The Top 8 Restaurants In Leicester UK

The (recently discovered) burial place of King Richard III, Leicester has many dining opportunities fit for a king, including some of the best curries this side of London’s Brick Lane. Here are our top picks for the best places to eat here and in the surrounding area.

Lighthouse

Restaurant, Seafood

Lighthouse is a seafood restaurant first and foremost, with an ever-changing specials menu featuring the catch of the day and the best of seasonal sustainable fishing from around the British Isles. More than just simply offering fish however, Lighthouse also serves a small but tempting selection of meat dishes including wonderful fillet steak.

The Joiners

Gastropub, Restaurant, British, European, Vegetarian, Vegan

Found in the outskirts of Leicester in the village of Bruntingthorpe, The Joiners is a modern rural gastropub from the team behind another local favorite, The Boot Room. Their select but perfectly crafted menu and wine selection, however, is well worth the voyage out of the city. Do not just take our word for its though, for the restaurant also holds a coveted Michelin Bib Gourmand rating, an accolade awarded to good food at reasonable prices that only two restaurants in Leicestershire hold.

The Windmill Inn

Pub, Restaurant, British, Mediterranean, European

The team at the Windmill Inn have created a great restaurant for the city, having totally refurbished the place and given it their own unique spin. Alongside the modern fine dining menu is a ‘Windmill Classics’ menu celebrating Great British heritage and classic pub dishes. Both, however, share the same care and aim to please that typifies everything that happens in the pub and restaurant, making the place a delightful Sunday lunch destination.

OGGI Simply Italian

Restaurant, British, Italian

Calling itself ‘the home of Italian cuisine in Leicester’, OGGI Simply Italian is a fantastic establishment with a menu that reflects its head chef’s near quarter century of experience and research into the food of Italy. Full of passion and dedication, it is Italian food a million miles above the usual pizza and pasta fare offered by so many mediocre restaurants. Although they do offer the latter, it is an authentic take that is like a taste of Tuscany right in the East Midlands of England.

Kayal

Restaurant, Indian

Kayal is an Indian restaurant that is more of a culinary ethos. A large group of Leicester locals with family ties banded together to open a small group of restaurants dedicated to authentic versions of the seafood recipes of Kerala, and have been hugely successful in the endeavor thanks to their dedication and great recipes. The customer service is also renowned; the motto behind the whole Kayal venture being ‘the guest is God’.

Shivalli

Restaurant, Indian

A real treat for the increasing number of gourmet-conscious vegetarians, Shivalli is named after a village in India where vegetarian food was perfected and where it is traditionally served on plantain leaves. Although the latter is not maintained across all of their meals, the veggie food perfected part definitely is.

Saray Mangal

Restaurant, Turkish

Named after a fertile and historic area of the Asian side of Turkey now called Anatolia, Saray Mangal offers quality Turkish food of this region. With a focused menu and the incomparable smells of roasting meats filling the restaurant, it is almost impossible not to feel instantly hungry as soon as you step into the space. Within the restaurant, Leicester’s Turkish population mingles with its students and urbanites, making Saray Mangal the epitome of a modern Leicester dining experience.

The Reservoir Inn

Bar, Pub, Restaurant, British, Vegetarian, Vegan, Gluten-free

The Windmill Inn’s sister restaurant the Reservoir Inn is situated by a reservoir on the edge of the New Forest on the outskirts of Leicester. Offering upscale pub-style fare in a warm and friendly atmosphere, it caters for ramblers and walkers around the reservoirs with their hearty appetites and discerning palates. Either eat at the bar for finger foods and a cold beer or dine at the slightly more formal restaurant area offering British twists on world flavors using the best of local produce.

About the author

Samuel Spencer

Samuel is a London-based freelance writer who studied English Literature at King’s College London. In his work, he combines highbrow and lowbrow culture, which has seen him writing about everything from Michelangelo to Madonna (and sometimes both at the same time) for publications including NME, The Telegraph and Penguin Books. At The Culture Trip, he mostly writes about museums and restaurants, but his wide ranging interests have seen him discussing (amongst others) kung fu films, Cambodian temple-robbing and Norman Wisdom.