Britain’s 100 Best Local Restaurants 2026: North West winners
Published 14 August 2026

A few blocks from the South Promenade and Blackpool's Pleasure Beach, this neighbourhood Indian is everybody's idea of an invaluable local resource – ‘it definitely makes Highfield Road a better place to eat, drink and socialise,’ notes one resident. The name means something like 'At the sign of the pomegranate', and behind a leafy-green frontage, the place exudes a family feeling, with cooking that is steeped in the Subcontinent's ancestral traditions. Sharing platters encourage a sense of togetherness (try the yakni Kashmiri pulao served straight from the stove), although most of the menu works in the expected way, with naan breads and parathas served alongside main dishes such as beef bagla bhuna, Afghan chicken or a family-style lamb curry.  You might preface these treats with Darjeeling chicken momo (dumplings) or the unmissable lahsuni houmous accompanied by a tandoori roti. Other attractions include a highly popular supper club, occasional live music, charity events and a proper Indian breakfast/brunch offer. Varietal wines do their job, while fruity cocktails offer a true taste of Blackpool. 

There’s plenty of local love for this abidingly popular neighbourhood spot in the city’s Wavertree district: ‘typically Liverpudlian,’ affirms one reporter, while another says that it always feels ‘like a proper special night out’. Belzan is the very image of a fancy but relaxed modern bistro, helped along by a delightful team. To start, you might plump for chicken and mushroom croquettes with herb aïoli – although one fan swears by the ‘show-stopping’ Guinness rarebit potato. Combinations are more enterprising than your standard bistro repertoire, so expect anything from rib of Aurox beef with miso and cashew nut butter to grilled jerk primo cabbage with pickled raisins, peanut and buttermilk followed by straightforward desserts such as clotted-cream ice cream with strawberries or cheese with a clootie dumpling and apple. Hearty Sunday lunches also bring in the crowds. The drinks menu features a slate of classic cocktails, and the place also supports wine producers with food and wine-pairing nights. 

Neston is a nice little town on the Wirral, and Bolete’s many fans consider themselves lucky to have such a good, solid neighbourhood local on their doorstep. Run by a super-friendly and obliging couple, the restaurant's small menu changes regularly, with café-style lunches (think chicken thigh Caesar salad or ham, egg and chips), and an evening repertoire that morphs into restaurant territory (spatchcocked chicken or skrei cod with chorizo and butter beans). Chef/co-owner Shaun Woodage's deft hand in the kitchen keeps things modern and upbeat without straying out of its depth – impressive for a self-taught former accountant working solo. With a good selection of wine and craft beer (both wider than you might imagine), combined with top-quality ingredients and dishes cooked fresh to order, the only thing you can do when 'it's gone, it's gone' is book to come again. And bring your dog. If the weather is right, there’s also a pretty terrace with tables to the rear.

Livia Alarcon has cooked up a reputation and a half for herself around Liverpool, and on the BBC's Great British Menu, making culinary tidal waves that belie her tender years. Her latest bolthole is an old brick archway near where the Tate & Lyle sugar refinery used to stand. A booming industrial space with a raised kitchen across the back, it plays host to broadly Italian cooking with overlays of Iberia and a little Japanese seasoning – so the likes of Padrón peppers with Italian togarashi need not raise eyebrows. The classic things are done with great panache, from fully loaded pizzette, their outer rings puffed up like choux, to freshly turned pasta. Something as classic as tagliolini with brown crab, lemon, tarragon, garlic and chilli offers a world of savoury satisfaction. The signature nibble is a coupe of deep-fried olives in deep brown crumb, to be dipped in basil mayo – a highly welcome reviver after 'a night before'. Wines on a high-turnover list are well chosen. We'd appreciate a few more by the glass, and maybe turn the music down a touch, but this is another Alarcon Liverpool landmark.

One could easily drive straight past without registering La Locanda's special presence on the main road through Gisburn village. The solid stone building has no super-flashy signage, and there's no indication that this is anything other than a conventional 'pizza and pasta' pit stop. Yet, for over 20 years, Cinzia and Maurizio Bocchi have been raising the ‘tricolore’ in defiance of the 'fast-food, frozen lasagne and garlic bread' norm still typical of many Anglo-Italian restaurants.

The trattoria setting is homely and modest, with an intimate and unhurried atmosphere and a welcome in inverse proportion to the size of the cramped ground-floor bar. The seasonal menu requires some study, but there’s no rush and Cinzia is on hand to answer all questions. The focus is on a Slow Food-style carte that marries Italian regional dishes (including Maurizio's trademark pasta) and rigorously curated imported ingredients with local produce such as Goosnargh chicken, Gisburn Forest roe deer and Bowland wild garlic. A key part of the ethos is sustainability and authenticity, so the owners only work with like-minded suppliers. 

In summer, you might find specialities ranging from sardine fillets with red peppers, spaghetti alla Trapanese or outstanding pork-stuffed spinach tortellini to wild sea bass partnered with punchy emerald salsa verde or an unusual dish of marinated whitebait typical of the version made with the little freshwater fish of the Italian Lakes. For dessert, there are ice-cream sundaes and the best cannoli we have ever tasted – the secret is fresh ricotta sourced directly from Sicily. The all-Italian wine list is arranged by region, and there's also an extensive range of Italian beers, aperitifs, soft drinks and cocktails – not forgetting a 20-strong 'coffee menu'. 

Located in a parade of shops in Liverpool's Aigburth suburb, this Thai café lacks nothing in local support – even midweek evenings are reliably rammed. With a Buddhist fantasy mural on one wall, and staff who are full of smiles and advice, it's a winning formula. Nor does the menu stick rigidly to tried-and-tested Thai classics. Vigorously seasoned dishes built from many ingredients keep the taste buds tingling, with stir-fries of cashews, sweet orange, shallots and chilli jam adding lustre to grilled prawns or fatty pork belly in stinky shrimp paste with asparagus, chillies, garlic and dill. The approach to chilli, often hot as Hades in Thai cooking, is at the subtler end of the spectrum here, but dishes are nonetheless impeccably balanced. A side of stir-fried greens with edamame and chunks of garlic nicely boosts the plain jasmine rice. A short drinks list includes a lime-fragrant off-dry Rhine Riesling, the perfect complement if Singha or Chang beers aren't your thing.

‘If you’re looking for a place that feels like a warm hug from Nonna, this is an absolute must-visit,' is wise advice from one loyal fan. Nico Pasquali has been bringing ‘a slice of Rome to north Manchester’ since 2014. Even though his homely little all-day trattoria is in the incongruous setting of an industrial estate, it attracts a steady flow of customers drawn by the unfussy, unpretentious vibe, the chequered tablecloths, the soft hum of Italian music, and the precisely cooked traditional dishes – from perfectly crisped Roman-style pizzas to richly sauced hand-rolled pastas. One reporter singled out the cannelloni with ricotta and spinach, but other reasonably priced options might range from battered courgette flowers and crocchette (handmade potato balls filled with scamorza cheese) to lobster ravioli – not forgetting those pizzas (and pastries). To drink, there's a modest collection of artisan Italian wines, as well as cocktails and Italian beers. The expertly brewed coffee also receives rave notices.

If it seems a stretch from the rarefied peaks of central Europe to Manchester's Green Quarter, be assured that the spätzle, dumplings and filled pasta parcels served at this ‘unique Mancunian concept’ have survived the journey intact. Not the least reason the Spärrows has been such a firm local favourite is that there is so much going on here, from winemakers' lunches to sake tastings. It's in those perfectly rendered little parcels of happiness, though, that the culinary energy is focused. Spätzle or gnocchi come with a range of sauce options, before the menu heads east for pierogi and pelmeni, with lashings of sour cream and garlic breadcrumbs to complement their richly meaty fillings. Sharing boards of cured meats, smoked fish or cheeses will hone the fastest-finger-first skills of a hungry bunch, and if a winter warmer is required, look to the Tyrolese goulash with knöpfle and pickles. To finish, the banker has to be the cinnamon spätzle in a cloud of brown sugar. Revelatory Alpine wines are on hand to suit the mood.

‘The entire dining experience captures everything we love about the Lakes,’ commented one reporter; ‘from the rustic aesthetics, the friendly, knowledgeable staff, locally sourced produce, and – of course – the incredible food, every detail feels thoughtfully done.’ There’s a sense of true dedication about this family-run ‘bistro with beds’ found up an easy-to-miss track off the Grasmere to Keswick road. Here, an industrious kitchen produces daily menus specialising in fiercely local produce, including a mighty ‘brekkie’ offered to all-comers, as well as stupendous Sunday roasts (including ‘the best mash ever’). At dinner, local beef can appear in several guises and Grasmere Herdwick lamb stars in the signature shepherd’s pie, but the kitchen isn’t averse to going walkabout for the likes of Basque mussel stew or crispy sushi rice with wild mushrooms. Portions are hefty, so you might want to skip a starter (say, crab and sweetcorn fritters) or dessert (egg custard tart with gooseberry and elderflower compôte). As for drinks, there are non-alcoholic spritzes, homemade fruit cordials and on-trend cocktails, plus a short list of global wines.