Where to eat and drink in Cambridge

Periodically, I get asked where's good to eat or have a pint in Cambridge. For convenience, here's my (incredibly subjective) list.

You can also find a list of specifically vegetarian & vegan places here.

The pandemic has done a proper number on the restaurant scene, but I’ve tried to stay current.

Last update: 29/08/2022

(Halibut with peanut and squash, at the now-closed Alimentum)

These aren't detailed, and I've not include anywhere I haven't been yet, so there's probably a few good places missing. They aren't in any order.

Places to eat

When I arrived in Cambridge in 2001, the food scene was so poor that people went to The Rainbow Café and The Copper Kettle on purpose.

It’s better now. The horrifying cost of commercial premises in the centre means it's still wall-to-wall chains, but some of them are good, and a few decent independents have popped up and survived.

Cambridge: serving edible food since about 2010.

Have dinner at:

• The Pint Shop
  Town centre. Great simple food, amazing selection of keg and cask beer. The menu tends to elaborately slow-cooked meats, and fancied-up pub grub. Can be busy. Quite out of date review here

• SmokeWorks
  Town centre, and one by the station. Dirty barbecue, done right, and a selection of bourbon. Sticky ribs, succulent pulled beef, epic pickles. They keep tweaking the menu, so it's not static or dull. Reviewed here, ages ago
  Sister restaurant Millworks is nice too, a little more formal (only a little) and out towards Newnham.

• Dumpling Tree
  Perne rd. Relocating to a former flat-roof pub hasn’t done wonders for Dumpling Tree’s ambience, but it’s still a step up, and the food remains great. Fresh dumplings in a range of fillings and styles, very reasonably priced. Fast becoming a favourite. Great Sichuan style spicy beef, love the lamb & coriander dumplings.

• Bedouin
  Off Mill rd. Try not to laugh at the décor - the food is worth it. It's North African, so expect tagines and stews. Food turns up hotter than the sun, and in portions of similarly astronomical size. Some time in the last year or so they started taking card payments, but stopped serving alcohol, which seems like evidence that the universe has a grimly zero-sum sense of humour.

• Yim Wah
  Central-ish. Chinese, with a blend of cliché and authentic. A little stark and lacking atmosphere, but tasty food with fresh produce, and a small dim sum selection too.

• The Chop House
  Town centre. There were two, one closed. Big bits of meat done well, a classic in the "where do I take visiting relatives?" genre. See also, The Oak Bistro

• Yippee
  Town centre. Noodles. Noodles in soup, noodles fried with stuff, noodles served quickly and inexpensively at large shared tables. It's a noodle bar. It does noodles. Seriously, what do you want from me here? It's a reliable standard. I’ve been eating here for nearly twenty years. Bloody hell.

• The Tipsy Vegan
  Quayside. A simple menu of tapas style bites, broadly but not entirely Mediterranean. Vegan in that casual, modern “here are vegetables tasting great” way. Love it.

• The Kingston Arms
  Mill Rd. Former back-streets pub now serving Middle Eastern sharing plates paired to a serious wine list. The menu changes regularly, so ask on the day. The hummus is excellent.

• Parker's Tavern
  Town centre. In the newly architecturally vandalised University Arms Hotel.
  Jay Rayner gushed about it. I'd stop short of that but it's good. British-y bistro with a few innovative twists. Pricy in places but tasty throughout.

• Tradizioni
  Mill Rd, and expanding to other sites. Excellent pizza in that square, Sicilian-inspired style. Small dine-in space with pavement seating. Lovely.

• Noodles Plus
  Mill rd. Everything is good, but you’re there for the Xiaolongbao.
  (Tim Hayward rates it over Din Tai Fung and I’m not certain I disagree).

• Vegan Vice (at The Snug)
  East Rd, by the Grafton Centre. Vegan burger joint. Small chain, sharing premises with an acceptable bar. Punchy flavours, excellent milkshakes. One of my go-to takeaways. Vegan in that “fake meat can be dirty too” way that I also love.

• Fancett’s Bistro
  Mill rd. Now, do I put this here, or in the “more fancy” category below? Here on price, maybe below on quality. Modernised bistro French, skewing seasonal and local, and executed very well.

• Stem & Glory
  Station Rd. Vegan. Small plates, larger main, and pizzas. High quality globally eclectic vegan food at a nice spread of price points. A little bit of everything, really, and beautifully executed.

For lighter bites, lunch, and brunch:

• Cambridge Cookery
  The bistro at Cambridge Cookery School, off Hills Rd. Fantastic, indulgent brunch. Classics, plus some Scandi/Italian twists, and one of the best poached egg dishes I've eaten. Decent replacement for the lamentably closed Afternoon Tease. Reviewed here, pre-pandemic.

• Urban Larder
  Mill Rd. Amazing toasties. Good coffee and lovely staff, too. Not much sit-in space.

• Scott’s All Day
  Mill Rd. Pizza, brunch, and cocktails are where Scott’s shines but it’s a perfectly sensible dinner choice too. Interesting pizzas, two of which have brunch on them. Fair warning - it’s uncomfortably loud when it’s busy, which is most Saturday and Sunday lunchtimes. This may have to do with the bottomless brunch.

• Aromi
  Town centre... and expanding. Sicilian bakery with good coffee. Arancini, pastries, tasty pizza by the slice. It's bloody delicious. You won't get a table in the main branch, but that's fine, because they're adding a new one every week. Good Gelato.

• The Wrestlers
  Newmarket Rd. Pub with a Thai kitchen. Filed under lunches because I’ve been going for over a decade and just can’t picture it as dinner. Solid, reliable, generous.

• Gorilla and Lamb (at The Cambridge Blue)
  Yes, we’re all bored with “dirty” burgers, but they do them so well. The topped fries are excellent, and they will sell you an ice cream sandwich made out of a glazed doughnut. Probably a bit heavy for lunch, tbh, but to my capricious and arbitrary tastes the Blue doesn’t have “going out for dinner” energy.

Coffee places that will also sell you a sandwich or something

One day I’ll pull this out into its own shitpost. Folks get wicked tribal about their favourite coffee joints. He said, airily, as though two of these weren’t demented objections to places on the strength of their ambience or service design…

• Hot Numbers
  Off Mill rd, and on Trumpington St. The coffee is good enough, if you can work out how to order it. They do this thing with it now where you order by size (in Imperial units 🤷‍♂️) then pretend not to know what a “flat white” or a “cappuccino” are, and act like you’re the weirdo in this transaction. It’s the sneering whiteboard coding task of customer service, and I will not be doing with it. But I’m not everyone - try it and see how you go.

• Stir
  Chesterton Rd. Solid, decent, does food.

• Espresso Library
  East Road (just past Parker's Piece) and a small branch in the centre. As above, pretty much. I had a transcendentally tasty roasted vegetable sandwich there once, but I’ve not eaten there since pre-pandemic. That town centre fish tank is not big enough for those fish, btw, folks, if you’re reading.

• Relevant Records
  Mill rd. Again, it’s a modern, faintly trendy cafe. There's an actual, vinyl-selling record shop in the basement. Good coffee, good food. Loads more seating downstairs - don’t be put off.

• Modigliani
  Mill Rd. Coffee, Italian pastries, sandwiches, a nice time.

• Bould Brothers
  Town centre (Round Church St & Regent St). The one everyone raves about. The achingly trendy one. The one that feels like it was decorated to appease the kind of undergraduates who spend their entire three years here complaining that Cambridge isn’t as cool as London. Oh, I don’t know, something puts my back up about it. But people I trust say the coffee’s good. I had some when they first opened, and I think it was at least fine.

• Eclipse bakery
  Mill Rd. I buy most of my bread here, and it’s absolutely bloody fantastic. Try the focaccia. They’ll make you a pretty good cup of coffee, too, and there are a couple of sandwich options and a small eat-in counter. The patisserie is excellent - treat yourself to a kouign-amann.

To go a bit more fancy:

• Midsummer House
  Midsummer common. Two stars, and food-wise rightly so. Elaborate and theatrical without compromising on actually being food. But honestly the service can feel quite dated and snobby. Last time I was there the wine list was like the punchline to a joke about rich people. Review here (quite old)

• Restaurant 22
  Chesterton Rd. Stunning. Possibly the best in town?
  This used to be a great value fixed price three course affair in a tiny intimate setting. It’s still tiny and intimate, and I’d argue it’s (contextually) good value, but it’s now tasting menu only. Delicious, innovative, and booked up a fair way in advance. A great focus on produce with some well-deployed touches of flair.

• Vanderlyle
  Mill Rd. Good. So very good. Mostly plants, all panache. The food here is just so utterly polished and thoughtful. Tasting menu, and set-menu takeout through lockdown.
  Vanderlyle served me the best salad I have ever put in my mouth, and the potato terrine that little hash browns dream of being when they grow up.
  The problem is that it’s almost impossible to get a table. Reservations are released in monthly blocks, and sell out in about six minutes. That is not a joke. I timed it last time. You’ll need to join their mailing list to stand a chance. Do so.

With the demise of Cotto and the (rightly lamented) closure of Alimentum, Cambridge is now sorely lacking in the bottom-of-top/top-of-middle market. Fancett’s, The Oak Bistro, and Chop House are just about defending "three courses, squeaking in under fifty quid".

Under "chains that don't suck", there's Sticks n Sushi, Giggling Squid, and the inevitable burger joints. Oh, and the madly indulgent Hotel du Vin brunch is fun.

Places to drink

Pubs! Come on, Cambridge, you can do this one. Cambridge has a serious ale scene, and one of the biggest, most diverse beer festivals in the country. As a rule of thumb, it's simpler to assume there are no pubs in the town centre, and that any you think you may see have merely been painted on by the council to add a little colour.

No matter how twee or pleasant it may seem, do not have a pint in The Eagle. Go in, take that bloody photograph of the ceiling, and leave. Do not, under any circumstances, eat there. In fact, why not take pictures of The Chronophage instead, then go straight to the Pint Shop.

(For a kinder view, check out Adam's project to visit every pub in Cambridge)

Pubs:

• The Pint Shop
  Town centre. As above - 10 keg beers (cough*craft*cough), 5 cask, and well north of 40 gins, with a small, considered wine list. Stylish basic decor, reasonable ambiance. London-ish pricing.

• The Live and Let Live
  Has closed, and I am very, very sad about it.
  Has reopened (Mill Rd), and I am very conflicted about it.
  On the one hand it’s a broader, more modern beer selection and a much friendlier and inclusive atmosphere. On the other hand - no, wait, I’m just being pissy and nostalgic about my old local changing. It’s great, just different.

• The Cambridge Blue
  Off Mill Rd (Gwydir St). All the beers. Just so many. Too many? Maybe, when they don’t turn over fast enough. There's a great selection of cask ales, and a lot of European and American bottled in the fridges. It can take a while to get served. Kitchen currently operated by the excellent Gorilla and Lamb.

• Calverley’s Tap Room
  Off Mill Rd (Hooper St, right at the end). Recently-refurbed outlet of the excellent Calverley’s Brewery. Food available biked over from Scott’s. They brew well, and this is the best place to drink their beer. Takeout available. Can get noisy.

• The Haymakers
  Chesterton. Should have been in the food section for having the best pizza in town. They stock a good selection from Milton Brewery, plus rotating guests. Also: lovely staff and a sporadic atmosphere of light derangement. It's my favourite.

• The Petersfield
  Also off Mill rd (Sturton st). Another solid modern ale/craft pub with decent food. Really nicely refurbished on the site of the former Backstreet Bistro. Beers from the Brew House, plus guests. Plenty of dining and drinking space, and a pleasant terrace. If that sounds generic, well, that's a fair cop, but it's well executed, the food's tasty, and the beer's well kept.

• The Royal Standard
  Mill Rd (Over The Bridge™) Reopened in 2016 with a really solid selection of cask and keg ales and a mighty stock of gin. There's a good list of bottled Belgian beer, and food from Tzatziki Greek Kitchen which is cool.

• The Elm Tree
  Town centre-ish (Orchard St). Bottles from Belgium, and a vibe like you're having a pint in someone's living room. Navigationally non-obvious but worth the effort. (The Free Press nearby is good, too).

• The Mill
  Town Centre (Mill lane). Ale in the centre, with a cask emphasis. Good selection, and glorious in summer when you can sit out by the mill pond and watch people fall off punts.

• The Old Ticket Office
  Literally at the station. It's The Petersfield re-tooled as a railway pub. Same company, same premise, more standing room. It's decent and you can get a large pork pie quickly.

Bars:

• 196
  Mill rd. We have a cocktail bar now. A real one. A really good one. Also a really small one, but that can't much be helped. They have a serious way with things bourbon-based, and outdoor seating when it’s warmer.

• Cambridge Wine Merchants
  Various. Two in the centre (Bridge St, and at the University Centre off Mill Lane), and one on Cherry Hinton rd. There's wine by the glass, or you can take something off the shelf and add reasonable corkage. Two words: sherry, motherfuckers.

• Novi
  I've only had food and coffee here, but the cocktail selection was interesting and beautifully presented. A few have fun-sounding herb and spice infusions.

In the centre if you absolutely must, and the Pint Shop is full:

• The Maypole
  Sports, mediocre cocktails, overpriced good beer.

• The Pickerel
  Generally adequate at generally everything, twee interior.

• The Grain and Hop Store
  (formerly "Grainstore") Greene King's mass-market repackaging of "craft". Hipster as an agency brief, but huge, central and actually pretty nice when it's not too busy.

I also hear good things about The Champion of the Thames, but keep forgetting to look in.

....and what about <place> in <village>?

No.

I have high-handedly decreed that “Cambridge” stops about an hour’s walk from the market square, and will not be reasoned with.

What have I missed?

New places are opening, quality is rising, but the pandemic kicked the hospitality trade squarely in the todger. So new things may have opened, or old favourites may have closed. If something isn't here, I either had no strong feelings about it, or haven't gotten around to it yet.

Do tell me what I've missed or fucked up.

To-review list

I'm yet to check out or form strong feelings about:

• Tawa Kitchen - been twice now, good

• Tu Casa - Went once, pretty good.

• Mercado - Sounds promising.

• Kineya Mugimaru - Nope.

• Millworks - Good! It's like they averaged the Chop House and SmokeWorks, threw in some spices, and nailed it.

• The Old Bicycle Shop - Decent. Often has good veggie options.

• Navadhanya - Good!

  • Tiffin Truck, their offshoot

• The Oak Bistro - Been once recently, very credible.

• Steak and Honour opened a restaurant, if you're interested. Whatever.