Blackfriars Restaurant

Blackfriars Restaurant, dating back to 1239, is the oldest public dining room in Britain. With the main restaurant originally built to house the refectory for the Dominican Black Friars, and as a working inner-city former monastery, it's unique.

Blackfriars, with its horseshoe of buildings, also houses a number of craft shops, shelters a medieval courtyard used for al fresco dining in the summer, and is time-enduring, for long one of the city's most recognised restaurants and regarded as a Newcastle icon.

As well as the recent award of 'Best restaurant in the North East/Newcastle' by readers of The Observer, Metro Newspaper, and Hi-Life Dining Club, Blackfriars has also gained an AA rosette, and inclusion in the Which? Good Food Guide, Hardens and Michelin Guides.

The main candle-lit dining room holds up to 70 covers and lends itself to both intimate and romantic dining, with small inglenooks and hideaway corners, and was recently voted the 6th most romantic restaurant in the UK. It also serves well for larger dining parties with the dining room split into two levels.

Sourcing seasonal produce from local farms and markets, the award-winning team produces gutsy traditional-British menus including an à la carte, a well-priced set menu and a summertime Terrace Menu, accompanied by a large award-winning wine list. The restaurant is served by friendly and professional waiting staff.

Blackfriars is so passionate about local produce that diners only have to glance down at the place mats to glimpse a map of the north east, showing exactly which farm each component of their meal comes from - an original and well-liked feature.

Typical starters might include Pan fried Northumbrian pigeon breasts, hazelnut puree, cherry salad, confit Cumbrian rabbit stew, Geordie rarebit, or seared North Sea scallops, celeriac, spinach and spiced sausage. Main courses also use local seasonal produce, with tenderloin and braised belly of Durham pork, creamed sprouts and bacon, mash, sage jus, loin of Scottish venison (served pink), truffle and celeriac mash, wilted spinach and port sauce, or a Hadrian Heritage ribeye steak, hand cut chips, roast tomatoes and garlic butter. To round off a memorable meal try their chocolate, caramel and hazelnut tart, vanilla cream, or their ever-popular plate of North of England cheeses, celery, grapes, water biscuits and grape chutney.

The ornate medieval banqueting hall, lit by 300 church candles, makes ample provision for their famous Medieval Banquets where suckling pig with all the trimmings, personally introduced by the Chef, is served with honey roast vegetables, complemented by fine wines or strong Benedictine ale, served by buxom wenches and 'monks' at a 30 foot oak table.

Whilst quality cuisine and good design features play a significant part in the success of a restaurant such as Blackfriars, this is not to overlook the cellar and wine list, regarded as one of the best to be found in Newcastle. Excellent French house wine from Georges Dubeouf starts at £15 or £4.50 a glass, with over ten more wines by the glass. Carafes remain popular whilst further down the list keep an eye for the Chapel Hill's McLaren Vale Bush Vine Grenache, a super-heavyweight at a very reasonable £34. Blackfriars also stocks the largest range of bottled local beers and Scottish whiskies in Newcastle.

Click on their Website for further details of special events, meeting rooms for up to 40 delegates and menu changes.