‘The Good Food Guide’ Crowns Britain’s Best Local Restaurant 2024: Bavette Wins!

This year, The Good Food Guide received an astonishing number of nominations from diners across the country, all keen to champion their favourite places to eat. An unprecedented 60,000 votes were cast, leaving the Guide’s team of expert inspectors the tasty task of anonymously eating in a vast number of restaurants across the country. The result is a snapshot of extraordinary local creativity and talent, personal hospitality and genuine community spirit.

2024 Good Food Guide Winner: Bavette, the model of a perfect local restaurant

Owned by experienced husband and husband team, Sandy Jarvis and Clément Cousin, Bavette quickly won the hearts of Horsforth locals, as well as diners from all over the Leeds metropolitan area, when it opened in February 2024.

Bavette’s customers and The Good Food Guide’s anonymous inspectors were impressed with the natural ease and warmth of hospitality at the lively French bistro, backed up by Jarvis’ menu of authentic, beautifully executed French classics. The consensus is that it has raised the game in this corner of Leeds and beyond, presenting the model of the perfect local restaurant. An impressive win and one that is richly deserved.

Chloë Hamilton, co-editor of The Good Food Guide, expands on what makes Bavette a worthy winner: ‘With Sandy and Clément’s backgrounds in some of London’s top establishments (Terroirs, where they met, is a strong influence), opening a restaurant together in an outer suburb of Leeds looked great on paper. But the way they’ve brought it to life – excellent bistro cooking, an adventurous, engaging wine list (including bottles from Clément’s family of organic winemakers in the Loire), and the energy and warmth of the team – make it irresistible. They’ve had 1st birthday parties and 90th birthday parties here. It has lit up the community.’

Reflecting on their win, Sandy Jarvis & Clément Cousin said: ‘We are completely gobsmacked about winning the Best Local Restaurant Award. To be included in the top 100 in our first few months would have been a great achievement but to be the overall winners is such a huge honour and testament to all the hard work of the team since day one, so this is for them. Our sign above the door says “a neighbourhood bistro” and being a great local restaurant is everything we wanted Bavette to be. Thank you to everyone who has come through our doors over the past five months, you’ve made Bavette what it is.’

Bavette isn’t the only establishment in this year’s Best Local Restaurant Awards to give a nod to our continental neighbours. In fact, nominations in this year’s awards proves the British love affair with French cuisine still resonates – the fundamentals of good food, good wine, good services and great atmosphere pull in the regulars and instill loyalty from happy customers.

Other restaurants with a French twist which made it to the shortlist of the awards include L’Hexagon in Norwich and Paulette, Josephine and Les 2 Garçons, all in London.

While a taste of France features heavily in the 100 Best Local Restaurant list, nominations also reflect Britain’s waning appetite for fine dining. A relaxed restaurant where diners can eat well but eat simply too is the order of the day according to feedback from The Good Food Guide readers, and many restaurants on the list feature chefs who have swapped fine dining kitchens for their own, more accessible restaurant with the same high standards of cooking.

What makes a local restaurant really great?

The Good Food Guide prides itself on seeking out exceptional cooking and loves to champion neighbourhood favourites that often bring the local community together. Over thousands of miles travelled to inspect the contenders, these common hallmarks of Britain’s best locals emerged:

Hands-on owners. Whether it’s Wednesday lunchtime or Saturday night, the owners are front and centre; be it cooking your food, delivering it your table or calling you back to confirm your reservation.

Everyone’s welcome. Establishments that attract a wide range of customers; old and young, couples and family groups for quiet dinners or big celebrations. Genuinely warm and welcoming hospitality means being inclusive to everyone in the community.

Contented customers. Hearing sighs of appreciation from the next table is a good sign you’re onto a winner.

Personal service. The staff have a knack for moving beyond the perfunctory interactions of taking your order and serving your meal, striking up a genuine conversation.

The place to be. When you’re there, it feels like the place to be, and most importantly, when you leave you want to come back.

The regional winners of ‘The Good Food Guide’s’ Best Local Restaurants 2024 are as follows:

Central & East of England - Greyhound Inn, Pettistree

London – Mambow, Clapton

North East England – Bavette, Leeds (Overall winner)

North West England – Cibus, Levenshulme

Scotland - Fin & Grape, Edinburgh

South East England - Med, Brighton

South West England - North Street Kitchen, Fowey

Wales - Inn at the Sticks, Llansteffan