Kiln is named number one restaurant in the National Restaurant Awards 2018

The Staff Canteen

Kiln, headed up by chef and owner Ben Chapman was last night crowned as the best restaurant in the UK.

The casual Thai restaurant in Soho climbed eight places from last year knocking The Sportsman off the top spot and editor, Stefan Chomka, said: "Kiln is a marvellous restaurant for so many reasons."

Coming in at number two was Sabor followed by A. Wong and Core by Clare Smyth in fourth. In total, London venues take up more than half of the 100 positions on the list and the top restaurant outside London was L'Enclume in Cumbria.

There were a number of new entries including Farang, Barbary, Neo Bistro, Westerns Laundry and Ikoyi.

The Sportman dropped to ninth and following news earlier in the year that Jonny Lake and sommelier Isa Bal have left, the Fat Duck which was 15 last year dropped to 32 this year. 

As well as the top 100 restaurants there were a number of other awards:

Best Restaurant in Northern Ireland: Wine & Brine, Moira

Best restaurant in Wales: Ynyshir

Best restaurant in Scotland: Ondine, Edinburgh

One to Watch: Cornerstone 

Chef to Watch: Tom Brown

Lifetime Achievement Award: Raymond Blanc

Gastropub of the Year: The Sportsman (Seasalter, Kent)

Cocktail List of the Year: Temper

Wine List of the Year: Noble Rot

OpenTable Diners’ Choice ‘Fit for Foodies’: The Chef’s Table, Chester

Chefs’ Chef of the Year: Nieves Barragán Mohacho

Restaurateur of the Year: Karam, Jyotin and Sunaina Sethi, JKS Restaurants

The Service Award: Core by Clare Smyth

Sustainable Restaurant of the Year: ODE true food, Devon

The list is compiled using votes from 150 industry experts, including chefs, restaurateurs, food writers and critics. 

National Restaurant Awards list in full:

1.       Kiln, Soho

2.       Sabor, Mayfair

3.       A Wong, Victoria

4.       Core by Clare Smyth, Notting Hill

5.       L'Enclume, Cumbria

6.       Moor Hall, Lancashire

7.       Lyle's, Shoreditch

8.       Restaurant Sat Bains, Nottingham

9.       The Sportsman, Kent

10.    Nathan Outlaw, Cornwall

11.    Claude Bosi at Bibendum, Chelsea

12.    The Coach, Marlow

13.    Coombeshead Farm, Cornwall

14.    Brat, Shoreditch

15.    Padella, London Bridge

16.    The Quality Chop House, Clerkenwell

17.    The Ledbury, Notting Hill

18.    Freemasons at Wiswell, Lancashire

19.    Wreckfish, Liverpool

20.    The Black Swan at Oldstead

21.    The River Café, Hammersmith

22.    Indian Accent, Mayfair

23.    Paul Ainsworth at No 6, Padstow

24.    El Pastor, London Bridge

25.    Le Manoir aux Quat Saisons, Oxford

26.    Ondine, Edinburgh

27.    Casamia, Bristol

28.    Ynyshir, Powys

29.    Som Saa, Shoreditch

30.    House of Tides, Newcastle

31.    The Clove Club, Shoreditch

32.    The Fat Duck, Bray

33.    Chez Bruce, Wandsworth

34.    Elystan Street, Chelsea

35.    The Crown at Burchetts Green, Maidenhead

36.    Trinity, Clapham

37.    The Little Fish Market, Hove

38.    The Walnut Tree, Abergavenny

39.    Quo Vadis, Soho

40.    The Seahorse, Dartmouth

41.    Barrafina, Covent Garden

42.    Lorne, Victoria

43.    The Waterside Inn, Bray

44.    Brawn, Bethnal Green

45.    The Raby Hunt, Darlington

46.    Hispi, Didsbury

47.    Hoppers, Soho

48.    Midsummer House, Cambridge

49.    Noble Rot, Bloomsbury

50.    Gymkhana, Mayfair

51.    Nuala

52.    Hedone, Chiswick

53.    Alchemilla, Nottingham

54.    Kricket, Soho

55.    Pollen St Social, Mayfair

56.    Tyddyn Llan, Llandrillo

57.    Root, Bristol

58.    St John Bread & Wine, Shoreditch

59.    The Star Inn Harome, Yorkshire

60.    Farang, Highbury

61.    Holborn Dining Room, Holborn

62.    The Hand & Flowers, Marlow

63.    Wilson's, Bristol

64.    40 Maltby Street, London Bridge

65.    Black Axe Mangal, Islington

66.    Carter’s of Moseley, Birmingham

67.    The Palomar, Chinatown

68.    Smoking Goat, Shoreditch

69.    The Beehive, Berkshire

70.    The Hardwick, Abergavenny

71.    Timberyard, Edinburgh

72.    Xu, Chinatown

73.    The Dairy, Clapham

74.    Le Gavroche, Mayfair

75.    Paco Tapas, Bristol

76.    The Parkers Arms, Clitheroe

77.    Rambla, Soho

78.    Wine & Brine, County Armagh

79.    Frog by Adam Handling, Covent Garden

80.    Where The Light Gets In, Stockport

81.    Bonhams, Mayfair

82.    Restaurant Andrew Fairlie, Edinburgh

83.    Fraiche, Oxton

84.    Restaurant Story, London Bridge

85.    Sardine, Hoxton

86.    The Ritz, Piccadilly

87.    Kitchen Table, Fitzrovia

88.    Inver, Argyll & Bute

89.    Lima, Fitzrovia

90.    The Fordwich Arms, Canterbury

91.    Frenchie, Covent Garden

92.    The Elephant, Torquay

93.    Barbary, Covent Garden

94.    Neo Bistro, Mayfair

95.    Mark Greenaway, Edinburgh

96.    Morston Hall Hotel, Norfolk

97.    Northcote Manor, Langho

98.    Westerns Laundry, Highbury

99.    Perilla, Newington Green

100.  Ikoyi, Piccadilly

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The Staff Canteen

Editor 12th June 2018

Kiln is named number one restaurant in the National Restaurant Awards 2018