10 Great Restaurants in Cardiff

Chapel 1877 is a fine-dining restaurant in the heart of Cardiff. It occupies a restored and reimagined chapel that dates back to 1877. The impressive French-Italian gothic building was the work of renowned Welsh architect Henry C. Harris. 

Tables are spread over 3 floors, some occupying cosy curtained nooks. The main restaurant is on the 1st floor, where glittering chandeliers and exposed brick have the most impact. Must-try dishes complementing Chapel 1877’s atmospheric dining experience include lamb rump and pumpkin tortellini.

The Grazing Shed is a prominent burger joint in St David’s Dewi Sants. Local suppliers provide the quality ingredients for its tasty burgers – posters featuring their names and faces are proudly displayed on the walls. 

A must-try is John Wayne, which comes with a beef patty, cheese, bacon and BBQ sauce. Other standouts include the Yokozuna chicken burger (served with wasabi mayo and teriyaki sauce) and Hell Fire Vegan (avocado mash and spicy salsa). The Grazing Shed also delivers kits weekly so fans can recreate its bestsellers at home.

Pasture Restaurant Cardiff is a steakhouse where meat-lovers go for high-quality beef in central Cardiff. The meat is sourced locally from farms throughout Wales and surrounding English counties. You might learn something too as you dine in front of its open kitchen.

Cuts of beef hang for at least 35 days in dry-ageing cabinets before being grilled on a blend of cherry wood and coals to round out the flavour. Share a tomahawk or chateaubriand with someone special, or round up a group of friends for a fabulous shared feast.

The Potted Pig is a restaurant that specialises in modern British cuisine, with a few Welsh, French and American influences thrown in for good measure. It’s a top dining spot at the Castle Quarter Arcades mall in Cardiff, with a menu that changes regularly. Even so, rack of lamb, ham hock and even suckling pig are among the regular highlights.

For over a decade, The Potted Pig has been serving customers from a stylish space that was once a bank vault. As well as food, the owners also have a passion for gin. There are more than 30 types on offer as well as an extensive cocktail list to pair with your meal.

Purple Poppadom is a modern restaurant in Cardiff that takes its inspiration from the colours and flavours of India. The talented culinary team brings a little South Asian magic, expertly combining spices to create curries with a modern twist. The rich heritage and diversity of the country are embraced, and their menu features dishes from across India.

The longstanding and award-winning restaurant has earned a Michelin mention and even scored a “Best in Wales” from the judges of the annual British Curry Awards.

Milkwood is a modern Welsh restaurant in Cardiff. It started out as a successful bistro and then rebranded as a daytime cafe. Besides serving modern takes on local food, the modest restaurant is also a cool spot with outdoor setups where you can enjoy cocktails and coffee.

Furthermore, Milkwood is where you can bring dinner forward to lunchtime with tempting dishes such as crab and cockle crumpets, short rib of beef with lumpfish roe and shitake mushrooms. A must-try is its BBQ chicken thigh skewers on flatbread, served with kimchi and spring onion aioli.

Bully’s is a French diner that’s been a respected fixture on the Cardiff restaurant scene since the 1990s. One of its recipes for success is good food and a warm welcome. The place is colourful, eclectically decorated and versatile enough to suit a romantic dinner for 2 or a fun night out with friends.

Its’ head chef sources seasonal Welsh ingredients and combines them with skill on a changing menu. You won’t need to be a vegetarian to appreciate a pithivier (a round French puff pastry pie). If you’re a meat lover, you’ll be tempted by the pork cheek or lamb noisette. Accompanying the food is a concise but carefully curated list of notable French wines.

Thomas by Tom Simmons is a stylish, contemporary restaurant in Pontcanna. Chef Tom Simmons honed his craft in London before moving back to his Welsh homeland. Accordingly, the menu at Thomas is heavily influenced by Simmons’ love of the countryside and a childhood spent foraging and shopping at farmers’ markets.

Classics like fish and chips, fillet of beef and shoulder of Welsh lamb are elevated with expertly chosen accompaniments and sauces. Upstairs is a bar with a speakeasy vibe, serving elegant cocktails and Simmons’ exclusive craft beer.

Nook is a restaurant in Cardiff that prides itself on unfussy food using organic ingredients. This approach also extends to other aspects of the menu, such as the inclusion of low-intervention, natural wines that have been produced from grapes grown without the use of pesticides and artificial fertilisers.

The vibe is casual, with plenty of wood and open shelves lined with bottles of wine that complement the small plates on the regularly changing menu. Share globe artichoke, burrata, roast radish, or plates of occhi di lupo (stuffed tubular pasta) with friends and conclude with a rhubarb ice cream or chocolatey hazelnut crepes.

Home by James Sommerin is a Penarth restaurant that won a coveted Michelin star just 6 months after it opened its doors in 2021. It’s a close-knit affair – James and his daughter Georgia are the genius team that runs the kitchen while other family members take care of the front of the house.

Drawn curtains and a blacked-out door hide the magic that takes place inside, where patrons are treated to exquisitely presented dishes bursting with flavour. Resist the temptation to open the menu on your table and allow yourself to be surprised as each delectable course arrives from the open kitchen. Its ‘surprise’ menu is seasonal, so no visit will be the same.