Where to eat dinner in Bristol when the Bibs are full

The Hong Kong chilli wontons at Wangs cost £9.50, and come in the house chilli oil with Chinkiang vinegar. They are the first thing to order in a long, thin room in Montpelier. Bristol’s stars and Bibs have their own piece; these five are where to go when those are full, or when you want a different night out. Pick by occasion: Wangs for a Friday, Dongnae for a birthday, the Lido for a swim and supper, Bravas for a Tuesday with no plan, the Clifton Sausage for the parents.

How we chose: the Good Food Guide’s 100 Best Local Restaurants 2026, Michelin Guide 2026 listings, and dining rooms with current menus on their own sites.

Wangs

Head chef Emily Xin Xin Chan, formerly of Tare, cooks a dozen or so sharing plates drawn from China’s regional kitchens, and the Good Food Guide ranked Wangs seventh in Britain in its 2026 list of local restaurants, the highest of any South West entry. Order two plates from the top of the menu, one from the fire and a side each, as the menu itself suggests: the sesame wood ear salad with smacked cucumber (£7.50), the wontons, then the Xi’an knife-cut noodles (£8.50) or the sirloin in black bean and black garlic sauce (£23). The same review says to try the Szechuan Margarita and to book. Ask for a counter seat over the open kitchen. Bath Buildings, Montpelier · wontons £9.50 · closed Sun–Mon · book

Dongnae

For a bigger night, Dongnae on Chandos Road serves the Hanjeongsik, a Korean banquet menu, at £65 a head from Tuesday to Saturday. Kyu Jeon and Duncan Robertson run it; the name means “neighbourhood”, and Kyu draws on her upbringing in Seoul. The charcoal grill is the point. The eonyang bulgogi (£22) is the grill dish Michelin’s inspectors singled out, and the Good Food Guide, which also lists it, points to the pork skirt and Wagyu. Weekday lunch is a £27 set with soup, banchan and a sotbap or pork collar. The couple’s Stokes Croft restaurant, Bokman, has been shut since a kitchen fire, so Dongnae is the only place to eat their cooking for now. Chandos Road, Redland · set lunch £27 · closed Sun–Mon · book (walk-ins for drinks and snacks)

Bristol Lido

Eat octopus slow-cooked in spiced tomato kokkinisto on grilled sourdough (£13.50) above a Victorian swimming pool and the evening sorts itself out. Head chef Pash Peters cooks from his family’s roots in the Ionian islands, over a chargrill and in a clay oven, and the olive oil comes from his brother’s grove on Ithaca. The same guide put the Lido in its 2026 local-restaurant list and singled out his octopus and the gemista. The Devon crab tagliatelle (£32) is the main to order. Cocktails are £7 in happy hour, 4pm to 6pm Monday to Thursday, and on Tuesdays you can bring your own wine with food. The £120 package adds a two-hour swim and spa and a one-hour massage to a two-course meal. Oakfield Place, Clifton · octopus £13.50 · restaurant dinner Mon–Sat · book the restaurant, walk-in at the poolside bar

Bravas

Kieran and Imogen Waite turned a supper club into this Andalucian tapas bar on Cotham Hill, and they keep seats back for walk-ins, which makes it the safest bet on a night with no plan. Start at the bar with a glass of fino (£5.90) and a croqueta del día (£3.60 each), then the presa ibérica off the plancha (£13.80) and patatas bravas (£5.80). The menu changes daily, so the croqueta filling will too. Jesús Aranda González is head chef. Cotham Hill · croqueta £3.60 · closed Sun · book or walk-in

The Clifton Sausage

Family-run since 2002, the Clifton Sausage in Clifton Village does one thing better than most kitchens bother to: sausages with mash or champ and onion gravy, for £16.50. Order The Clifton, made with pork, cider and wholegrain mustard, or the tasting plate of four sausages (£20.50) to settle the argument. The bar pours more than forty wines by the glass and sells the homemade sausage rolls (£8). Kitchen hours run to 9.30pm on weekdays and 8pm on Sundays, and there is a children’s menu. Portland Street, Clifton Village · sausage and mash £16.50 · book

Checked October 2026.