Bouchon Racine Wins UK's Best Restaurant at National Awards
Bouchon Racine is crowned the UK's best restaurant at the 2026 National Restaurant Awards, knocking The Ritz off the top spot. Read the full story here.
Prajakta Sanjay Warwadkar 
LONDON, June 9, 2026 — Bouchon Racine has been crowned the UK's best restaurant at the 2026 National Restaurant Awards, with the Clerkenwell French bistro climbing from fifth place to the top of the country's most watched dining list. The National Restaurant Awards named the winners on June 8 at a ceremony held at Magazine London.
The win unseats The Ritz, last year's number one, and hands the title to a small, low-key bistro rather than a grand hotel dining room. The result shows that a modest room and budget can still take the UK's best restaurant prize.
Bouchon Racine Tops the UK's Best Restaurant List
Bouchon Racine sits above the Three Compasses pub near Farringdon station and serves traditional French food from chef Henry Harris. The restaurant opened in 2022 and entered the Michelin Guide in 2023, though it has not yet earned a Michelin star.
The bistro was also named National Restaurant of the Year. Stefan Chomka, editor of Restaurant, described it as a "temple to great gastronomy" and credited Harris with putting flavour ahead of everything else.
Home cooks who want to try the style can explore a collection of classic French recipes for everyday meals. Bouchon Racine takes bookings up to 30 days in advance.
The Ritz and Osip Share Second Place
In a first for the awards, two restaurants tied for second place. The Ritz dropped one spot from its 2025 win, while Osip in Bruton, Somerset, rose from eighth to join it on the podium.
London continued to dominate the national ranking, with 56 of the 100 restaurants based inside the M25. The remaining entries spanned Bristol, Manchester, Edinburgh, Sheffield, Belfast and other cities.
Adam Byatt Wins Restaurateur of the Year
The judges named Adam Byatt Restaurateur of the Year for his contribution to the UK restaurant industry. His Michelin-starred restaurant Trinity ranked eighth on this year's list.
A panel of more than 200 chefs, restaurateurs and food writers compiled the list, scoring restaurants across 11 UK regions over the previous 12 months.
Reporting compiled from the official National Restaurant Awards announcement and public statements from Restaurant magazine. Verified by HospitalityCareerProfile.com.
