Two North East venues named in UK's top 50 gastropubs

The Rat Inn in Anick, between Corbridge and Hexham, and Newcastle City Centre’s Broad Chare have been listed in Estrella Damm’s Top 100 Gastropubs list for 2025.

The Northumberland site was ranked 20th in the UK, while the Broad Chare, which sits near the Quayside, was put in 31st.

Described by the awards as “one of the greatest and longest-serving pubs on the Estrella Damm Top 50 Gastropubs list”, the North East’s top site in Northumberland is headed up by Karen Errison and Phil Mason, the latter of whom runs the kitchen alongside head chef Kevin Maclean.

Mason was crowned Pub Chef of the Year in 2023 by The Craft Guild of Chefs. Maclean also won the Pub Chef category of the Parliamentary Pub Chef of the Year Awards in 2018.

The guide adds: “Menu highlights have included slow-cooked belly pork with chestnut and chorizo stew; red mullet with fennel, broccoli and crab bisque; and home-made Scotch eggs with kimchi.”

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Back in the city centre, The Broad Chare has been considered a top site in Newcastle for years and is “at the heart of the city’s ever growing foodie revolution and produces some of the UK’s greatest and most innovative dishes” according to the guide.

It continues: “The Michelin Bib Gourmand holder prides itself on being a proper pub, with good-quality, good-value cooking and beer, so expect to find a bustling community hub full of cheer as well as a spot for a superb meal.

“The pub aims to treat both food and beer as equal partners, ensuring that the venue has a genuinely ‘pubby’ feel with separate bar, ‘snug’ and dining areas across the floor. For the more formal diner, a 60-cover restaurant is positioned upstairs, and offers a locally sourced English menu.”