20 Best Restaurants in Wales

Wales has undergone something of a culinary renaissance in the last couple of decades and this fantastic center is a great place to explore why. Traditional cheeses, house-made ice creams, and other artisanal food products are for sale in the farm shop and deli; there's also a bakery, a butcher, a coffee bar, and a wineshop where you can pick up Welsh malt whisky. The Furnace restaurant serves breakfast and snacks including pizzas, while the Hayloft Bar & Grill has plenty of local meat dishes on the menu for lunch and dinner. Bodnant is on A470, 12 miles north of Conwy.

Close to Harlech's mighty castle, this friendly "restaurant with rooms" is a wonderful find. Chef Glyn Roberts uses locally sourced ingredients from salmon to lamb to create imaginative, beautifully presented contemporary dishes. The main house has three spacious, modern rooms and four more are in the annex, a 16th-century coaching inn. The aviation-themed bar (the inn's owner was previously a pilot) is well-stocked and has views over Mount Snowdon.

Located right next to the beach, this unassuming restaurant is one of the best in south Wales. Local produce like Welsh Wagyu beef is turned into a work of art, served on the terrace in summer. The fish dishes are popular and the extensive wine list has a good selection of French vino. Lunch is a good value with three courses for £45.

Flickering candles, open fireplaces, exposed stone walls, and top-notch locally sourced food are hallmarks of this restaurant and bar, which dates back to the 10th century. The menu contains a selection of Welsh-reared steaks and other meat dishes, but outstanding seafood is the real specialty—try the shellfish platter for two. The romantic setting is as much of a draw as the food. Check out the huge stone Flemish chimney.

Well, this is unusual: a trendy restaurant in which all the food is prepared by prisoners. The idea behind the Clink (British slang for jail) is that those serving time for minor crimes are given the chance to turn their lives around by gaining experience as gourmet chefs. The restaurant (just outside the prison grounds) is a bright, modern space, and the Modern British food is genuinely delicious. You might try the breast of roast chicken with sage crust and onion rings, or spring lamb with fondant potatoes and garlic puree. The restaurant is open for lunch all week, plus a single dinner sitting on the last Wednesday of the month. Note: they don't accept credit cards.

Seasonal, local produce is what it's all about at this sustainable restaurant located in an attractive old stone building in the town center. The five-course set menu features beautifully crafted dishes like heirloom tomato with Ragstone goat's cheese, nasturtiums, and pickled shallots; there's also a separate vegetarian and vegan menu.

This charming whitewashed inn serves elegant Welsh cuisine in a rustic dining room. Fish is a specialty, underlined with plenty of regional flavors like the salmon and leek fishcake, while the beef and lamb are locally sourced. The inn is about 1½ miles west of Raglan Castle. To get there from the castle, turn left out of the gates onto the one-way road, then backtrack towards Raglan, passing the castle again on your right. At the roundabout, take Clytha Road.

This 17th-century coaching inn close to Hay's center is ideal for a lunch break after you're done ransacking the nearby bookshops. The restaurant's sophisticated cooking emphasizes local meats and produce—for example, the pan-roasted Welsh lamb rump with gratin dauphinoise. There are also some interesting hot sandwiches available at lunchtime. You can even opt for an overnight stay in one of the country-style rooms.

This 19th-century chapel has been successfully converted into a café, complete with its original features. It's a good spot for breakfast, and at lunchtime, you'll find sandwiches and salads on the menu. Book ahead for a delicious Afternoon Tea. The owners use local produce where possible. The café is 3 miles east of Llangollen.

In a converted mill on the River Dee, this pub and restaurant has an old waterwheel that turns behind the bar. Dine on the open-air deck or in the cozy dining room, sampling stylishly updated pub fare, such as grilled sea bass with potato and shallot terrine. There are light bites too, and dessert classics such as hot waffles with toffee sauce and bananas. Several of the ales are from Welsh microbreweries.

Attached to the Holyhead Maritime Museum on Newry Beach, this bistro café offers the best view in town from its patio. Watch yachts, catamarans, and vintage sailboats crisscross the harbor while you wait for fish chowder, slow roasted pork belly, and lamb shank in minted red wine sauce, and marvel at the Victorian engineering skill required to build the breakwater, the United Kingdom's longest. Fresh ingredients from the bistro's own farm and local fishermen factor highly in the general praise, but it's the sunset seating Thursday through Saturday that is particularly coveted.

Up a small hill next to Ogmore Castle, The Pelican stands like a mirage. This friendly little pub is a welcome spot for lunch or a restorative pint after the long walk from Merthyr Mawr. Try the Welsh Farmer's Cheeseboard. 

A short drive from Nash Point is this historic pub, on the edge of the tiny clifftop village of Monknash. The food is delicious and unfussy; the menu changes regularly, but features tasty pub classics like burgers and fish-and-chips. Everything is served in a cozy dining room with a fireplace. There's a small but decent wine list, and an even better selection of real ales and ciders. It's popular with locals, so call ahead or be prepared to wait.

Vaulted ceilings and exposed brick walls provide a dramatic backdrop to this restaurant down the block from Cardiff Castle. Formerly a bank vault, today the Potted Pig turns out superb Welsh dishes. Starters like pork pâté with toast and pickles and a choice of delicious desserts keep diners happy. Servers are warm, attentive, and knowledgeable about the impressive wine list; you can also opt for one of the 30 gins.

In a seafront building in picture-postcard Porthdinllaen, this pub has what is undoubtedly one of the best locations in Wales. The lunches are honest and unpretentious: pies, sandwiches, or perhaps a plate of local mussels in garlic butter. Everything is delicious and reasonably priced. The atmosphere is friendly and slightly bohemian; this is the kind of place where they're pleasantly surprised you've managed to find it.

This coaching inn, built in 1636, is one of the best places to eat in Snowdonia. The food is traditional Welsh fare, beautifully prepared with local ingredients. Standouts include oven-baked Anglesey lobster with prawns and crayfish Thermidor, and Shepherd's Pie made with local organic lamb. Vegetarians are well cared for with such dishes as mushroom and pine nut Stroganoff. The inn also has simple, cozy bedrooms.

This popular bistro in central Conwy combines traditional Welsh flavors with accents of the Mediterranean. In the rustic dining room, try the seafood and herb fritters to start followed by slow-roast shoulder of lamb with minted port wine jus and potato gratin.

This idyllic English countryside café, 21 km (13 miles) north of Holyhead, serves probably the best fresh cream scones with strawberries in Wales. The meat, fish, and potato pies impress as well, especially when followed by apple pie with custard, all homemade with fresh ingredients. For the full measure of Welshness, pop in mid-afternoon for traditional tea with scones. The nearby coastal path provides excellent motivation to work off the calories.