Smethwick, British, Modern Restaurant Guide

2021 Review: Yummy brunches, fine coffee and stone-baked pizza are the top attractions at this funkily decorated pub, on the high street (which has a good garden for the summer months).

This “busy” high performer on the Brummie dining scene “goes from strength to strength” under head chef Tom Wells, maintaining its rating after the departure of founder Jamie Desogus. Guests can sit at tables or at a counter overlooking the open kitchen, and the tasting menu “offers excellent cooking using seasonal, high-quality ingredients” – “a mixture of old favourite signature dishes and dishes new to repeat diners”. A ‘5 for £55’ set meal on weeknights and a ‘Chosen’ reduced tasting menu are also available.

“Birmingham‘s most long-standing fine-dining restaurant is still going strong after 31 years, under the continuing leadership of Andreas Antona & Luke Tipping” and some locals see its strong performance in recent times as something of a “comeback”. “The setting in the old Georgian house in Edgbaston is of course a pleasure to visit and the view into the small but attractive garden adds to the ambience when the light nights of summer are with us”. “Chef Luke delivers a thoughtful menu using high quality ingredients and perfectly judged cooking” and results are “stylish” and “delicious”. “Careful” service all the while leaves diners feeling “very well looked after”.

“Different but brilliant!” – “The Wilderness remains the most exciting restaurant in Birmingham” according to a fan of Alex Claridge’s “extraordinary former factory in the Jewellery Quarter” (although this was said before Alex opened his ‘Albatross Death Cult’ – see also). “The atmosphere may not be to everyone’s taste, to put it mildly, with its ‘lively’ background music, black decor and amazing energy coming out of its open kitchen. But this is a real dining experience of successful, sometimes quirky dishes, served in an exciting venue by the remarkable head chef Marius Gedminas and chef-patron Alex Claridge, who continue to create dishes that are original, excitingly presented, accurately cooked and delicious”. Top Tip – “the drinks pairing is a welcome change to the usual, with lots of different things to try”.

“One of the nicest restaurants in Birmingham, without a doubt” – this small greige and wood-toned venue just off St Paul’s Square was launched by Ben Tesh and partner Lucy Hanlon in 2017. “It’s a quiet, relaxing, informal place with charming service in which to eat very fine food prepared meticulously by chef Ben, who has his very own quiet style of cooking. The menu takes the form of a tasting menu and each dish seems to complement the previous one: excellent food that’s often subtle, frequently original, occasionally challenging, but quite special when set against the background of the Birmingham dining out scene”.

“Phwoar!” – “Aktar Islam’s remarkable restaurant situated on the edge of Birmingham‘s Jewellery Quarter goes from strength to strength”: it remains Brum’s most commented-on destination in our annual diners’ poll (and, in early 2024, became Brum’s first-ever Michelin two star restaurant in the tyre men’s awards). “Aktar’s cooking has matured wonderfully” and here (and with his Aktar at Home delivery service) is succeeding in “taking Indian cuisine to a new and exalted level”. “Despite us being bored with taster menus, these are exceptional”, with “totally outstanding flavours and presentation”. There are two options (with five- and ten-course alternatives) which “provide good value and a great and memorable experience”. “After canapés in the chic lounge/bar, the main meal is served in the dining area with a view of a large open kitchen where the chefs can be seen purposefully and calmly going about their work. Service is very good and the atmosphere is relaxing”. “Quite simply the best”. Top Menu Tip – “The signature potato dish is amazing! Never had anything quite like it!”

“Adam’s is probably the smartest and most formal restaurant in Birmingham”, and with the demise of Purnell’s (RIP) some would say it is “now by some way Birmingham’s number one spot”, especially if you are neither seeking a hip, multi-course experience nor non-European cuisine. Established in 2016 by Adam & Natasha Stokes, it’s a conventional space near Victoria Square – “front of house staff are smartly decked out and behave like professionals: polite and helpful with well-measured friendliness”. “Sound, thoughtful cooking is well-judged”, “prepared from high-quality ingredients” and “presented very attractively”. Most nights there is an à la carte (£89 per person) or five-course (£109 per person) option: on Saturdays it’s just the seven-course tasting menu for £137 per person. “The room is pleasant enough, though a large party can make it noisy”.

What does it say about the culinary tastes of the British middle classes that this spin-off chain, with about 40 locations based on the original Theatreland icon, has been such a rip-roaring success? True, there’s some “great people-watching” at the “always buzzing” Chelsea Garden venue (which has one of SW3’s best gardens). And, without doubt, those branches in Kensington, Tower Bridge and Kingston also particularly stand out amongst the rest for their “super atmosphere”. In general though, the knock-off look of their locations “isn’t a patch on the original on West Street, yet pretends to be exactly the same”. And when it comes to their brasserie dishes: although its many followers tout them as “acceptable, albeit nothing special”, their rating-average identifies them as “underwhelming tick-box fare”; all offered by service that’s very “indifferent”. And yet they are “always busy”! In June 2024, it was announced that billionaire Richard Caring had successfully sold his entire Ivy restaurants stake. Now that he is laughing all the way to the bank, it will be interesting to see if ratings reverse, continue or deepen their southward trend.

2023 Review: You’re “always guaranteed a superb meal” from “a favourite top chef” – Liam Dillon (who has worked for the likes of Marcus Wareing and Tom Sellers) – at the “great pub” he has converted into an ambitious restaurant, with 4- and 6-course tasting menus in the evening and a chef’s table option.

Stop Press – in February 2023, ex-Simpson’s head chef Matt Cheal closed down his popular Henley-in-Arden venture, which was too small for his planned expansion, and upped sticks eight miles down the road to Knowle High Street, where he now co-runs things with the manager of the Jacques fine dining restaurant which previously stood in the new location. According to early reports, “the exceptional quality of Cheal’s food, not up till now as appreciated as it ought to be, has not deteriorated in its relocation”, while the new space – a former bank with a posh cocktail bar – is “comfortable” (if “a little too glitzy” for some tastes).

2022 Review: “A real gem in our local area” – this branch in the stylish, seven-strong Warwickshire-based 'Lovely Pubs' group has a lot to recommend it: “service is on the right side of friendly and very attentive”, they serve “great pub food, but restaurant quality” (including “fantastic seafood platters”), and if you stick to the main bar downstairs, there's plenty of atmosphere too.

“This must be the most ‘undiscovered’ fine-dining restaurant in the West Midlands”, say fans of this yearling from locally born and trained Rob Palmer, formerly head chef at Hampton Manor, whose debut as patron is a 26-seat open-kitchen venue in a former computer game shop. “Food and service are first-class”, and if it’s “a little pricey, it’s worth it”. In the evening, the five-course menu is £85 per person; or there’s a seven-course option for £99 per person.

“Sitting around the pass watching the chefs work calmly and efficiently really adds to the exceptional experience” at this “stunning space, tucked away deep in the Warwickshire countryside”, which has fully justified the pivot the property made a couple of years ago from a more conventional country-house experience to this very contemporary venture built into the walled garden of the manor house. “The design of the open kitchen and restaurant is impressive, with most tables afforded a view of the chefs at work”. “The 15-course menu is equal to the setting, with faultless cooking matched by a really heartfelt dedication to produce and its provenance and care”. “To cap it all, you are very well looked after by a team who are obviously passionate about their ideas”. “The overall quality of the 15 courses is excellent and for most courses the provenance of the main elements is identified”. “Visit in summer, and it’s a pleasant end to the evening to be able to sit around the fire pit in the courtyard”. You can also book an Overnight Experience that leaves those who stay “greatly impressed with the set-up” and with accommodation that’s “stylish, comfortable and quirky”.

“Smart, flawless cooking with personality” (“the skill in elevating the ingredients is something I hadn’t experienced in a long time”) means it’s “hard to get a reservation” at this 28-cover space, which Tom Shepherd opened above his father’s jewellery shop three years ago. “Casual and relaxed, but with a genuine buzz about the place” – all reports are full of enthusiasm (“having made our reservation about nine months in advance, we were eagerly anticipating our first visit here, and the whole experience was well worth the wait!”). “Throughout the various courses the food is of a consistently high standard: the canapés are outstanding and everything that follows offers wonderful flavour combinations as well as being beautifully presented”. “Service is warm and knowledgeable, from people who clearly love what they do”. “We’ve already booked our next visit, which unfortunately is not for another 12 months!”