Whilst a relatively small city, Durham certainly packs a punch when it comes to eating out. If you’re looking to plan ahead or stuck for where to eat tonight, let me show you the best places to eat in Durham.
I’ve now lived just outside of Durham for over four years and, whilst Covid-19 stole a large chunk of those, I love nothing better than nipping into this beautiful cathedral city for a bite to eat and a few drinks. Durham is no doubt a small city but that doesn’t mean that it skimps on great places to eat. Often overlooked by food lovers as they head straight up to Newcastle (the food scene in Newcastle is unreal to be fair), Durham has plenty of choice too from some of the best pizza this side of Italy to the sloppiest burgers you’ll ever see and from ultra-authentic Thai food to fine-dining tasting menus. This guide will show you exactly where the best places to eat in Durham are and I guarantee you’ll be eating well whenever you visit this lovely city!
If you’re looking for the best cafes in Durham (like Flat White and Riverview Kitchen), you’re going to want to check out this post here and for those planning a full weekend in the city, here’s my guide to making sure it’s perfect!
MY FAVOURITE PLACES TO EAT IN DURHAM’S CITY CENTRE
Zaap Thai
The latest addition to the relatively new Riverwalk Development, Zaap Thai has shot straight to my favourite place to eat in Durham. This is traditional Thai food in a setting that immediately transports you to the streets of Bangkok. In my opinion, you won’t find better Thai food in the city!
My meal of choice is pretty much always, without fail, the Thai Red Curry with Chicken though the crispy chicken with red curry sauce is something different that is hard to steer away from too. The Bangkok Platter is a great sharer full of popular street foods and, if you’ve still got room for dessert, the Pandan Pancake comes highly recommended. I have no idea what Pandan is but this green sweet treat is incredible!
Rudy’s
Proper fresh Neapolitan pizza arrives in Durham in the form of Rudy’s and honestly you will not get a better pizza in Durham full stop. Rudy’s has become well-known in the pizza game across Manchester, Liverpool, Leeds and London over the last few years so it was a huge shock to see them open up a brand new site here in Durham. I’m not complaining in anyway as it’s great to see big brands taking a leap of faith in our small north-eastern city. We visited on New Year’s Eve for our traditional lunch time meal out with Evelyn in tow and devoured two pizzas and garlic bread between us. I had one of the specials (the name escapes me!) but basically had three different types of meats drizzled with chilli oil and was unreal. Emma went with another special with pumpkin and fior di latte. The three dips for £5 is a good deal too; the ‘Nduja Aioli cannot be missed.
Rudy’s is open Wednesday to Sunday’s, 12pm-9pm.
Tomahawk at The Boat Club
The Tomahawk Steakhouses group have taken over the North East with high quality steak restaurants pretty much everywhere from Beverley to Morpeth and the Quayside in Newcastle to York. In Durham, Tomahawk has taken over the top floor of the Boat Club bar on the bank of the River Wear with beautiful views across Elvet Bridge.
We visited Tomahawk for the first time as part of Durham Restaurant Week where we got three courses for £20; unbelievable value. I went with the Wagyu meatballs to start, the Buttermilk Chicken Burger & Chocolate Fudge Cake which I know is probably sacrilege in a place renowned for their Himalayan salted steaks. Emma went with one of the steaks that was cooked to perfection; ordinarily they’re on the pricier side mind with a 12oz Sirloin setting you back £36.95 with two sides included. I would love however to return for one of their famous steak sharing boards like the massive 36-38oz Tomahawk!
The Rabbit Hole
The Rabbit Hole is slightly further out of the city centre than Barrio Comida but comes highly recommended. The vibe is 1920’s Shanghai supper club and I’m not sure many places offer high quality Asian cuisine alongside live jazz music. During the day, you can feast on a huge array of Dim Sum (think red oil wontons, pork buns and spicy crispy beef) whilst on a night you can expect more substantial meals like black bean stir fry, ginger soy fish and satay chicken. At night, you enter through a secret door, down the side street, under the red light.
The Rabbit Hole is part of the same group that own Tango and Zen (also highly recommended for Thai food) you know to expect quality here!
Coviello
Coviello is one of my new little gems of Durham. An Italian restaurant and Wine Bar, you can expect great cappuccinos, authentic food such as Arancine, fresh focaccia bread stuffed with basil, pesto, parma harm and sun-died tomato, pizza, pasta and, of course, cannoli. If the suns out, it’s a great place to watch the world go by with an Aperol Spritz and a charcuterie board. Finally, If you’re into great wines, the owners Dani and Alicja are very knowledgeable and will steer you in the right direction.
Tango / Fat Hippo
A straight shoot-out for the best burgers in Durham right here! I historically leant towards Fat Hippo for burgers (plus they do loyalty points and I’m pretty sure I have enough for a t-shirt now) but Tango are independent, have a brand spanking new location Saddler Street and have a ‘cheese bomb’ side which is basically liquid cheese that you have to dip your burger into! After a few more visits, I’m now a Tango-man through and through!
Fat Hippo Website
Tango Website
Notch
On Elvet Bridge, you’ll find Notch; the home of slow-cooked American meats here in Durham. The meats are all prepared on site, marinated for 12 hours before being cooked low and slow for 14 hours and yes you can tell – this is a meat lovers paradise. The BBQ Notch Tray is a great introduction and comes with beef brisket, tequila burnt ends, jalapeno smoked sausage, pulled pork, corn bread & maple butter, pit salad, slaw, pit beans, onion rings and fries. Wow, even typing that I could feel myself filling up. You can tone it down a little with a 2 Pit Tray (choice of 2 meats) or going with one of the smash burgers. I love this place, it’s a bit dirty but definitely the best place around if you’re fancying some low and slow cooked meats.
Estabulo / Rio
This is the battle of the Brazilians with both Estabulo and Rio very recently opening in the city. Both offer the now infamous all you can eat meat dining experience alongside unlimited salad from the purpose built salad bar. The concept is simple, meats are cooked to perfection in the kitchen before being presented to each table and, if you think you can handle it, you keep your card on green meaning that yes, you can definitely eat more meat. We’ve only eaten at Estabulo so far but Rio is next on the list and I’m sure both will be just as good as each other. This is an experience that you have to try at least once!
Akarsu Turkish Restaurant & Grill
Akarsu is the original Turkish restaurant in Durham and, thankfully, you’ve now got two fantastic choices if you fancy traditional Turkish cuisine. We only visited Akarsu for the first time in 2025 in its brand new and very accessible location on Framwellgate Bridge.
As seemingly is tradition, whilst on paternity leave for our second child, we headed into Durham for a bite to eat and were quickly swayed by Akarsu’s fantastic lunch deal; a starter, main and a soft drink for just £18 between 11:30am & 4pm. My choices were Yaprak Sarma (vine leaves stuffed with rice & onion) followed by a wrap full of marinated chicken breast that had been grilled over charcoal, peppers, mushrooms and onions with a side of rice and salad as well as chilli & garlic sauce. Emma had the Saksuka (fried peppers, courgette, onion, potatoes & aubergine in a tomato sauce) which surprised her with being cold but tasted very much like the Sicilian caponata and then a falafel wrap. Akarsu has been a place that has been recommended to us for years and I was so glad to finally try it; it definitely lives up to expectations!
Turkish Kitchen Meze & Grill
On Saddler Street, on the ground floor of number 66, is the Turkish Kitchen Meze & Grill. I can’t believe that what is now a beautiful restuarant space used to be, until recently, a betting shop! We had been wanting to try Akarsu which I’d always thought was the number one Turkish restaurant in Durham but, purely down to logistics of taking a newborn baby in a pram, we chose to visit here instead.
Surprisingly we had such a chilled lunch here as Evelyn, only a matter of weeks old at the time, slept all the way through the car journey to Durham, through the walk to the restaurant, through the meal and back again! If only it stayed that easy…
Anyway, we were really impressed with the food served up here and the hospitality was second to none. If you get chance, I’d recommend taking advantage of the lunch offer between 12pm and 4pm Sunday to Friday as you get two courses for just £13.95. I went with the Atom to start which was roasted aubergine mixed with yoghurt and hot chilli topped with fried butter and the Mixed Kofte for main.
Coarse
Fine dining arrives in Durham with a six course tasting menu presented by Head Chef, Ruari Mackay. Ruari was behind the transformations of the Garden House Inn and the Traveller’s Rest so you know that the food is going to good here. coarse aims to make tasting menus more accessible, more affordable and more fun and I have to admit that I have never had a tasting menu. The menu at coarse changes with the seasons and is only £40 per person which is great value for money!
nkdBIRD
Another place on Saddler Street that we visited when Evelyn was much younger. With a distinct lack of dine in fast food joints in Durham (not that that’s a bad thing!), nkdBIRD caters to those looking for a quick bite to eat in the form of buttermilk fried chicken. The location is great to catch the attention of passers-by with its neon lights but the interior is small and quite cosy though we did manage to fit our pram in!
Be prepared for the comings and goings of delivery drivers as food is available on Justeat/Ubereats/Deliveroo but if you’re looking for some quick and easy, this could be for you. I enjoyed the Korean-Pop burger with Asian coleslaw, gochujang mayonnaise and siracha sour cream.
The Food Pit
The Food Pit is Durham’s street food hall with a range of different vendors all under one roof. The vendors that are currently there include Greek Kitchen, Holy Guacamoley, Manao Thai and Taste & Feast. This is where we go if me and Emma don’t fancy the same food and it’s pretty laidback, perfect for a quick bite to eat.
Uno Momento
I’m skipping the almost legendary Italian restaurant, La Spaghettata, and recommending that you visit Uno Momento just off the marketplace instead. Uno Momento is a restaurant that I’ve always passed and made a mental note that I need to try it. That finally happened a few weeks ago and I was pleasantly surprised. I had a hot-shot calzone which was honestly huge even by my standards and I actually had to leave some but it tasted unreal.
You can get 2 courses for £16.95 all day and all night from Monday to Friday and between 11am and 4:30pm on weekends which is a great deal. Uno Momento serves up the Italian food you’d expect from pastas to pizzas to chicken and seafood dishes but also includes parmos given that we are in the North-East after all.
Belle e Brutti
Last but by no means least is the place to go for those with a sweet tooth. Belle e Brutti serves up gelato imported directly from Turin as well as pizza portafoglia from Napes. The gelato is up there with some of the best I’ve tasted. Every time we visit, even when the weather isn’t great (kids eh!), I go for salted caramel and I’ve never been let down.
The shop at the top of Saddler Street is only small but there’s just enough space to get in for a classic Neapolitan street food ‘wallet pizza’ followed by the finest gelato. I promise you’ll feel as though you’re in Italy, almost!
Places I Really Need To Try
As it says on the tin, there are a few places in Durham that I know I really need to try (over and above the ones I’ve set out above) and they are Fusha (Asian fusion), Tia’s (legendary Mexican), Shaheen’s (a proper Indian curry house) and a revisit to The Cellar Door.
Other Notable Recommendations
As I alluded to earlier, there are so many good places to eat in Durham but I can’t include every single one unfortunately. There are many other notable recommendations depending on what you’re after so feel free to try Head of Steam (great vegan food) Bells’ fish and chips, Cosy Club, Turtle Bay, Zaps burrito bar and Marco Pierre White’s steakhouse.
I haven’t been to each and every restaurant so if you have any thoughts on the best places to eat in Durham, let me know in the comments below!
WHERE NEXT?
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A TRIP TO CROOK HALL GARDENS IN DURHAM
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