Eating wonderful food is one of life’s great pleasures. That’s what the MICHELIN Star represents: it directs you to restaurants that serve truly memorable dishes. And while this experience can often prove expensive, there are thankfully a great number of Starred restaurants who go out of their way to offer more affordable ways to enjoy their fabulous cooking. Lunch is often the key to good value dining, but sometimes dinner just feels like more of an event, a proper night out. So, here's our selection of the cheapest dinner menus available at MICHELIN Star restaurants.
Bridge Arms, Bridge (© Andrew Lewis)
Bridge Arms, Bridge
This smart pub boasts gorgeous fireplaces, a large garden and, crucially, excellent cooking. Superb produce is the bedrock of it all, with dishes executed well to make the most of the ingredients. Sauces are a particular highlight, proving to be packed with flavour, well-balanced and showing a good degree of depth. There’s a great buzz to both the charming bar and more formal restaurant area.3 Courses, Weds-Thurs Dinner – £35
3 Courses, Wed-Fri Lunch – £35
Bulrush, Bristol
The next stop on our tour of the cheapest Star meals is Bristol, where the high-level cooking comes within the confines of a neighbourhood restaurant. Cotham is the area in question, situated in the north of the city. Local produce feeds the dishes, which have an Anglo-French base with Japanese elements, such as a truffle seaweed chawanmushi amuse bouche to kick off your visit.6 Course Tasting Menu, Tues-Thurs Dinner (on request) – £65
6 Course Tasting Menu, Fri-Sat Lunch – £48
Campagne, Kilkenny (© Paul Sherwood Photography)
Campagne, Kilkenny
There is something delightfully unpretentious and understated about Campagne. The assured classical cooking delivers bold, complementary flavours with real skill, ensuring technical flourishes are never there for the sake of it. Alongside the appealingly priced early bird/Sunday lunch menu, is a wine list with something to suit every purse. It’s no surprise that they have a loyal following of local diners.3 Courses, Weds-Sat Early Evening – €48
3 Courses, Sunday Lunch – €48
Chestnut, Ballydehob
In the coastal West Cork village of Ballydehob, lies this wonderful restaurant where a shorter version of their tasting menu offers one of the cheapest MICHELIN Star dinners in Ireland. It’s a very likeable place, with charming service and well-matched wine flights enhancing the overall experience. The cooking itself is full of flavour, with nicely balanced combinations and quality ingredients cooked with supreme skill.4 Courses, Weds-Fri Dinner – €70
Le Champignon Sauvage, Cheltenham
Fordwich Arms, Fordwich
Run by the same team as the nearby Bridge Arms, there is a similar style of cooking on offer at this pub in what is officially England’s smallest town. Seasonal produce guides the menu, where dishes are executed with a modern approach and deliver plenty of flavour. The riverside location is a big selling point too, as is the attractive terrace that always proves popular in the summer months.3 Courses, Weds-Thurs Dinner – £45
3 Courses, Weds-Fri Lunch – £45
Le Champignon Sauvage, Cheltenham
Over three decades have passed since Le Champignon Sauvage opened, and for much of that time it’s been something of an institution in the town of Cheltenham. Within easy reach of those visiting the Cotswolds, the restaurant offers classically based cooking with a French influence but centred around British produce. Dishes on the good value fixed-price menu could include white onion soup or Cotswold White chicken with celeriac cream.3 Courses, Weds-Fri Dinner – £47
3 Courses, Weds-Sat Lunch – £47
Nut Tree Inn, Murcott
Masons Arms, Knowstone
There’s a reason this thatched pub has held its Star for 17 years. The menu is founded on quality local produce, which is used in more elaborate dishes than you might expect from the pubby surroundings. It’s a 13th-century property that was built by the masons who constructed the nearby church and exudes plenty of rural charm. Have a drink in the cosy beamed bar or lounge, before being seated beneath a Grecian ceiling mural in the dining room.3 Course À La Carte, Tues-Sat Dinner – £61.50 (average price)
3 Courses, Tues-Sat Lunch – £38
Nut Tree Inn, Murcott
Like The Masons Arms, here is another thatched-roofed pub with cooking that's a cut above the norm. Alongside their tasting menu of more complex dishes, the highly skilled kitchen team also provide a 'Pub Classics' menu which comes at a more wallet-friendly price and offers the likes of onglet steak or beer-battered cod and chips. It's the perfect way to enjoy straightforward, unpretentious food cooked by chefs with real quality.3 Course 'Pub Classics' À La Carte, Mon-Thurs Dinner – £58.50 (average price)
Pea Porridge, Bury St Edmunds (© Jo Preston)
Pea Porridge, Bury St Edmunds
There’s a homely, slightly bohemian vibe to Pea Porridge, with its wooden furnishings and interesting artwork hung on exposed brick walls. The restaurant sits inside two cottages that date back to 1820 and formerly served as a bakery, with the original cast iron bread oven still in situ. The ‘Grizzly’ charcoal oven gets plenty of use across dishes that blend warming spices with a herby freshness.3 Course À La Carte, Weds-Sat Dinner – £58 (average price)
4 Courses, Thurs-Sat Lunch – £50
Pipe and Glass, South Dalton
This East Yorkshire pub’s passionate owners have nurtured it into a destination dining inn, where you’ll be greeted by a lovely terrace full of colourful planters. Inside, it’s cosy and characterful, with a large bar and a country house style dining room with garden views. The refined pub dishes come packed with flavour and are served by a great team, ensuring you leave with a smile on your face.3 Course À La Carte, Tues-Sat Dinner – £61.75 (average price)
Star Inn at Harome, Harome (© John Carey)
Star Inn at Harome, Harome
The best cooking is so often dependent on using the freshest, most local produce available. They know this at Andrew Pern’s flagship operation, which is why they aim to offer a market menu alongside their extensive à la carte and tasting menus. It’s brilliant value too, letting you try the flavoursome, ingredient-led cooking at a lower price point. The place itself is hugely characterful and endearing too.3 Course Market Menu, Monday Dinner – £30
The Barn, Aughton
Part of the historic Moor Hall estate, The Barn is positioned as a more relaxed, accessible restaurant than the Two MICHELIN Star flagship situated in the main house. In that it succeeds, while offering delightful cooking of its own. Dishes showcase bold, punchy flavours and top-notch ingredients, while the hand-crafted cocktails are enhanced with their own fermented produce. Attentive, professional service is the icing on a rather delicious cake.3 Courses, Weds-Fri Dinner – £48
3 Courses, Thurs-Sat Lunch – £42
The Sportsman, Seasalter (© Holly Farrier)
The Coach, Marlow
With its charming staff, tasty cooking and reasonable prices, this relaxed younger sibling to The Hand and Flowers is a pub that appeals to everyone. Whether you’re tucking into a rotisserie poussin or a chocolate brownie, dishes are well-executed and full of flavour. Alongside the well-priced à la carte, there’s also a phenomenally good value set lunch menu at just £15 for 2 courses or £22.50 for 3 courses.3 Course À La Carte, Weds-Mon Dinner – £56
3 Courses, Mon & Weds-Fri Lunch – £22.50
The Sportsman, Seasalter
A long-standing inn on the north Kent coastline, with a reputation for its fine cooking, The Sportsman is offering a midweek menu that presents wonderful value for money. It’s a great way to sample the considerable talents of the kitchen team, who present dishes that are free from unnecessary adornments but full of satisfying flavours. The relaxed, welcoming atmosphere and friendly service make the place all the more inviting.3 Courses, Thurs-Fri Lunch & Dinner – £55
White Swan, Fence (© Allan Markey)
White Swan, Fence
Another of The MICHELIN Guide's One Star pubs to appear on our list of the most affordable gourmet spots, this cosy and characterful operation comes with plenty of personality thanks to its charming team and down-to-earth style. The cooking offers a whole lot more than you'd find in your usual pub, using excellent produce in classical combinations to produce delicious results. Come midweek for their fixed-price menu at a lower price point.3 Courses, Tues-Fri Dinner – £65
To discover a host of affordable Michelin Star lunch menus, read The Cheapest MICHELIN Star Restaurants For Lunch.
For good value London Stars, see The Cheapest MICHELIN Star Restaurants in London.
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Hero Image: Bridge Arms (© Andrew Lewis)
