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If you fancy yourself a bit of a dab hand in the kitchen then having a proper space to entertain guests is pretty important. Not many flats these days have room for a separate dining area so you need to be clever when creating a multifunctional space. A table in the corner of the room might work when you’re dining alone but it’s not exactly ideal for those nights when your mates are round to watch the rugby. Below are our top picks for some of the UK’s best restaurants – they’ll give you some great ideas for how to create your own fine dining experience at home and serve some cracking grub for those days when you’re not in the mood to cook.
02 the timberYard
01 friends of ham
The Timberyard Lady Lawson St, Edinburgh, EH3
“I’m a big foodie. I love cooking and I think it’s important for a man to know his way round the kitchen. I also weirdly quite like doing the washing up.”
food, glorious food Creating the perfect space for proper foodies
N Friends of Ham
4 New Station Street, Leeds, LS1
B
eer, wine, cheese and charcuterie. What more do you need? An indoor hurling table, that’s what. At least that’s what the brainiacs behind Friends of Ham in Leeds seem to
think. They’ve got over 100 types of bottled beer, and plenty more on draft, so it’s definitely somewhere worth spending a few hours/days (it’s easy to lose track of time here) getting better acquainted with the stock. The atmosphere is what makes this place really special; it’s not uppity or achingly cool. Pull up one of
the mis-matched chairs, prop your feet up on a nearby stool and just drink it in. There’s plenty to look at, with great hunks of meat hanging from the ceiling, jars and bottles of different pickles and sides and the odd bulldog lamp. Proof – if ever you needed it – that mixing good solid design with something a bit out of the ordinary is always a winner.
ext up is The Timberyard in Edinburgh. The Radford family have done themselves proud with this restaurant that supports local suppliers and looks effortlessly cool whilst doing so. The interior boasts a cracking mix of exposed wooden floors, whitewashed brick walls and enormous bell-jar lamps. The food is top notch too (the deer loin is especially good, particularly if you’ve had enough festive cheer for one year). It’s also a great place to take a date –especially on a cold winter’s night– as you can chill out in front of the wood burning stove. Good food, good mood, what more could you ask for?.
Guy’s Guide food, glorious food 8/9