Kelly Pigram

Yorkshire’s biggest city may be best known for its massive university, charming accent and winning array of things to do – but it certainly punches above its weight when it comes to independent restaurants, bars and cafés, too. In fact, student-centric Sheffield boasts a diverse food and drink scene that can cater for pretty much all budgets and occasions. So whether you’re more into the idea of street food, a sourdough bakery or a fine-dining establishment set in a shipping container, our pick of the very best restaurants in Sheffield has you covered.

The small town of Chester was famously founded as a Roman fortress way back in the first century. It’s steeped in history, which you can explore by going for lunch at the seventeenth-century Bear & Billet – visiting an old pub is the best way to learn about a town, trust us. It's a must thing to do when in Chester. There’s British food everywhere here, but you’ll also find speciality coffee and excellent brunches. Here are the best restaurants and cafés to while away the hours in Chester.

Toscana Gelateria Naturale looks every bit like your average local ice-cream shop. But Tuscan co-owner Ferdinando (“Nando”) is more qualified than your everyday churner: he’s been making gelato for 17 years. He moved to Australia 14 years ago, where he met his wife Lisa, and ten years later the pair settled in Georges Hall and opened their first shop. There’s not much to the quiet street, aside from a Chinese restaurant and a greengrocer, and there’s not much to the shop either, other than the gelato cabinet, an assortment of silver chairs and tables, and an espresso machine. If first impressions are anything to go by, you wouldn’t necessarily guess they’re scooping up some of the best gelato in town. True to Nando’s Italian heritage, the tagline here is fresh ingredients and natural flavours. (“No bubblegum here!” he explains.) Classics like hazelnut, pistachio, stracciatella, coffee and fior di latte are regulars, alongside other, more experimental numbers like prickly pear, golden chai latte, and banana with caramelised pineapple. Macadamia is a crowd favourite, with good reason. Nando transforms fresh macadamias into a thick paste, which he slowly blends with organic milk and cream before adding chunks of soft, buttery nuts to the mix. The result is a beautifully creamy scoop that holds its shape in the cone, but melts in the mouth as soon as it touches your tongue. Flavours change regularly (lots are requests from customers, so BYO ideas), but the ricotta and cinnamon is

Does the word Chemex mean anything to you? How about washed Kenyan cold-drip, or an inverted rosetta-tulip on a single-extracted flat white? If that’s not gibberish, then Prufrock Coffee will be right up your street. Or up your (Leather) Lane. As well as having a famous address, Prufrock is a spacious, light and bright café that serves brunch but specialises in caffeine; coffee beans, coffee merchandise and posters for barista training courses line the walls. Luckily, the coffee is practically perfect: my flat white was delightfully smooth and creamy with a perfect coffee-art swan swirled on to the froth on top. It’s the type of stuff that’ll put a smile on your face while it gives you a kick of energy. Food-wise, expect your classic upscale brunch fare. A veggie eggs benedict with soft poached eggs and bitter greens didn’t disappoint, but it didn’t blow us away either. The cakes were the better option: I loved the dense, moist coconut and almond option from a selection on the counter. In short: Prufrock’s a lovely, relaxed spot that’s great for coffee and cake. Go, and you’ll be a coffee nerd before you know it.

Every week, a new branch of F45 seems to pop up somewhere in London. The cult-like Aussie gym has taken the city by storm; leading the HIIT charge with its super-intense, 45-minute circuit-training sessions that are designed to get you in shape, fast. If you’ve been to a class (and left a sweaty mess), you’ve probably heard about the F45 Challenge: the gym’s flagship fitness program, during which you follow a nutritionist-designed meal plan, and take on as many of those hardcore classes as you can, for a period of eight weeks. Before and after photos of previous ‘challengers’ all over my gym promised drastic results. And I was feeling a bit blah after winter, so I signed up. The challenge membership includes eight weeks of unlimited training, meal plans and a couple of body scans, and it’s rather extortionately priced at around £450. But here’s a shocker: it’s actually worth the money. The meal plans (vegetarians and vegans are catered for) were detailed and helpful, but not restrictive (you don’t have to spend hundreds of pounds on specialty health foods or eat the same boring meal every day), and the classes were effective, there’s no doubt about it. Taking on the recommended five or six classes a week was hard work, but because they only go for 45 minutes, they’re relatively easy to squeeze into your schedule. You also start to see results after just a few days of training – which makes you want to go back for more.  At F45 Holloway, where I did the challenge, the trainers

A ‘wellbeing studio’ that fuses yoga, pilates and holistic therapies, Sadhana opened its first studio in Clapham Junction way back in 2013. Back then, it only ever ran bikram classes: a specific style of yoga where you hold 26 postures within 90 minutes, in a room heated to somewhere around 35 degrees. At this newer Dalston branch, there's loads of other stuff on offer: everything from meditative ‘yin’ flows to dynamic vinyasa (in a cooler room) and ‘sculpting’ pilates-style workouts that use weights. The vibe is less hippy, more modern, and the studios are bright, clean and right around the corner from both Dalston Overground stations for easy access on your commute. The teachers also know their stuff. If you live near Dalston, this place will have you feeling zen and flexible before you know it.

The Lady Hamilton is a small, done-up boozer in Kentish Town from the crew behind The Pineapple: a pub in the same area that’s known across town as a very cosy session spot and one of London’s finest watering holes. This little Lady is much simpler than her sister. She’s well-equipped with all the classic features a modern pub needs: a menu of creative craft beers, a great old-school rock soundtrack, occasional comedy nights and a furniture set-up that could double as that of your living room. There’s not much to it other than that, really. This pub is one small room filled with standard tables and chairs, but there’s no outdoor area or upstairs dancefloor, which is a shame – the straightforward space used to be Camden Brewery’s first tap room, which makes sense given the size and shape of it. Foodwise, on our visit Japanese pop-up Yuu Kitchen was running the show, and an ex-Nobu chef served up deliciously fluffy bao stuffed with beef and mushrooms. It went down well with a crisp Gyrocopter pale ale from the local Gorgeous Brewery in Highgate. If you’re a Kentish Town local, Lady H is a convenient option for a casual pint. There’s nothing wrong with keeping it simple. But perhaps save The Pineapple for those lingering days and nights.

Sushi purists will struggle with Sushisamba. At this Japanese-Peruvian-Brazilian fusion restaurant, the chefs do wacky things like put mozzarella in your sushi and serve your kobe beef with mustard. Crazy, right? So are the interiors. This jungle-like space has a balcony, plants dangling off every inch of the ceiling (one hit me in the face as we walked to our table), dining booths that look like birdcages and a sexy Latino soundtrack that thumps away constantly as you eat. In other words: buckets of atmosphere. The huge fusion menu features everything from plantains to wagyu beef and butterfish. Don’t be overwhelmed and miss the robata grill section, because the slightly chewy chicken hearts (‘corazon de pollo’) were the star of the show. Served anticuchos-style on a skewer, they came with a spicy sauce and a side of deliciously rubbery Peruvian corn. Also get the £8 kobe starter: a super-soft bun filled with tender wagyu beef and a tangy swirl of mustard on the side. Pad out the rest of your order with snacks, like some of that mozzarella sushi. I expected to hate it, but with its crispy onions and jalapenos, it tasted like a cheeseburger. We ended up polishing off the plate. The catch was the bill, which added up quickly. If you’ve got cash to spare, go to Sushisamba. It’s a memorable place to eat in a sea of semi-boring Covent Garden spots aimed at tourists. Get a table on the balcony and you can watch them walk around below you like cute, camera-toting ants.

Please note, Salvation in Noodles has now closed. Time Out Food editors, MARCH 2020.  Salvation in noodles is a trendy Vietnamese restaurant in a quiet spot at the Dalston end of Balls Pond Road, on its own apart from a few shops, and away from the area’s buzzier main streets. Presumably because of this location, it’s only open for dinner and the small space is usually filled with locals. The staff and space are both undeniably cool. Hip hop plays over the speakers and the team are super-friendly; they all wore trainers and said ‘hey guys’ a lot. Food-wise, the smaller plates were the winners. Tofu rice paper rolls were fresh and delicious, in sticky wrappers and matched to delightful sweet and sour sauces, while the tofu curry bowl, served over white rice, was a surprising highlight, with big chunks of crispy tofu over a spicy, aromatic curried stew. Disappointingly, the noodles themselves weren’t really up to scratch. The broth in our chicken pho (the house specialty) had a good depth of flavour, but the chicken was dry and the noodles soggy. I drained the bowl of broth but left the meat. Deliveroo drivers were crashing through the door constantly while we ate, for obvious reasons: this is super-fresh, snacky food that’s perfect for a quick, healthy meal. It’s also good value – you’d be hard-pressed to spend more than £30 during dinner for two. If it was nearer my office, I’d be popping in for that tofu curry every day.

Aimez-vous la romance? Then you’ll love Tabac, a tiny bar in Kentish Town that’s oh-so French and très, très romantique, run by the same French-English couple behind Patron Cave à Manger on the same road. A former tobacconist’s, this narrow space is slick but rustic, with mid-century-style furniture scattered about the space among the flowers, trinkets and French memorabilia. Bookshelves stacked with old tobacco tins line the back wall, and one of those heavy, sliding ladders screens my favourite table: a cosy, candlelit booth for two (superstition be damned). But no matter where you sit, you’ll be enchanted. There’s a spacious table flooded with natural light from the front windows, a smaller, cosy one next to the fire, plus a narrow bar counter and some further intimate tables for two. French ’50s music played softly as I sipped one of the best cocktails I’ve had in London. The Lemon Garden was a super-smooth gin Martini, bright with flavour, mixed with a small splash of bitters and topped with a fragrant sprig of lemon thyme. Then, at the other end of the spectrum, the Holywater was a heady but delicately balanced mix of rum, cognac, lime and grapefruit. Food on offer paired well with the theme and the drinks, since it was cheesy and delicious (try the truffle honey goat’s cheese) and the bartenders were as charming as you’d expect from a French bar. Elsewhere on the menu is a small, curated list of fine wine, great drops all available by the glass (thanks to a fancy enoma

The only thing you really need to know about Morty & Bob’s is that it serves grilled cheese for breakfast, lunch and dinner. And yes, the street-food-stall-turned-café’s golden, gooey, oozing cheese toastie is the reason to go. Lightly crisp and golden on both sides, it had a lovely crunch on the outside but was exceptionally smooth in the middle. You won’t go wrong with any of the flavours (mushrooms and truffle, say, or spicy ’nduja sausage), but we especially loved our classic toastie, stuffed with aromatic green onions. Served with a huge, tangy pickle, it was a delight. There are decent non-toastie options, too: a tahini-slathered kale, buckwheat and roasted squash salad was nutty and fresh, while the parmesan truffle fries were rich, if a little salty. The only real downer is the fact that during the day, the dark brick walls (it’s part of the Coal Drops Yard development of the one-time coal sheds), make it feel a tad gloomy. Arrive early to snag a window seat, or a spot at the communal outdoor table. Morty & Bob’s is classic, low-key café stuff, but if you love cheese between bread, it’s definitely worth a visit. Toasties at any time of the day: it’s our new life motto.

Cérès fits right in to Newington Green. It’s a warm, welcoming, modern European restaurant that looks like one of those posh living rooms you can sometimes see through the window of the area’s many terraced houses. A small space, it has a bright orange wall at one end, lots of homely wooden dining furniture, a bar stacked with wine bottles, and dried flowers hanging off the front window. The seasonal menu was heavy with southern European cuisine (Spanish, Turkish, Mediterranean were just a few), and everything was obviously cooked with love. Lots of fresh, interesting ingredients made an appearance on the menu, and a couple of dishes really wowed: a bowl of vibrant strawberry sorbet with crispy caramelised peanuts and a fruity, addictive melon jam; and a starter of crispy, salty tempura samphire with tangy black garlic sauce. Of the main courses, we enjoyed the thick, meaty, pan-fried hake, which fell apart at the touch, but other dishes, sadly, fell flat: the ‘mushroom ceviche’ was more like an ordinary salad, and while the gazpacho was fresh and light, it lacked depth. I liked Cérès for its quaint, laidback nature and menu reminiscent of a European holiday. It won’t disappoint for a weeknight dinner – and was packed with locals on our Tuesday night visit – but for a special occasion? I would try somewhere with a touch more finesse.

Let's be real: the only reason you're really going to the Shard is for the view. While you're up there, you may as well eat something nice, and you can do just that at the Aqua Shard lounge, which serves afternoon tea and drinks against sweeping views of the city from its prime position on level 31. Separate to the glamorous restaurant space, which has larger tables, different staff and a much more formal menu, this space is more relaxed, with friendlier service and low, lounge-like tables and chairs. Afternoon tea is the main event, but you can have snacks from the bar or brunch here on weekends too. We say go all out and get the Mary Poppins afternoon tea. With its spongy, smoked-salmon crumpets, super soft sandwiches and cute quirks like freshly-spun candy floss brought to the table, it won't disappoint. All the tables have views, but for one that's truly vertigo-inducing, make sure you ask for a table next to the window. The food ain't bad, but this place is all about that skyline.

Pasta Remoli is a low-key restaurant by Finsbury Park station that serves classic Italian dishes and build-your-own plates of pasta. The menu is simple, but huge, and it accommodates everyone: kids, vegans, vegetarians, coeliacs, even that fussy friend of yours who prefers not to eat tomatoes but they will if everyone else is getting them. There’s colourful furniture everywhere and cartoon pasta covers one of the walls. It’s all very cute and family-friendly. There are more than 15 varieties of freshly-made pasta on offer, and they’re all on display in a glass cabinet by the entrance. You pick your favourite, then you pick a sauce (white or tomato-based) and a cheese topping. Prefer to leave it up to the experts? Don’t worry, there are a few chef suggestions on offer. The food was a little mixed. Roman-style spaghetti carbonara had been made with lovely, thin, super-fresh pasta, and came covered in a nicely peppery sauce. So it was a pity that it was slightly over-salted. A plate of arancini had an excellent crispy batter, but was let down by its slightly bland artichoke filling. Despite its lack of obvious wow-factor, it’s easy to like Pasta Remoli. It’s a nice spot in a convenient location, with big servings and relatively low prices. You could go for a quick bite to eat if you’re in the area, or a no-frills dinner with a group of friends. The other great thing is that it’s quick: like the menu says, your pasta can be cooked in four minutes.

…according to Romain Audrerie, 38. A sommelier’s job is to help, not to judge… ‘Ordering wine is a psychologically demanding action. It’s my job to make it easy and smooth, so there’s no embarrassment. I try to make our diners at Chiltern Firehouse feel comfortable and encouraged – like they have made a good choice, no matter how overwhelmed they might be.’ …but it’s obvious when people don’t know anything about wine ‘I can tell someone doesn’t know what they’re doing if they go straight for a particular variety and don’t want anything else. They could actually get something cheaper which would be better, but they stick to what they know.’ Personality is everything in the wine industry ‘I’m a wine entertainer. I’m here to make you laugh and have a good time, not follow all the rules and go by the book. Recruiting is the worst part of my job, because finding someone with the right panache and flair to entertain is always a struggle.’ The worst thing you can do in front of a celebrity is be nervous ‘I served Bill Clinton five years ago, which was very emotional for me. But if you get nervous in front of a VIP, they will feel it. They need to feel at home – to feel recognised, but not too much. You have to try to look cool and relaxed. And you have to read them carefully, even more so than with other guests.’ For more unique London voices, sign up here to get Time Out features straight to your inbox.

So we can all stop sweating for one millisecond during this heatwave, this Friday (July 20) the lovely people at Pret are treating London to free cold and caffeinated bevvies. From 10am until 11am you can head into any one of 200 participating stores and grab an iced Americano or iced latte completely on the house. Luckily for those who prefer no lactose: soy and rice-coconut milk come at no extra charge. This weather’s definitely not going to last for ever – let’s make the bloody most of it and drink all the iced coffee we can, people. Summertime vibes for ever! Get free Pret iced coffee on Friday July 20 from 10am until 11am. Check this list of stores to see if your local is participating. Pret is our sixth-favourite chain in London – curious to see what else made the cut? Sign up to Time Out to hear about all the freebies, first.

You’ve been there: standing at Doughnut Time, staring at the array of bizarre deliciousness, wondering what to do. Should you get the simple pink one? The caramel one that’s kind of scary? What about the one that gets you all nostalgic and reminds you of your childhood? Well, use your brain no longer. Here it is doughnut fiends, investigative journalism at its finest: Doughnut Time’s top six doughnuts, judged and ranked accordingly by our expert food team.   Andy Parsons 6. Notorious P.I.G (£4) Topped with Percy Pigs and towers of pink buttercream icing, this doughnut thinks it’s a cupcake. Underneath the identity crisis, it’s lovely. Scrape off the icing and enjoy.   Andy Parsons 5. Sia Later (£4.50) Nice buttercream icing, but Sia Later is definitely more of a red velvet cake than a doughnut. Kudos for being vegan though – that was almost enough for us to give it a higher score.   Andy Parsons 4. Love at First Bite (£4) Nutella doughnuts are great, but this slightly dry ring topped with sugar needs a little more love if it wants to move up the ranks. A good option if served warm and oozy after dinner.   Andy Parsons 3. No Share (£4) A simple ring but with dark chocolate icing and a Ferrero Rocher plopped elegantly in the middle. Proves that a doughnut is about the dough, not the showiness.    Andy Parsons 2. Hot Line Ring (£4.50) Nothing showy here, just a soft ring topped with sugary-pink icing and a couple of party ring biscuits. So simple and sweet you could

It’s Cinco de Mayo this Saturday (May 5) – an annual celebration of Mexican culture and, let’s be honest, the absolute best time of the year to eat spicy food and drink all the margaritas you can handle. In good food news, the Soho branch of Whole Foods Market is getting involved and giving away 150 free tacos between 3pm and 5pm at their in-store taqueria. You don’t have to buy anything, you just need to show up and say the ‘password’ which is ‘Cinco de Mayo’. For some reason, flavours deliberately aren’t being confirmed until the day of the giveaway, but we’ve been told there will definitely be a meat and a vegetarian option. Happy Cinco de Mayo, amigos. Whole Foods Market Piccadilly is at 20 Glasshouse St, W1B 5AR. Free tacos are available from 3pm until 5pm on Saturday May 5. Here’s our guide to London’s best Mexican food. Sign up to get Time Out food news first.

Sweet news: there’s a giant ‘cake’ made of Crosstown Doughnuts in the lobby of flashy hotel The Ned, and whether you’re staying there or not you can go in and grab a free treat! Created to celebrate the hotel’s first birthday, the cake is ten feet tall and made with 1,009 doughnuts that will be replenished every day from Wednesday May 2 until Saturday May 5. Get in early if you’re keen: there are around 250 bedrooms in the hotel (which is right near Bank tube station) and we have a feeling its guests and people passing by will be all over it. Flavours include vanilla, chocolate, matcha and mixed berry, and there’s a vegan option of lemon thyme on beetroot dough. Happy birthday, Ned! Thanks for the treats. Get a free Crosstown doughnut from Wednesday May 2 until Saturday May 5 in the lobby of The Ned, 27 Poultry, EC2R 8AJ. Here’s our pick of London’s best doughnuts. Sign up to Time Out to get all the freebies first.

There’ll be free booze-laced ice lollies on Brick Lane this week. All you have to do is turn up and say hello to the people from ice lolly brand Wavey Ice this Thursday.  They’ll be opposite The Old Truman Brewery giving away their new flavours from 1pm. It’s one per person and they have about 200 to give away. Grab one and walk away feeling refreshed (and a little bit woozy). Flavours include Boujee black grape and white rum, What’s Good watermelon and vodka, and a tangy Glo’d Up gin and sour apple. Get your free ice lolly opposite The Old Truman Brewery, 91 Brick Lane, E1 6QL, on Thursday May 3 from 1pm. Here’s our guide to London’s best frozen treats. Sign up to Time Out to get the freebies before anyone else does.

You have been warned: do not make a Londoner a bad cuppa. According to a survey of 2,000 people by tea brand Clipper, we’re ‘genuinely insulted’ by a cup of tea that’s not to our taste, and will stay narked about it for almost ten minutes (way longer than less bothered folks in other parts of the country). Furthermore, of the 91,728 cuppas the average person drinks in their lifetime, nearly 10,000 will be disappointing. In case you’re wondering who’s rubbish at brewing up, 31 percent of people surveyed said the worst tea rounds were made by workmates. Correction: work colleagues. Don’t risk it – find a great cuppa with our guide to afternoon tea in London. Sign up to Time Out for perfectly brewed food news.

American-style comfort food joint Dirty Bones is bringing back Dirty Vegan, its crazy popular meat-free pop-up. In March, sessions sold out within an hour: people must have been excited about the cauliflower fried ‘chicken’ and aubergine buffalo hot ‘wings’. There’ll be a vegan dinner every Tuesday from May 8 until June 5 at the Shoreditch branch of Dirty Bones. For £25 per person, you’ll get three courses of sharing-style vegan food that can be matched to beer, wine and cocktails. The fried ‘chicken’ will be served on buckwheat waffles, the ‘wings’ will come with an almond-yoghurt dressing, and there’ll be vegan mac ’n’ cheese made with almond milk. All sounds nice and greasy, but kind of healthy at the same time. Just how we like it. The Dirty Vegan pop-up runs every Tuesday night from May 8 until June 5. You can book via the Dirty Bones website. Here’s our guide to the best vegan food in London. Sign up to Time Out for food news first.

Get this: bespoke macaron makers Ohlala have teamed up with the charity Bloody Good Period to create these ‘delicately-flavoured’ white-almond tampon macarons, filled with vanilla, raspberry or rose buttercream. Two from each box come splattered with edible ‘blood’. It’s all for a good cause of course – one in ten young women in the UK can’t afford to purchase sanitary products and Bloody Good Period is doing its best to help them out. Grab a box of eight for £24.50 online, and £10 will go to help a gal in need. We haven’t had the pleasure of tasting these, so we can’t confirm if appearance affects flavour. We’re keen to know what you think, though. Edible tampons: bloody delicious...? You can buy tampon macarons via the Ohlala website. Here’s our pick of London’s other most showstopping desserts. Sign up to Time Out for bloody delightful news at every time of the month.

Great news for London’s vegan population: a brand new, fully-meat-free street food market is coming to Soho in April. Following in the footsteps of Vegan Nights (which announced its return last week), Soho Vegan Market will be completely plant-based, with stalls like Indian curry trader Spicebox, Vietnamese baguettes specialist Eat Chay and the brilliantly named ‘raw cake’ purveyors Planty Hugs taking over Rupert Street in Soho every Saturday from April 14, 11am to 4pm. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z6WtWecc7r8 Find Soho Vegan Market every Saturday on Rupert Street, Soho, W1D 7PQ. Craving street stalls? Here’s our pick of London’s best traders. Sign up to Time Out to hear all the food news first.

The cheesy street food trader Raclette Brothers opened its first permanent restaurant this week. To celebrate? Half-price everything on the menu until Sunday April 29. Alpes is inspired by alpine dining (obvs) and is high up in a shipping container above the entrance to Pop Brixton. It’s serving wine and charcuterie, as well as fondue with unlimited bread, roast potatoes, pickles and fries and, of course, raclette: melted cheese scraped onto a plate of potatoes, pickles and meat. We did the maths: at half price, raclette will be £4.50 and traditional or blue-cheese fondue for two will be £8.50. If that doesn’t sway you, this insanely tempting video of the cheese at Alpes might. Get 50 percent off the whole menu at Alpes until Sunday April 29. Pop Brixton, 49 Brixton Station Road, SW9 8PQ. Here are 11 places to go in London if you’re slutty for cheese. Sign up to Time Out for food news first.

London’s new vegan dessert looks freakishly like real fruit. Introducing the ‘avo-lato’: avocado-flavoured gelato served in a real avocado shell with a ‘superfood’ stone made of flaxseed and peanut butter gelato. The £9.50 frozen treat, by the artisan gelato-makers at Snowflake, looks and sounds suspiciously healthy (it’s 60% real fruit and 100% plant-based), but don’t be fooled – it’s definitely still dessert. While it’ll almost certainly get you a few likes on Instagram, we can’t vouch for what it will taste like. Grab it from Snowflake (the Selfridges store only) and report back. Get the ‘avo-lato’ exclusively at Snowflake in Selfridges, 400 Oxford St, W1A 1AB. Here’s our guide to the best ice cream in London. Sign up to Time Out for food news first.