Restaurant-Guide.com
hand picked restaurants

If you thought a visit to Ludlow is complete once you've explored its many historic attractions you could be wrong, for its ancient streets are home to some very well-known dining destinations and many people refer to it as the gastronomic capital of Shropshire.

The Unicorn is a charming dining venue that attracts diners with its black-and-white exterior and offers the services of a spacious bar, a gallery kitchen, and the Oak Room to enjoy pub games and private parties.

The Unicorn's regularly changing menu is built around seasonally available local produce and it is clear that food is an important part of the business. Consider the chef's homemade soup served piping hot with Ludlow bread and butter to give your meal a soothing start. Move on to a main course of deliciously rich local braised lamb shanks or enjoy the house special fish pie made to a traditional recipe with cod, salmon, smoked haddock, prawn and free range eggs before signing off with the dark chocolate torte served with fresh cream.

Ludlow Brewery and Wye Valley Brewery supply The Unicorn with exciting lagers, mild, Guiness and real ales.

Sebastians is the name of a warm and welcoming 16th century hotel and two AA rosette restaurant in the Shropshire town of Oswestry. The surroundings are intimate and comfortable, and Chef and owner Mark Sebastian Fisher and his wife Michelle ensure your needs are taken care of extremely well.

Six bedrooms are all ensuite, equipped with modern facilities, and each is individually furnished but mostly with exposed beams and brass four poster beds. The oak panelled dining room is cosy and relaxing without being twee. Dishes are created and presented with loving care, succeeding in achieving a genuine French feel, and the service is caring but not overwhelming.

Highlights could include pan-fried scallops with roast beetroot, crispy Parma ham and a beetroot emulsion; loin of rabbit stuffed with a chicken and carrot mousse and served with an orange and chicory salad, and mains of fillet of beef with a parsnip fondant, Madeira sauce and parsnip crisps.

After a meal you could visit the lounge and sit by the log fire or in the summer, head to the terrace and soak up the sun.

There's something delightfully radiant about the Burlton Inn just outside Shrewsbury on the Ellesmere road; it's quaint and rustic but not entirely conventional and it is this departure from tradition that makes it such a wonderful experience. Don't be mistaken, the oak beams, exposed brick walls and fireplace all create a lovely, homey atmosphere and the restaurant offers a good selection of French and modern British fare. So it's really the ideal spot to visit for a delicious meal with friends and family, either for a simple meal or even a quiet celebration.

Crisp Asian style pork belly comes with spiced king prawns, laced with apricot and ginger puree and cucumber salad with rock sugar dressing for a starter. A main course of pot roast cornfed chicken with roast shallots and baby vegetables along with sautéed new potatoes, Madeira and brown butter sauce is remarkable and for dessert, there's a silken dark chocolate mousse with kahulah syrup, hazelnuts and orange salad. Beers and real ales prevail although there's a good selection of fine wines and champagnes as well at this Michelin listed inn.

Just when you thought that there must be something missing from the restaurant scene in Ludlow, suddenly you find that it has even got a Japanese restaurant - a rarity in the Shropshire rural areas.

It is owned by a delightful Japanese lady, Mari Kure, who along with her staff makes you feel very special indeed, and if you don't know anything about Japanese food, don't be concerned as they would be very happy to explain everything to you and even have a helpful leaflet on the table.

The décor is fairly minimal, but comfortably so; and the place only seats around twenty eight people, but even so there is plenty of choice on the menu, with excellent sushi in the evening on the four course £22 menu.

At last somebody's done it! The waterfront overlooking the River Severn at Ironbridge Gorge has been crying out for years to shake off its tearoom image and host a proper restaurant, and Eric and Beb Bruce have picked up the challenge. Fresh from their highly successful operation at Oswestry they have established a serious restaurant that offers a flexible and fast changing menu that still manages to retain the favourites of the regular customers, of whom there is an increasing number.

Amongst starters you are likely to encounter expect black pudding with chorizo sausage, mushrooms, bacon and a soft poached egg, with its wonderful overtones of that splendid meal we call breakfast. Or perhaps prawn and smoked haddock ravioli with shellfish sauce appeals?

Main courses can offer individual roast rack of local lamb, medallions of venison with sun-dried cranberries and a cognac cream sauce, whilst even hardened carnivores might feel drawn to a plum tomato, red onion and mozzarella tart wild mushroom soufflé.

Desserts of apple charlotte with clotted cream and apricot sauce, or dark Belgian chocolate torte with their own preserved cherries in cognac are frequently to be seen, and their cheese platter is a work of the art.

Décor is tasteful and exudes warmth. This is a long overdue addition to that exciting historical hot spot that surrounds the Iron Bridge.