The best restaurants serving British food in Elvet County Durham North East

We’re not vegans, merely vegetarians! However it was a lovely surprise to stumble across this stall whilst on a walk around Durham. Whilst not hungry at the time, we bought some pastries and a scotch egg for later, purely because it was nice to see a trader specialising in meat free (or in this case vegan) products and not someone making a token effort. All of of our food tasted awesome and we’ll definitely make a point of visiting here to try something else the next time we are in Durham.

This is a relatively new restaurant offering what I would describe as modern British fine dining. There is a Sunday lunch menu, ten course tasting menu or four course menu. - See the website for menu details. The kitchen is open at the back of the restaurant so you can see the food being prepared. We chose th four course menu. The food was well presented and was prepared to a very high standard, as was the service. You can opt for different glasses of wine with each course on all of the menus, but there is also a wine list available. Highly recommend.

My wife and I visited the Hare and Hounds today after pre booking, which seems essential. We were not disappointed. It was the Best Sunday Roast we have had for years. Freshly cooked vegetables and a choice of beef lamb or pork very good portions of meat served to you then put your own veg and trimmings. All with the best gravy. Friendly staff and bee from onsite brewery. Strongly Recommend.

Lovely food, comfy chairs, big portions and decent prices at £24 for a very filling lunch for two. Would like to come back and try more from the menu. Only criticism so far is lack of proper baby changing facilities. I know space is an issue but all there is is a small, hard tiled counter.

Great pizza and pastries. Coffee is hit or miss but high recommend

Bells have had a reputation for exceptional fish and chips for some time. If our visit today is anything to go on. The reputation is in tact. We took our grandson with us. It was his first visit. He has a very healthy appetite, and it was put to the test today. The service was as expected. Attentive and efficient. It is unusual to have such a standard of customer service in a fish and chip cafe. We look forward to our next visit. Thank you Bell's.

Práctico café en el centro de la ciudad. Edificio peculiar. Asientos interiores y exteriores. Los paninis eran excelentes. Agua gratis disponible cerca del mostrador. Café decepcionante - mi café con leche tenía una piel en la parte superior. Personal amable.

We visited the champagne bar last Saturday for an early birthday day out . We booked for the bottomless brunch . We were unsure about the price as it was a little bit more expensive than other places but my gosh was it worth it. It’s probably been the nicest bottomless brunch I have tried and all 6 of us girls agreed. The drinks were amazing , cocktails were all made from scratch . The food was also delicious! I am a vegetarian and there was so much option. Special thankyou to Jhan for making us feel very looked after . She made sure we always had 2 drinks at the table and was lovely . She also assured us that our time did not start until we all had a drink and once we were done we could finish our drinks in the pod which was lovely so meant we didn’t have to rush . Thankyou so much , we had such a great time ♥️ We will definitely be returning and it was well worth the money 🫶🏻

Entrance a bit deceptive but go down stairs to restaurant.lovely ambiance and food was excellent as was service. Found a true gem and highly recommend

Excellent coffee and cakes at a reasonable price. Only place to go for coffee in Durham from now on.

The venue was lovely, and the staff were polite. The steak was beautifully cooked and full of flavor. I recommend one of the sharing boards, whichever appeals to you. We had an early dinner, so the restaurant was very quiet as it had just opened, which was perfect for the children. There was a great selection of drinks, and the bartender who worked the day the King and Queen visited the Cathedral was exceptional.

Fabulous little cafe based at the mining museum. A small but prefect menu with very reasonable prices and friendly staff.

Dinner @5:30pm outside of term time - we were basically the only diners. Had a vegan option for every course so we were both catered for. And both sets of food were devoured. All flavours as described and dishes were well executed. Service was also great - friendly and professional front of house. Couldn't fault our visit.

We had our first dining experience at Bailey’s during a business dinner meeting on a Saturday night. The restaurant itself gives off an elegant and inviting atmosphere — warm lighting, tasteful interiors, and an overall sophisticated vibe as we were led to our seats on the second floor. However, the evening turned out to be underwhelming. The place was fully packed, which we understand given it was a weekend, but the air conditioning struggled to keep the room cool, leaving us feeling quite uncomfortable throughout the meal. We started with appetizers — calamari and bruschetta — but unfortunately, neither stood out in terms of taste or quality. For drinks, one of us ordered the Peach and Cream cocktail, which leaned far too heavy on the milk and lacked any noticeable kick from the alcohol. For the main course, things didn’t improve. The steak was not prepared to expectation, and the Cajun snapper came out too dry. At this point, the group was noticeably disappointed, not just because of the food, but more so due to the service. Service was a major letdown. There were only three waiters attending to the entire second floor, which clearly wasn’t enough given the volume of diners. We waited over 40 minutes for almost every order, and it was evident that the staff were overwhelmed. It seems the management had underestimated the number of staff needed for a fully booked night — a crucial oversight that greatly affected the dining experience. On a positive note, the seafood chowder and French onion soup were both delicious and well-prepared. One of our colleagues also enjoyed the Mediterranean seafood dish, which was a small saving grace for the evening. Overall, while Bailey’s offers a beautiful setting and ambiance, the experience left much to be desired in terms of food quality and service efficiency. It’s a place with potential, but definitely needs improvement in both kitchen execution and customer service management, especially on their busiest nights.

Very busy, waited in queue for 20 mins. Card machine not working, only taking cash. Cheese scone was OK, tea was OK.