prices.

A delightful daytime favourite on Micklegate, this indie café and arts space scores with its vintage decor and relaxed, slightly bohemian vibe. There are two smallish rooms, upstairs and down – the big marquee in the garden is for overspill and best considered on warm days. Brunch is the main event and the line-up is global, from sobrasada and goat’s cheese toast to a homely Persian chicken stew accompanied by a plain tortilla. They serve good-quality coffee too. Expect queues of shoppers outside, eager to snap up Partisan’s excellent sourdough loaves, cakes and pastries (we were tempted by their rhubarb pastel de nata).

Beside York’s city walls, this former Victorian inn is home to Roots, the urban outpost of Tommy Banks’ mini-empire. The rather sombre frontage contrasts with the warm and relaxed interior, which is furnished with kilims, Scandi-style chairs and oak tables – their legs a tangle of metal ‘roots’.  Tasting menus swing along in a fashion of small courses that reflect whatever is being harvested at the farm in Oldstead, along with a productive line in preserves and ferments. Similarly, cocktails make use of a range of herbs and foraged pickings such as lemon verbena and woodruff. Wines are selected from an expansive list, along with food-matching packages, by-the-glass selections and Banks Brothers wines-in-a-can.

This kind of high-spend, special-occasion, multi-course dining will not be to everyone’s taste or pocket, but you can eat here generously for a fraction of the price by opting for their ‘Sunday feast’ (two sittings at 12 noon and 4pm). Proceedings begin with a series of seasonally updated small dishes: a mini taste of Oldstead charcuterie and pickles; a slice of cured salmon served with a creamy pot of whipped buttermilk; a pot of rich duck liver parfait sealed with a layer of rhubarb jelly to slather on slices of crusty sourdough, and finally a warm croquette of Old Winchester cheese and coppa.

The monthly changing roast might be chicken, pork or, for a supplement, rib of beef. ‘Trimmings’ are generous: duck-fat roast potatoes; a rich cauliflower cheese perked up with Tunworth cheese and mustard; carrots glazed in spruce and tarragon; charred hispi cabbage given a wild garlic and parsley crumb, and finally, a puffy Yorkshire pudding which, for a £7 supplement, can be filled with braised ox cheek and caramelised onion. The lavish feast ends with a mini dessert of Yorkshire rhubarb and toasted oats. 

Neil Bentinck took York by storm when he arrived in 2016 and started serving exciting, inventive modern dishes with a pan-Asian twist. Since then, he has barely put a foot wrong, earning Skosh something of a cult following – scoring a table means booking well in advance. There’s nothing showy about the 40-seater restaurant, a palette of grey and yellow, rustic hand-thrown crockery and wooden tables, with a row of stools at the chef's table overlooking the open kitchen.

The name Skosh is a contraction of the Japanese word sukoshi (meaning small), a clue that the kitchen delivers small plates – around 25 of them at prices ranging from a few pounds for a Lindisfarne oyster with cucumber and jalapeño granita to just under a tenner for miso-glazed hake with courgette, pickled lemon and sunflower-seed pesto. You could limit yourself to three dishes per person, but it's worth splashing out – especially when the line-up promises fried popcorn chicken (with a sweetcorn sauce and Thai basil), cauliflower pakoras with mint, tamarind and yoghurt, or tandoori pigeon skewers. It’s only a mouthful, but a cube of sea trout cured in kecap manis (sweet soy sauce), topped with marshmallow and finished with peanut and lime is outstanding, while their lovely sourdough is served with Acorn Dairy butter and gunpowder salt.

And if there is one unmissable item, it’s ‘hen’s egg’, a dish that has been on the menu since day one: a ceramic eggshell is filled with a mousse of Summerfield's cheese, but dig down and you'll find a mix of egg yolk, crunchy crumbs, leeks, black vinegar and sweet sherry (ingredients are tweaked from time to time). Drinks are equally eclectic, from seasonal cocktails and craft beers to a slate of global wines. 

In 2013, chef-patron Andrew Pern (of the much-garlanded Star Inn, 20 or so miles away in Harome) snapped up a derelict water pumping station by the river Ouse and added another restaurant to his portfolio. He attached a contemporary, glass-fronted extension and a spacious terrace to the Grade II-listed building, and with views across the river, there is nowhere better on a balmy day. Indoors, the 130-cover dining room is equally inviting with generous tables, velvet banquettes and characterful vintage lampshades.

Pern's aim is to bring ‘a little taste of the countryside to the city’ with the help of a seasonally changing menu: North York Moors game sausage with truffled mash; venison and beef-shin terrine; confit duck leg and duck parfait; Yorkshire Wolds chicken with fondant potato, wild garlic and pink peppercorn jus. The menu is largely meat-focused, though there is fish from the coast such as a fillet of stone bass on buttered leeks with mussels and a lovely ‘scallop’ of thinly sliced, battered and deep-fried potatoes. To finish, keep it local with Yorkshire rhubarb and almond tart or Whitby rum and York honey panna cotta.

As a seasoned restaurateur, Pern has all bases covered here – from a substantial wine list, classic and ‘zero’ cocktails, weekend breakfasts and special dinners to a children’s menu and some of the best Sunday roasts in the city.

Andrew Pern (the Star Inn at Harome, et al) has the knack of securing the most superior locations for his restaurants. His latest acquisition, in the former York Minster choir school, is a stunning Gothic listed building within the precincts of the mighty cathedral. While an all-day menu delivered mixed results, the real winner here is the location and the sweeping outdoor terrace. A table in the sunshine with a chilled glass of Hattingley Valley sparkling wine, plus a dish of roast merguez sausage or a burger with skinny fries from the ‘light bites’ menu (12-6pm) is hard to resist – especially with a close-up view of the Minster thrown in.