Lancashire’s La Locanda named Britain’s best local restaurant for 2026
La Locanda in Gisburn, Lancashire, has been named Britain’s best local restaurant for 2026 by the Good Food Guide.
The Italian restaurant, owned by Cinzia and Maurizio Bocchi, topped the Good Food Guide’s first fully ranked list of Britain’s 100 Best Local Restaurants.
The results were announced in partnership with hospitality technology platform Square at an awards ceremony at Theatre Royal Drury Lane in London on Monday, July 13.
La Locanda has operated in the Lancashire village for more than two decades, combining traditional Italian cooking with produce sourced from the surrounding area.
Reacting to the win, Cinzia said: “My heart is exploding. I think this is the biggest achievement we have had in 23 years.”
La Locanda tops newly ranked top 100
The Best Local Restaurant awards are now in their 16th year and recognise independent restaurants offering strong cooking, value for money and a connection to their communities.
La Locanda was described by the Guide as an “uncompromisingly authentic taste of Italy”, with Cinzia and Maurizio having developed an intimate trattoria at the centre of village life.
Italian restaurants featured prominently towards the top of this year’s rankings, taking four of the first six positions.
Cantina Caruso in Margate finished second, followed by the 16-cover Ar Bòrd on the Isle of Mull in third place.
London regional winner Gina, in Chingford, was fourth, while Wales winner The Black Bear Inn in Bettws Newydd completed the top five.
Tiella Trattoria in Bethnal Green was sixth, ahead of Chinese restaurant Wangs in Bristol, which was named the South West regional winner.
The top ten was completed by Wild in Berkhamsted, Almanac in Glossop and Black Wheat Club in York.
Small restaurants respond to rising costs
The 2026 list also highlighted the growing number of small restaurants and mixed-use hospitality businesses operating across Britain.
According to the Good Food Guide, 10% of the listed restaurants seat 20 guests or fewer, while more than a quarter generate additional income by operating as delis, cafés, wine shops or other businesses.
Examples included 101 Bridport, in Dorset, where Jess and Connie Booth work as florists and growers during the week before turning their industrial unit into a restaurant at weekends.
Eastfield in Dundee operates as a café during the day and becomes a restaurant on Friday and Saturday evenings, while Iranian-Iraqi café Logma in Hackney opens as a restaurant on selected evenings.
Chloë Hamilton, head of reviews and listings at the Good Food Guide, said: “In the face of adversity, creativity has flourished in unusual and unlikely places.
“It has been hugely rewarding to see how these tiny operations are offering outstanding quality in a way that so clearly strikes a chord with the local crowd.
“Arrive with an open mind and a good appetite and you’ll be brilliantly rewarded.”
Former recent winners of this list include Lucky Lychee, Bavette and Tallow.
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Leading chefs embrace more informal dining
This year's list also reflected the move by established chefs towards more relaxed and accessible restaurant formats.
Thomas the Brasserie in Cardiff, led by Tom Simmons, finished 56th after replacing its multi-course tasting menu with set lunches, specials and a more informal brasserie offer.
Nathan Outlaw’s new Outlaw’s Bistro in Port Isaac was ranked 79th, offering local lobster and seafood dishes in a relaxed setting opposite the site of his former fine-dining restaurant.
Outlaw’s Bistro was opened following the closure of Outlaw’s New Road.
Britain’s ten best local restaurants for 2026
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1. La Locanda, Gisburn
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2. Cantina Caruso, Margate
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3. Ar Bòrd, Isle of Mull
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4. Gina, Chingford
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5. The Black Bear Inn, Bettws Newydd
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6. Tiella Trattoria, Bethnal Green
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7. Wangs, Bristol
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8. Wild, Berkhamsted
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9. Almanac, Glossop
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10. Black Wheat Club, York
Regional winners
Overall and North West: La Locanda, Gisburn
South West: Wangs, Bristol
Central and East of England: Wild, Berkhamsted
South East: Cantina Caruso, Margate
Yorkshire and the North East: Black Wheat Club, York
Scotland: Ar Bòrd, Isle of Mull
Wales: The Black Bear Inn, Bettws Newydd
London: Gina, Chingford
Good Food Guide’s 100 Best Local Restaurants 2026
1 - La Locanda, Gisburn, Lancashire
2 - Cantina Caruso, Margate, Kent
3 - Ar Bòrd, Isle of Mull, Highlands & Islands
4 - Gina, Chingford, London
5 - The Black Bear Inn, Bettws Newydd, Monmouthshire
6 - Tiella Trattoria, Bethnal Green, London
7 - Wangs, Bristol
8 - Wild, Berkhamsted, Hertfordshire
9 - Almanac, Glossop, Derbyshire
10 - Black Wheat Club, York, North Yorkshire
11 - Lucky Lychee, Winchester, Hampshire
12 - Counter Culture, Newquay, Cornwall
13 - Eastfield, Dundee, Tayside
14 - Les 2 Garçons, Crouch End, London
15 - Redwood Wines, Dunkeld, Perthshire & Kinross
16 - Bavette, Leeds, West Yorkshire
17 - Fino, Cromer, Norfolk
18 - The Lost Kitchen, Chettiscombe, Devon
19 - Lupo, Prestwich, Greater Manchester
20 - Ida, Queen's Park, London
21 - Fish Shop, Ballater, Aberdeen
22 - Edie's, St Austell, Cornwall
23 - The Union Rye, Rye, East Sussex
24 - Gloriosa, Glasgow, Strathclyde
25 - Upstairs at Landrace, Bath, Somerset
26 - Mambow, Clapton, London
27 - Ogof, Cardiff
28 - North Street Kitchen, Fowey, Cornwall
29 - Long Friday, Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne & Wear
30 - Little Clove Kitchen, Liverpool, Merseyside
31 - The Empire Cafe, Leeds, West Yorkshire
32 - Tropea, Birmingham, West Midlands
33 - Ardfern, Edinburgh, Lothians
34 - Soulshine, Bridport, Dorset
35 - Dongnae, Bristol
36 - The Palmerston, Edinburgh, Lothians
37 - Janda Diner, Peckham, London
38 - Lark, Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk
39 - Bauji, Worthing, West Sussex
40 - Shwen Shwen, Sevenoaks, Kent
41 - The Yan, Grasmere, Cumbria
42 - The Shed, Swansea
43 - Chater's, Saffron Walden, Essex
44 - 101 Bridport, Bridport, Dorset
45 - The Nettle, Settle, North Yorkshire
46 - Seasonality, Maidenhead, Berkshire
47 - Nick's at Port of Menteith, Port of Menteith, Stirling
48 - Mori Mori, Margate, Kent
49 - Home SW15, Putney, London
50 - Pompette, Oxford, Oxfordshire
51 - Logma, Hackney, London
52 - Teal by Sally Abé, Hackney, London
53 - The Suffolk, Aldeburgh, Suffolk
54 - The Orange Bird, Sheffield, South Yorkshire
55 - Ebi Sushi, Derby, Derbyshire
56 - Thomas the Brasserie, Cardiff
57 - Brusco, Brighton, East Sussex
58 - The Spärrows, Manchester, Greater Manchester
59 - The Small Canteen, Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne & Wear
60 - Fifteen Square Metres, Broadstairs, Kent
61 - Franc, Canterbury, Kent
62 - The Gordon Arms, Selkirk, Borders
63 - Fern, Uppingham, Rutland
64 - Bar Ingo, Broadstairs, Kent
65 - Belzan, Liverpool, Merseyside
66 - Little Brickhouse, Nottingham, Nottinghamshire
67 - Amari, Brighton, East Sussex
68 - Barry Fish, Edinburgh, Lothians
69 - Four Boys, Rock, Cornwall
70 - Pip’s, Norwich, Norfolk
71 - Eusebi Deli, Glasgow, Strathclyde
72 - Leftfield, Edinburgh, Lothians
73 - Piccalilli, Nottingham, Nottinghamshire
74 - Norman's Neighbourhood Kitchen, Kirkburton, West Yorkshire
75 - Chin-Zano, Liverpool, Merseyside
76 - Lubber Kitchen, Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne & Wear
77 - The Seahorse, Dartmouth, Devon
78 - Soi 1268, Birmingham, West Midlands
79 - Outlaw’s Bistro, Port Isaac, Cornwall
80 - The Smithfield, Leeds, West Yorkshire
81 - Calong, Stoke Newington, London
82 - Bolete, Neston, Cheshire
83 - Pulpo Negro, Alresford, Hampshire
84 - Margaret's, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire
85 - Â Sé Anar, Blackpool, Lancashire
86 - Other, Bristol
87 - North, Sunderland, Tyne & Wear
88 - Bristol Lido, Bristol
89 - Namo, Brighton, East Sussex
90 - Tonka, Hastings, East Sussex
91 - Post, Newnham on Severn, Gloucestershire
92 - A Tavola Gastronomia Siciliana, High Peak, Derbyshire
93 - Auction House, Louth, Lincolnshire
94 - The Rocket Store, Boscastle, Cornwall
95 - Root Wells, Wells, Somerset
96 - Y Polyn, Nantgaredig, Carmarthenshire
97 - The Dory Bistro, Pittenweem, Fife
98 - Tide & Thyme, Tighnabruaich, Argyll & Bute
99 - Lupa, Highbury, London
100 - The Dining Room, Abersoch, Gwynedd
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