Mark Birchall's Moor Hall named UK's Best Restaurant in SquareMeal top 100 list

Squaremeal has published its 100 Best UK restaurant list for 2019.

At the very top is Mark Birchall's Moor Hall, the two Michelin-star Lancashire restaurant which was also named best in the country at the National Restaurant Awards in June.

The SquareMeal list compiles reviews and public votes to rank

restaurants across the UK. It is followed by a list of London's best restaurants, which will be published later this year.

Upon receiving the award, Mark Birchall said: “Winning this award is a real boost for us. It’s a nice pat on the back. It shows that our guests really enjoy what we do and it’s great to have the focus on us up north. It means an awful lot to me.”

In second place is the UK's longest serving three Michelin star

restaurant, The Waterside Inn, followed by L'Enclume and Le Manoir.

In fifth place is Peter Sanchez-Iglesias' Bristol restaurant, Casamia, which topped last year's list, while 2017 winner The Sportsman is 6th.

It's looking up for Lancashire

Lancashire restaurants feature heavily on the list, as the North of England continues its ascent to the top of the UK's food scene.

Northcote, led by Lisa Goodwin-Allen climbed from 78th position to 21st, joined by The Freemasons at Wiswell, known for its good value, high quality food and Stosie Madi's gastropub, The Parkers Arms.

Altogether, 20 restaurants in the North made it to the list, up from 17 last year.

This, said SquareMeal editor, Ben McCormack, is a sign that "eating well does not end when you hit the M25.”

Indeed, the country's diversity of restaurants is reflected on the list: Tommy Banks' Yorkshire restaurant, Roots, made it to the 25th position a year after opening; Brad Carter's Michelin star restaurant, Carters of Moseley was placed in 67th position, and Hispi, Gary Usher's first Manchester restaurant, was ranked 74th.

“London will always be an island and it proudly has the greatest mix of restaurants in the world, but it’s in the regional dining offer that we can really see how we compare with other countries," said Ben McCormack.

“The more we see serious dining and wonderful service dished out across the country, the more we can appreciate quite how real and delicious the British food revolution is.”

Check out the full list here.

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