12 Unique Restaurants in Nottingham: Hidden Dining Gems from Caves to Castles

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Ready to explore Nottingham’s most unique restaurants? I’m here to take you through the coolest spots to eat in this UK gem, from ancient pubs carved into caves to hidden gems serving Ethiopian feasts.

Ever wandered Nottingham looking for something totally different? Same here—and I’ve found places that make dinner feel like an adventure. Imagine enjoying a pint at Ye Olde Trip to Jerusalem, England’s oldest pub, or sipping cocktails in a converted church at Pitcher & Piano. Craving something unique? Head to Addis for authentic Ethiopian cuisine or try hidden underground dining at the Hand & Heart.

If you’re craving something memorable, these foodie spots deliver. Get ready to explore Nottingham’s best dining experiences while checking out things to do in Europe.

👉 Pro Tip: The Nutty Nottingham Walking Tour is a blast for food lovers and history nerds alike! You’ll hit up quirky spots, try local snacks, and hear some seriously fun stories about the city. Come hungry, wear your walking shoes, and get ready for good vibes, good eats, and a little Nottingham charm. It’s such a fun way to spend the day!

Unusual places to eat in Notts

Ready to discover what Nottingham has on its menu? From buzzing vegan bistros to secret sushi spots, we’re set to explore the city’s most extraordinary eateries. Join me as we uncover the quirkiest places to eat in Nottingham.

Fancy a pint in England’s oldest pub? How about enjoying a meal within the stunning architecture of a church? Nottingham’s dining scene is as vibrant as its history. Let’s dive into Nottingham’s most unique dining experiences.

1. Pitcher & Piano

• 📍 Location: Lace Market
• 💲 Price range: $20 – $40 per person
• 🍽️ Cuisine Style: Modern British / Gastropub
• 🔥 Standout Features: Stunning church, stained glass, lively bar with pub food.
• 🎯 Perfect For: Inspiring architecture, after-work drinks, and a unique pub experience.

Prepare to have your spirits lifted at Pitcher & Piano in the Lace Market! This isn’t just any pub; it’s housed in a breathtakingly converted historic church, complete with soaring vaulted ceilings and glorious stained glass windows. The atmosphere is always buzzing.

You should try their classic fish and chips with mushy peas. One of their gourmet burgers, like the “P&P Dirty Burger,” or their popular Sunday roasts are also excellent choices. It’s a truly heavenly spot to grab a drink and a bite.

2. Malt Cross

• 📍 Location: City Centre
• 💲 Price range: $15 – $30 per person (Cafe/Bar)
• 🍽️ Cuisine Style: Cafe / Bar / British Pub Grub
• 🔥 Standout Features: Historic Victorian music hall, stunning glass roof, and live events.
• 🎯 Perfect For: History buffs, live music lovers, and unique pints.

Step back in time at the Malt Cross, a beautifully preserved Victorian music hall that’s now a vibrant cafe and bar! This place is a historical gem, with an incredible arched glass roof and ornate period details. The air hums with live music or chatter.

Grab a local ale. For food, their homemade sausage rolls are a popular snack. A hearty ploughman’s lunch or their classic soup of the day with crusty bread are also good bets while soaking in the unique atmosphere. It’s like having a pint in a museum.

3. Ye Olde Trip To Jerusalem

• 📍 Location: Brewhouse Yard
• 💲 Price range: $15 – $30 per person
• 🍽️ Cuisine Style: Traditional English Pub
• 🔥 Standout Features: England’s oldest inn (1189 AD), built into sandstone caves with a rich history.
• 🎯 Perfect For: History buffs and pub lovers seeking a legendary pint.

Fancy a pint in England’s reputed oldest inn? Make a pilgrimage to Ye Olde Trip To Jerusalem, a pub literally carved into ancient sandstone caves beneath Nottingham Castle, supposedly dating to 1189 AD! The low, cave-like ceilings and stone walls ooze history.

Order a traditional ale. For food, a hearty ploughman’s lunch with cheese, pickle, and bread is a classic choice. Their sausage and mash or a simple jacket potato with various fillings are also satisfying pub grub. You’re drinking in centuries of stories!

4. Hand & Heart

• 📍 Location: Derby Road
• 💲 Price range: $20 – $40 per person
• 🍽️ Cuisine Style: Modern British / Gastropub
• 🔥 Standout Features: Historic sandstone caves, excellent selection of real ales.
• 🎯 Perfect For: Intimate dining and real ale enthusiasts.

Get ready for a subterranean supper at the Hand & Heart! This fantastic gastropub offers a dining experience unlike any other in Nottingham, with several cozy, candlelit dining rooms nestled within ancient sandstone caves. The atmosphere is incredibly atmospheric.

They serve delicious modern British fare. Their Sunday roast with all the trimmings is legendary. The pan-fried sea bass with seasonal vegetables, or their popular Hand & Heart burger, are always winners. Paired with an excellent real ale, it’s memorable.

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5. Kayal

• 📍 Location: Hockley
• 💲 Price range: $20 – $40 per person
• 🍽️ Cuisine Style: South Indian / Keralan Seafood
• 🔥 Standout Features: Authentic Keralan seafood cuisine, vibrant decor, and unique spices.
• 🎯 Perfect For: Adventurous eaters, seafood lovers, and a taste of coastal South India.

Take your taste buds to the backwaters of Kerala at Kayal in Hockley! This vibrant spot serves incredible, authentic South Indian cuisine, with a special focus on the fragrant and flavorful dishes of the Keralan coast. The air is rich with coconut and curry leaves.

Trying their amazing fish moilee (a creamy coconut fish curry) is a must. The masala dosa, a crispy pancake filled with spiced potatoes, or their flavorful Kayal seafood curry, are also fantastic choices. It’s a true explosion of flavor.

6. Sat Bains

• 📍 Location: Lenton Lane, slightly outside city centre
• 💲 Price range: $200 – $350+ per person (Tasting Menu)
• 🍽️ Cuisine Style: Modern British / Innovative Fine Dining
• 🔥 Standout Features: Two Michelin stars, Chef Sat Bains, unexpected tasting menus, foraged/local ingredients.
• 🎯 Perfect For: Ultimate food splurges, adventurous fine dining, and Michelin star collectors.

Prepare for a culinary experience that will redefine your expectations at Sat Bains. This two-Michelin-starred destination restaurant, helmed by the innovative Chef Sat Bains, offers an extraordinary journey through modern British cuisine. It’s not just dinner; it’s a meticulously crafted exploration of flavor, texture, and temperature.

Expect unique creations using foraged ingredients, like wild garlic preparations in spring. Perfectly cooked local game or inventive seafood courses that play with perception are also hallmarks. Dining at Sat Bains is a world-class gastronomic adventure.

7. No. Twelve

• 📍 Location: City Centre, Eldon Chambers
• 💲 Price range: $40 – $70+ per person
• 🍽️ Cuisine Style: Vegan Fine Dining / Modern European
• 🔥 Standout Features: Plant-based tasting menus, intimate setting, seasonal ingredients.
• 🎯 Perfect For: Vegans wanting fine dining, adventurous foodies, and a special plant-powered meal.

Prepare to be amazed by plant-based cuisine at No. Twelve! This gem, in Eldon Chambers, offers an upscale vegan fine dining experience that will impress even committed carnivores. They craft beautiful, innovative tasting menus showcasing seasonal, plant-based ingredients.

Expect dishes like celeriac “scallops” with a truffle dressing. A mushroom parfait with sourdough toast, or an inventive beetroot tartare, are also stunning to look at and eat. It’s a sophisticated, intimate spot redefining vegan dining.

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8. Coco Tang-Asian Cafe

• 📍 Location: Byard Lane
• 💲 Price range: $15 – $30 per person
• 🍽️ Cuisine Style: Pan-Asian / Vietnamese Cafe / Cocktail Bar
• 🔥 Standout Features: Speakeasy-inspired cocktail bar, vibrant Vietnamese cafe food, Instagrammable atmosphere.
• 🎯 Perfect For: Vietnamese coffee and pho.

Coco Tang-Asian Cafe is a double whammy of deliciousness! Downstairs, it’s a vibrant Vietnamese-inspired cafe serving amazing pho bo (beef noodle soup), fresh summer rolls with peanut dipping sauce, and strong Vietnamese iced coffee amidst stylish, photogenic decor.

Upstairs, discover a hidden, speakeasy-style cocktail bar with an opulent, moody vibe and incredible drinks like the “Lychee Martini.” It’s the perfect spot for a flavorful lunch that transitions into a chic evening cocktail session.

9. Yamas Meze & Tapas

• 📍 Location: City Centre
• 💲 Price range: $25 – $50 per person
• 🍽️ Cuisine Style: Greek / Mediterranean / Meze & Tapas
• 🔥 Standout Features: Diverse Greek and Mediterranean meze.
• 🎯 Perfect For: Groups sharing dishes and Mediterranean flavor lovers.

Get ready to share and celebrate at Yamas Meze & Tapas! This bustling city centre spot is all about the joy of communal eating, with an extensive menu of delicious Greek and Mediterranean small plates. The air is filled with chatter and the aroma of grilled meats.

Ordering a spread of their fantastic meze is a must. Consider the creamy tzatziki with warm pita, crispy calamari, and savory keftedes (Greek meatballs). Their halloumi fries are also a crowd-pleaser. It’s loud, lively, and perfect for a fun feast.

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10. Sosu

• 📍 Location: City Centre
• 💲 Price range: $15 – $30 per person
• 🍽️ Cuisine Style: Pan-Asian / Noodle Bar / Street Food
• 🔥 Standout Features: Asian-inspired street food, build-your-own noodle bowls.
• 🎯 Perfect For: Noodle lovers, Asian street food fans, and a quick meal.

Slurp your way to happiness at Sosu! This cool, contemporary spot in the city centre is serving up vibrant Pan-Asian street food with a focus on build-your-own noodle bowls and other creative delights. The menu is packed with bold flavors.

Design your perfect bowl of ramen or udon noodles with your choice of broth (like tonkotsu or miso), protein (pork belly or tofu), and toppings. Their delicious bao buns, such as the pork belly or crispy chicken, are also highly recommended.

11. Balageru Ethiopian and Eritrean Restaurant

• 📍 Location: Hyson Green
• 💲 Price range: $15 – $30 per person
• 🍽️ Cuisine Style: Ethiopian / Eritrean
• 🔥 Standout Features: Authentic East African stews (wots), communal dining with injera bread, aromatic vegetarian and meat dishes.
• 🎯 Perfect For: Adventurous eaters, unique African flavors, sharing meals, and a hands-on dining experience.

Embark on a delicious journey at Balageru Ethiopian and Eritrean Restaurant! This Hyson Green gem offers an authentic taste of Ethiopian and Eritrean cuisine, where you use soft, spongy injera bread to scoop up incredibly flavorful stews called wots.

Trying their vegetarian beyaynetu, a stunning platter of various colorful lentil and vegetable dishes like misir wot and gomen, is essential. The savory kitfo (minced raw beef, traditionally spiced) or the rich doro wat (spicy chicken stew) are also fantastic.

12. Kushi-ya

• 📍 Location: City Centre
• 💲 Price range: $30 – $60 per person
• 🍽️ Cuisine Style: Japanese Kushiyaki / Small Plates
• 🔥 Standout Features: Michelin Bib Gourmand recognized, exquisite grilled skewers (kushiyaki).
• 🎯 Perfect For: Refined Japanese flavors, grilled skewers, and an intimate meal.

Prepare for skewer perfection at Kushi-ya! This small but mighty city centre spot has earned a Michelin Bib Gourmand for its exquisite Japanese kushiyaki (grilled skewers) and creative small plates. Each skewer is a perfectly crafted bite of deliciousness.

Consider the pork belly with apple skewers, the tender duck heart with tare, or the delicate chicken thigh with spring onion. Their fried sea bream with ponzu is also a standout. The atmosphere is intimate, allowing the incredible flavors to shine.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about the quirkiest restaurants in Nottingham

Are you searching for more information about where to eat in Nottingham? Here are some common questions (and answers) I get asked a lot about Nottingham’s most unique restaurants.

What food is associated with Nottingham?

Nottingham is famous for the Bramley apple and Stilton cheese. You’ve gotta try dishes with these – they’re a game changer.

Is Nottingham a foodie city?

Absolutely, Nottingham’s a hidden gem for food lovers, making it one of the top places to live and visit in England. With its mix of traditional British pubs, international cuisine, and innovative plant-based eateries, there’s something for every palate. You’ll love exploring the unique restaurants and local flavors here.

Where is the food capital of the UK?

I’d say that London is the food capital of the UK, thanks to its huge variety. However, you might be surprised that Sheffield was recently voted the best city for food in Britain, with Accor calling it a ‘paradise for food lovers’.

What is unique about Nottingham?

Nottingham is unique because it offers a cool mix of Robin Hood legends, secret caves, and a buzzing food and arts scene, making it a must-stay destination in England. It’s history with a modern twist!