There are few things as simple yet as revered as the traditional Sunday roast in the UK. One of the world’s great meals, it varies very little in terms of core ingredients but is an absolute powerhouse when it comes to flavour.
Some are good. Some are ordinary. And well, some are just plain awful. But some Sunday roasts in the UK stand on the shoulder’s of giants. They provide tasty sustenance for a day of walking, watching sport and possible additional drinking.
We want to honour the very best Sunday roasts in the UK and give you some inspiration – a list to work your way through. Some of these are so good that they are indeed worth a special trip just to try them…
This is a proper gastro pub, where the food is every bit as good as any fine dining restaurant you’d ever enter and twice as wholesome.
The roasts are huge in portion size and come with delicious side dishes like creamy mash and properly chunky chips. Lashing on some extra gravy is a must given how tasty it is.
This spot is consistently winning awards for their food which continues to startle with its elegant brilliance. The Sunday roast is the jewel in the crown.
Throw in the fact that it is a seriously affordable spot and that the service is always friendly and you simply cannot afford to be in the area and not stop in.
It all starts with a huge emphasis on sourcing the best ingredients from suppliers that are as local as possible. Once that has been done, the recipes they stick to are classical in style and exactly what you want in terms of comfort food.
They offer roast beef, chicken, pork and lamb, alongside fish and vegetarian options.
This pub in the heart of Falmouth is a spot that you will instantly fall in love with, through a combination of a great drinks menu and wonderful views of the sea.
The Sunday roast is the thing that takes it to a whole new level and will make you wish you never had to leave the place every again. If only every pub in the world was this perfect.
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Their aim is to serve honest, simple and seasonal food and that can be seen best in their Sunday cooking.
The restaurant is led by husband and wife team Steve and Jules Horrell. They work closely with local farmers, gamekeepers and gardeners, to use ethical British produce with a focus on sustainability.
The end result? A meal that you will be thinking back to weeks after you have visited.
The perfect place to come in the winter and sit and have a roast by the fire or enjoy it outside in warmer months, with panoramic views of the Cheshire plains.
Their cooking relies on the sourcing of seriously high ingredients which are handled by true professionals to cook one of the great Sunday lunches in UK. Absolute perfection every single time.
Their aim is to serve up locally sourced food, which is driven by seasonality and they tick that box with every single meal they serve.
This is the perfect place to come with the family or a large group of friends to spend a couple of hours unwinding after a tough week. Super food, a great drinks list and plenty of places to walk it off nearby.
One of the prettiest pubs you are every likely to set eyes on, both on the outside and as soon as you step inside.
Boasting a lovely 1930’s bar and oak panelled dining room with three open fires, you will literally sink into their chairs and feel yourself relaxing instantly.
Their precise cooking features some brilliantly inventive takes on the Sunday roast. This will have you rethinking everything you thought you knew about the best meal of the week.
They promise and deliver fine dining without all the fuss, while still maintaining the quality you would expect of a venue with this many awards and prestige.
They don’t serve Sunday lunch every single week but when they do word spreads fast. One of the tastiest, cleanest and most delicious roast dinners you could ever imagine eating. Outstanding cooking by a seriously talented bunch of chefs.
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This is a a mixture between a Sunday lunch and buffet where you have an array of treats laid out in front of you.
They include roast meats, Severn & Wye hot and cold smoked salmon, shell on prawns, smoked mackerel pâté, Cumberland Scotch eggs, parfait, Serrano ham on the bone. Plus, a selection of charcuterie, grilled vegetables and pickles, freshly baked artisan breads and a selection of vibrant salads.
There is much much more than that but that gives you an idea of the feast!
Serving great local beers, ales, lagers and ciders alongside a selection of fine wines and spirits this is the perfect spot to unwind on a Sunday in London.
Their bar snacks and modern cooking is legendary in the area and includes dishes like this Pheasant with Tamworth sausage and butter bean. It’s one of the best roasts in the country.
Their ethos is to use only the best of local ingredients, cooked simply to let the real quality shine through. They key to their meet is sourcing it super local and knowing exactly where it comes from. It really shines through with the end product of the Sunday lunch.
The sort of spot that you really don’t want to leave. You will always linger a little longer in its comfortable embrace with a couple more drinks.
This is a traditional yet stylish coaching inn located in the heart of the historic village of Mells, which is in some of Somerset’s most stunning countryside.
You’ll absolutely want to stay for at least one or two nights to completely unwind. Their roast dinner being the perfect send off if you are here for a weekend.
Rich, packed full of flavour and served up by the friendliest staff, you really are in for a serious treat.
An independent, community focused pub showcasing beers from the brewery and beyond and food that is perfectly matched up with everything they do.
The highlight of the week is Sundays, where the food draws people in and they stay for the day sipping on wine and the wonderful beers. The sort of place you could easily sit in for hours and not notice the time going by. If only all pubs served Sunday roasts that tasted this amazing.
This is a traditional pub with bedrooms in an extensive historic park near Cromer in North Norfolk. Chef Stuart Tattersall cooks from local ingredients and seasonal produce. Venison comes from the deerpark and beef from the local herd at Blickling.
Roasts have droolworthy crackling and crispy spuds.
They offer the perfect combination of a city centre London location, great Bloody Mary’s, jazz music and unlimited Yorkshire puddings. What more could you possibly want from a Sunday lunch?
The food itself is super generous in terms of portion size so do make sure you come with a serious appetite. By far one of the best Sunday lunches in the capital.
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Tucked away at the foot of Devils Dyke just to the North of Brighton, the Shepherd and Dog provides an idyllic location for traditional ales, outstanding food and an easy going atmosphere that turns visitors into regulars.
They are walker and dog friendly on Sundays and the atmosphere is always electric with people enjoying the food. The highlight is a 32-day aged side of peppered beef; once you taste it you’ll never be able to look at another roast in the same way again.
They serve up a wonderful Sunday roast that uses local ingredients wherever possible. FYI, you will need a serious appetite for it as the portions are on the large side.
The highlights are the crackling with the roast pork and their huge Yorkshire puddings which are cooked to perfection. Do note that they don’t serve Sunday roast during the summer months, but it is well worth the wait for when it does reappear in the autumn.
They serve either beef or pork roast dinners on Sundays and they come with what they call a “whopping” Yorkshire pudding.
Add in some of the best gravy you will ever taste and a nice selection of sides and you will be in absolute heaven here. If you are hanging around they are a 17th-century listed building so there’s lots of history and a few ghost stories to scare the kids with.
They’ve won countless awards including the best gastropub in Wales for 2018, so they clearly know the ins and outs of a good roast.
It all comes down to the sourcing of the very best ingredients, good big honest portions and a focus on flavour above all else. The sort of place you won’t be able to leave without having a big smile on your face. It really is that good.
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A place where you’ll find fabulous food, friendly service and stunning views. The sort of place you make the focal point of your Sunday and build all the other plans around the meal here.
The roast is served up in a sharing manner with a selection of meats, potatoes and vegetables offered up to eat family style. It makes the whole roast experience that bit more social. Just get stuck in quickly as it’s all so delicious it vanishes pretty quickly!
A wonderfully comfortable and beautiful looking pub both on the outside and as soon as you step inside. The service is so warm and friendly that it feels like eating in a friend’s living room rather than a pub.
The side portions are what turn the roast from great into absolutely outstanding, with some of the very best roast potatoes in the country.
A proper comfortable pub that is run by good friends Harry Farrow and Rowan Glennie, who really transformed the place since taking over the pub in June 2011.
Their food is always inventive and exciting, but it really goes to another notch on Sundays. It’s fair to say that the Sunday roast is the highlight of the week. Big, bold and honest flavours that will leave you feeling totally satisfied especially when washed down with a smooth glass of red wine.
A charming Georgian pub & restaurant in picturesque Hillsborough where they serve up some serious classics like afternoon tea and pizzas.
Without doubt the best meal though is the Sunday roast. It’s a work of art which will have you drooling as soon as you see them going out to other tables.
Proper cooking with generous portions will have you sinking back into the comfortable seats and undoing a button or two. Luckily, there’s loads of great walks in the area to walk off all that wonderful food.
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Hispi is a brilliant restaurant that was initially crowdfunded and which has a loyal fan base, thanks to some precise and quite brilliant cooking.
The menu is always exciting, changing with the seasons and paired with a beautiful wine list. Sunday though is a particular highlight. The prefect sized roast is served up with the most delicious trimmings and a Yorkshire pudding that is cooked to perfection.
As soon as you walk in you feel the atmosphere of the building seeing as it is located in a 13th-century former medieval friary.
They offer a Sunday banquet which is a three course meal that features a roast as the main course. You can choose from beef, chicken, fish or veg roast, so there really is something for everybody. We will say you’ll want to come plenty hungry because there is no shortage of food.
This is a stunning pub in the rolling parkland of the Fonthill Estate in south Wiltshire. They have one of the nicest terraces for the warmer months if you do want to dine outside as an added bonus.
They have eight elegant rooms which is the best way to come and enjoy a roast to combine some downtime, walking and great food. You’ll be in a food coma after this feast. The roast itself is just pure perfection in every sense of the word.
Perfectly formed with every ounce of it cooked superbly.
A hidden gem of a restaurant that once you find you will quickly become a regular in. The room is small and compact which means that the atmosphere quickly bubbles up and leaves the place buzzing.
Their cooking is precise, using the best of local produce and always seasonal. The roast at the weekend usually features a choice of beef, chicken or pork belly and you’ll be hooked from the very first bite.
Some of the very best and most underrated cooking in the UK.
They offer spit roast chicken, Hereford beef or slowly roasted spring lamb on Sundays, with the emphasis very much on sharing.
Add in some of the tastiest and most original sides you could wish for in a roast dinner along with a great wine lis. You will be instantly falling in love with this place. Do leave some room for sweets though, as they are exceptional.
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This is a one Michelin-starred pub located in the heart of Marlow where the food takes centre stage over everything they do.
The room is unbelievably cosy with precise and impeccable service. It will instantly have you relaxing and unwinding awaiting the masterpiece that is the Sunday roast.
Think you have ever had tender beef or the best Yorkshire puddings you could ever imagine? You may need to rethink all those thoughts after visiting here.
With an idyllic village green setting in the small hamlet of Anick, this is the perfect place to base your Sunday day out around.
Walk in the countryside before your Sunday lunch to work up an appetite. This is not a portion for the faint hearted or those on a diet! The veggies, roasties and the pudding are every bit as good as the meat and the whole meals just blends together into one perfect delightful treat.
This is a rural pub that sits atop the Wye Downs of Kent and has won multiple awards for their absolutely outstanding food. It shines all week long on their various menus but Sunday is the day to make that special trip.
Their Sunday lunch manages that perfect trick of offering up superbly high end fine dining food but doing it with absolutely no pretences. This is the sort of meal that you wish you could eat every single day of the week.
A large venue that is absolutely packed on a Saturday night with partygoers, but which on Sunday retreats to an oasis of calm.
Their roasts are make for sharing with large platters being served with ample food and lashings of gravy. Their Yorkshire puddings are often so big that you could nearly crawl inside them and have a nap. Some great cocktails and a super wine list round out the offering to perfection.
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The Punch Bowl Inn is a luxury Lake District hotel where you can escape the world and totally unwind from the stress of modern life.
Come and stay for a couple of nights at the weekend and walk the hills and valleys or just pop in for a long lingering and excellent Sunday lunch.
Their food is fine dining but done in a casual and perfect way with the Sunday lunch being the highlight of the week. Every single part of it down to the homemade sauces on the side are an absolute delight.
A casual place to come and have some seriously good food from 12pm to 9pm on a Sunday. People come from all over the city to have their roasts which are known to be among the best in the business.
Generous portions served in a hearty manner with lashings of gravy. If we could make one suggestion it would be to order the pork so that you can experience their crackling. Absolutely to die for.
A relaxed Scottish gastro pub that has a Michelin starred restaurant as a brother, in the form of the local Kitchin.
They focus on super comforting food here, pairing it up with craft beer and a large selection of other great drinks. The sort of place where you could get seriously comfortable and not want to move for a couple of hours.
The quality of the raw ingredients and the talent of the chefs is what shines through the most. It’s a must-try Sunday roast spot.
The Rose and Crown is an absolutely charming pub that’s loved by locals and visitors alike. As well as a great atmosphere, their Sunday lunch is a real highlight.
Plates are piled high with classic comfort food that will have you coming back time and time again. Tender topside beef with maple roasted root vegetables and super crunchy roasties. The homemade gravy is the perfect topping.
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A traditional pub and restaurant that is located in the heart of Mayfair that focused on many great things but especially on the best grass fed beef. During the week that means some of the best steaks in the business. Come Sunday, it’s a roast that is to die for.
The cooking is refined and superbly well executed, with the Yorkshire puddings sitting alongside the beef as the absolute stars of the show.
One of the best restaurants in Wales, The Hardwick serves up a set Sunday lunch that has something for all tastes. Their Sirloin of Johnny Morris Herefordshire Beef comes beautifully pink with Yorkshire pudding and seasonal veggies.
There’s also a pedigree pork shoulder with crackling and apple sauce or a deep fried Jerusalem artichoke options for the non-meat eaters. This is an essential place for a satisfying feast.
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An award-winning real ale serving pub in the Yorkshire Dales, where they come up with some of the most exciting and inventive cooking you could ever imagine.
An example would be the honey glazed pork rib-eye with deep fried cauliflower and salsa verde pictured below. This is the type of dish they constantly produce to make you completely re-imagine what you think pub food should be.
Their Sunday roast is worth driving from miles away from – many people already do.
They pride themselves on their menus changing with the seasons, having what might just be the best burger in the city and also a great cocktail list.
As if that wasn’t enough to get you excited, their Sunday roast is the stuff that dreams are made of. It really shows off the superb culinary talent on display here.
The perfect place to come with a few friends after a night out and to rebuild with some great honest food. Oh, and maybe a couple of cocktails to get you back on the straight and narrow.
A small and simple pub that has a pared back interior which lets its incredible food do the talking.
The second you walk in and get a drink in your hand, the aromas of what you are about to eat you will waft to your table. You can feel yourself loosening up and feeling at ease. The roast is the perfect example of the extreme confidence in their own ability to cook great food.
Just super ingredients, well prepared and served up by people at the very top of their game.
Consistently rated as one of the best gastropubs in the UK and nowhere does that shine through more so than on their Sunday roasts.
They manage to elevate a meal that is so common and standard around the country to something that is other worldly. It will have your taste buds thanking you for having walked into their pub.
The menu changes on a regular basis, but you’ll nearly always see beef, pork and some form of exciting fish alternative. A truly world-class Sunday roast experience.
The wood fired oven is at the core of what these food masters have been doing since 2011, and it’s now one of the top spots in the country for a hearty Sunday feed. The wood roasted chicken comes with pigs in blankets on the side, while their topside beef is an absolute delight.
Round it off with some artisan cheese and an Eton mess for the perfect meal.
Now with venues in Shoreditch and Soho (they don’t serve Sunday roast in their City restaurant FYI) ,this is one of the most spectacular roasts in the country.
The whole experience is built around sharing and bringing friends together to eat and talk together. The mixed meat platter is not a sight a veggie would be dreaming about, but it will have carnivores drooling. The highlight is the juices from the meat dripping down into the sides. With some amazing gravy added in, this is a serious treat for all involved.
A new arrival on the scene that is a specialist craft beer and live music bar serving quality food in the heart of Manchester. With 24 beers on tap there is plenty of to choose from when it comes to pairing up with your roast.
The food is unpretentious and wholesome, with the roast being an especially good example of that.
The roast comes piled high with some seriously tasty veggies and a gravy that binds the whole meal together perfectly.
A wonderful family friendly country pub that serves up one of the very best Sunday roasts in the UK.
The real beauty of what they do is that they buy their produce daily depending on what is available at the market, from farms and through what has been caught locally.
You feel good and wholesome after eating here, plus there is a great wine list and room for the kids to play outside. It really does tick so many boxes.
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The Bookshop has a keen focus on local and seasonal ingredients. They serve up best of best, including use of fermenting, pickling and foraging, and a handmade charcoal-fired Fogarty oven. Their roast beef is, naturally, Hereford and is perfectly pink and juicy. Lashings of gravy tie it all together.
Their award-winning Sunday lunch is served between 12.30 – 6pm.
Camp and Furnace is a unique spot that’s actually a collection of warehouses in Liverpool. It’s known for its fun events (think Abba singalongs and Harry Potter quiz nights) but their Sunday roast is the stuff of legends.
Organic chickens, joints of sirloin, lamb or pork are served on large communal tables for you to serve yourself, with fluffy Yorkshire puddings and veggies.
And the best Sunday roast in the UK? It goes to this charming pub in Bristol that’s all about locally-sourced food. Feast on Hereford sirloin short rib or cider braised pork belly, with some great veggie and vegan options. They all come with with roast potatoes, Yorkshire pudding, tossed greens, roasted root veg, carrots & gravy.
Bonus: it’s a dog friendly pub with a large, beautiful garden.
