5 award-winning restaurants to try in the south of England for your next meal out

Treating yourself to a meal out at a new or favourite restaurant can be a wonderful way to spend the evening. A special occasion calls for an equally special restaurant.

That’s why we’ve listed five award-winning restaurants you might like to try the next time you enjoy a meal out. Based in a variety of regions across the south of England, these restaurants offer the tastiest dishes made with high-quality ingredients by some of the finest chefs in the country. Which will you visit next?

1. Galvin Green Man, Chelmsford

Galvin Green Man is the most recent venture of brothers Chris and Jeff Galvin. The pair have an impressive background working in some of the most prestigious kitchens in the country and are well-known in the culinary world for their exceptional French cuisine.

At Galvin Green Man, you can dine in the restaurant or the pub. The latter dates back to 1314, making it one of the oldest pubs in Essex. Today, the Galvin Green Man sources ingredients from local suppliers to ensure freshness. What’s more, they’ve won several awards for their work.

They have been the recipients of the Michelin Bib Gourmand award every year from 2018 to 2024. The award recognises high-quality food, made with local, seasonal ingredients at reasonable prices.

2. Sorrel, Dorking

At Sorrel, you’ll experience the team’s “open kitchen” concept. The restaurant’s kitchen is housed in a glass cube, and guests are encouraged to chat with chefs and wait staff about the food and the inspiration behind the dishes.

The restaurant itself sits within a 300-year-old, Grade II-listed building in the heart of Dorking. When you visit, you can choose between a three-course lunch menu, and a five- or nine-course tasting menu at lunch and dinner. You’re sure to enjoy perusing the fantastic wine list before choosing a bottle, too.

The restaurant is the proud recipient of a range of awards, including four AA rosettes, an appearance in Harden’s Top 100 restaurants of 2024, and a Michelin star.

3. The Hand and Flowers, Marlow

The Hand and Flowers is the flagship restaurant of celebrity chef patron Tom Kerridge. It offers a perfect combination of outstanding and flavourful food in relaxed settings in the lovely village of Marlow.

Kerridge is one of the country’s most popular celebrity chefs. Alongside the Hand and Flowers, he owns a further two pubs in Marlow and several restaurants in London.

The Hand and Flowers has held two Michelin stars since 2012, and is the only pub in the UK to have that accolade.

4. The Glasshouse Restaurant, Oakley Hall Hotel, Basingstoke

The Glasshouse Restaurant is part of the beautiful Oakley Hall Hotel in Basingstoke and offers the perfect setting for a family get-together.

The restaurant offers a range of elegant, modern dishes, priding themselves on locally sourced ingredients from within a 50-mile radius. Much of what they serve was grown in their own kitchen garden by in-house gardener Justin. You can learn more about how he grows the ingredients on a self-guided tour of the gardens.

This wholesome approach to the food they serve has won the restaurant several impressive awards. These include two AA rosettes, the Gold Beautiful South award for Restaurant of the Year, and the Bronze Taste of England award from Visit England.

5. Restaurant Interlude, Horsham

Restaurant Interlude is housed in an elegant 19th-century Italianate-style mansion house in Horsham, West Sussex. Executive chef Jean Delport and his team are committed to providing their guests with the opportunity to “interact with nature and eat from the land in an unexpected food journey”.

To do this, they offer a set menu that evolves with the seasons. The ingredients that go into the dishes are produced in the estate’s gardens as well as by local farmers who pride themselves on producing high-quality organic crops.

The restaurant holds a Michelin star and is the first in West Sussex to achieve a Michelin green star, which recognises outstanding sustainable practices and ethically sourced cuisine.

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Please note

This article is for general information only and does not constitute advice.