restaurant guide
Wellington has a good variety of restaurants from the traditional to the contemporary, Italian to Indian - and if you've spent a day tramping around the town or climbing up The Wrekin, you'll probably have worked up an appetite.
The venues listed below are hotels and dedicated restaurants, or country pubs with restaurants attached. They all get pretty busy at the weekend, so you'll probably want to book in advance. Remember there are several pubs which also serve good food - see our Pub Guide for our pick of the best.
CAFE DEL MANSO ITALIAN
New Street, Wellington
Coffee house by day, chinsey Italian bistro by night. The building might be fairly plain and modern, but the interior is dressed up with sort of the checkered table cloths and candles that you would expect. The food is very good, just like Mamma used to make, presumably.
Walking time from Market Square: c.5 minutes
(Walk up New Street - Del Manso's is at the top opposite the new Methodist Church)
______________________________________________________________________
THE DHAKA INDIAN
Tan Bank, Wellington
The flock wallpaper and quaint music are long since gone from this bright and contemporary Indian restaurant, which isn't cheap but is certainly one of the best in the area.
Walking time from Market Square: c.5 minutes
(Walk up Crown Street and turn left, bringing you to the bottom of Tan Bank. Walk up Tan Bank and you'll find The Dhaka next to Perry's Cycles near the top of the street.)
______________________________________________________________________
FLAPJACKS TEAROOMS & RESTAURANT TEA ROOMS
Bell Street, Wellington
An old fashioned tea room serving homecooked lunches using local ingredients. Not open during the evenings.
Walking time from Market Square: c.1 minute
_____________________________________________________________________
THE GROVE HOUSE HOTEL & RESTAURANT TRADITIONAL
Whitchurch Road, Wellington
A Georgian farmhouse and former private school, the restaurant at this small family-run hotel has been doing an increasingly brisk trade in the last couple of years. The menu will be a bit of a blast from the past for more urbane diners, but what is there is definately good.
Walking time from Market Square: c.12 minutes
(Walk up Church Street to the junction with Vineyard Road. Cross into Park Street and walk up to where it meets Whitchurch Road. Turn left along there, passing the Red Lion, and The Grove is another few yards along that road.)
______________________________________________________________________
THE HO MEI VILLAGE CANTONESE
Vineyard Road, Wellington
There's always a lively atmosphere on weekend evenings, and the food never disappoints. Is this the best Far Eastern cuisine in Shropshire? A lot of people certainly think so.
Walking time from Market Square: c.5 minutes
(Walk up Church Street and turn right at the junction with Vineyard Road)
_______________________________________________________________________________
THE OLD ORLETON CONTEMPORARY BRITISH
Holyhead Road, Wellington
Formerly The Falcon. This recently refurbished coaching inn on the very edge of the town is by far the most upmarket and gastronomically up to date of Wellington's eateries. Cool contemporary design meets Georgian elegance in one of Shropshire's best boutique hotels and restaurants. Recently awarded 5 stars by the English Tourist Board.
Both the bistro and restaurant menus are locally sourced - and brilliantly executed.
Walking time from Market Square: c.15-20 minutes
(Walk up Duke Street, turning right into Walker Street so that you pass the library. At the end of the road, cross into Haygate Road directly opposite and keep walking up; the Old Orleton stands at end of Hayget Road where it meets the Holyhead Road / Watling Street, facing open fields to the west.)
_______________________________________________________________________________
SIR STEPHEN'S BRASSERIE at The Whitehouse Hotel CONTEMPORARY BRITISH
Watling Street, Wellington
Another ordinary modern building with something worth seeing - or rather tasting - inside. The Whitehouse chain built their hotel and conference venue a couple of years ago as part of the redevelopment of the Buck's Head football stadium which sits just behind.
COUNTRY RESTAURANTS
THE BUCKATREE HALL HOTEL TRADITIONAL
The Ercall, Wellington
A popular venue for decades, not least because of its enviable position at the foot of The Ercall hill, alongside The Wrekin.
A couple of minutes drive south of Wellington (or about 40 minutes walk from Market Square).
_____________________________________________________________________ THE HADLEY PARK HOUSE HOTEL & RESTAURANT CONTEMPORARY BRITISH
Whilst this is outside Wellington, to say it was 'in the country' would be ambitious - a busy main road and the Hortonwood Industrial Estate are both a stone's throw away. And yet, in the gardens of this grand farmhouse you can soon forget all that. Popular with visiting businessmen, the whole place is smartly decked out and the food is of a comparably high standard. And don't take our word for it - the Hadley Park now features in the Michelin Guide.
5 minutes drive north east of Wellington.
_____________________________________________________________________
THE HUNTSMAN at LITTLE WENLOCK PUB / RESTAURANT
Tucked away behind the Wrekin, many a walker passes through Little Wenlock and is glad to come upon The Huntsman. There are usually two real ales available, which you can enjoy in the large, cosy lounge at the front.
Diners at this country pub can eat in the lounge or, if they're feeling more spruced-up, nextdoor in the restaurant.
5 - 10 minutes drive south of Wellington through the woods at the foot of The Wrekin.
_______________________________________________________________________________
THE PLOUGH at ALLSCOTT PUB / RESTAURANT
The dimley-lit nooks and crannies of this old country pub give the feeling that you're in someone's wine cellar. The two restaurant rooms are as intimate as the rest of the place and the food excellent, making this a real unexpected gem on the old Shrewsbury road.
_______________________________________________________________________________
THE PHEASANT at ADMASTON GASTRO PUB
Less than five minutes drive north of Wellington, The Pheasant is a popular pub that now finds itself in a somewhat suburbanised village, but which still retains the atmosphere of a bustling country inn. After a change of management in 2007, the establishment has become known for high quality locally sourced food in an informal setting.
Dining throughout. Large car park. A half hour walk from Wellington, the best route is along the wildlife-rich Silkin Way (starting from Wrockwardine Road in Wellington).
