Autumn may be a season of mists and mellow fruitfulness but it's also the time of year for restaurant awards. Hardens are about to have theirs. Michelin are gearing up to announce their stars and that's followed by the Tatler Restaurant Guide coming out. But the first out of the doors is the publication of the annual Good Food Guide and, in particular, its list of the 50 best restaurants in the UK.
The 2019 guide, which is published today, brings particularly good news for chef Clare Smyth and her brigade at Core by Clare Smyth. Having been out of the guide for a year while she transitioned between leaving Restaurant Gordon Ramsay and opening Core, Smyth has come roaring back in with another perfect score of 10, putting her straight in at No 3 on the list.
"We are absolutely blown away by the news," Smyth said. "It is so good to know that people appreciate what we have all been working so hard for at Core." Of course it's not the first time Clare has managed a perfect 10. Back in 2014 she became the first female chef for 15 years to achieve it, at Royal Hospital Road.
Core is one of just three restaurants in the country with a top score - she shares that honour with Restaurant Nathan Outlaw which tops the list for the second year running and Cumbria’s L’Enclume.
Year on year, the number of London restaurants on the list is up one to 16 (click here to see last year's list). New this year are Roganic in Marylebone, A. Wong and, of course, Core. Both Murano and Marianne fell out of the Top 50. The highest London climber was Restaurant Story which zipped up the list from 39 to 16.
There were also a couple of special awards for London restaurants. Restaurant of the Year went to A. Wong, described as a ‘game changing Chinese restaurant’ and Best New Entry for London was Cornerstone which they dubbed a ‘smash hit that is seriously on-the-up’. There'll also be celebrations in south London today as Home SW15 in Putney picked up the Reader's best local restaurant for London.
The Top 50 Restaurants
- 1 Restaurant Nathan Outlaw, Cornwall
- 2 L’Enclume, Cumbria
- 3 Core by Clare Smyth New
- 4 Restaurant Sat Bains, Notts
- 5 Ynyshir, Powys
- 6 Claude Bosi at Bibendum, London
- 7 Restaurant Gordon Ramsay, London
- 8 Casamia, Bristol
- 9 Pollen Street Social, London
- 10 The Fat Duck, Berkshire
- 11 Moor Hall, Lancashire
- 12 Restaurant Andrew Fairlie, Tayside
- 13 Adam Reid at The French, Manchester
- 14 Bohemia, Jersey
- 15 Le Champignon Sauvage, Glos
- 16 Restaurant Story, London
- 17 André Garrett at Cliveden, Berkshire
- 18 The Ledbury, London
- 19 Fraiche, Merseyside
- 20 Roganic, London New
- 21 Midsummer House, Cambridgeshire
- 22 Alain Ducasse at the Dorchester, London
- 23 The Peat Inn, Fife
- 24 Marcus, London
- 25 Dinner by Heston Blumenthal, London
- 26 The Kitchin, Edinburgh
- 27 Forest Side, Cumbria
- 28 A. Wong, London New
- 29 Orwells, Oxfordshire
- 30 Sketch, Lecture Room & Library, London
- 31 Hedone, London
- 32 The Ritz, London
- 33 Castle Terrace, Edinburgh
- 34 The Three Chimneys, Isle of Skye
- 35 The Waterside Inn, Berkshire
- 36 Simon Radley at the Chester Grosvenor, Cheshire New
- 37 Restaurant James Sommerin, Glamorgan
- 38 Whatley Manor, The Dining Room, Wiltshire
- 39 Matt Worswick at the Latymer, Surrey New
- 40 The Raby Hunt, Co Durham
- 41 The Greenhouse, London
- 42 The Sportsman, Kent
- 43 Restaurant Martin Wishart, Edinburgh
- 44 Artichoke, Buckinghamshire
- 45 Lake Road Kitchen, Cumbria New
- 46 Adam’s, Birmingham
- 47 Morston Hall, Norfolk New
- 48 Le Gavroche, London
- 49 The Whitebrook, Monmouthshire
- 50 Hambleton Hall, Leicestershire and Rutland
Subscribe to hear the latest from Hot Dinners
