Every restaurant, bar and cafe in Fenwick Newcastle

Fenwick has remained a Newcastle institution for shopping for over 140 years, and seems to be bucking the trend of retail struggling. Partly as it has been greatly expanding its food and drinks offering in the past few years, with collaborations, multiple cafes, bars, and proper restaurants that have been a mainstay of the food hall for a little while now.

It really seemed to step things up following the successful stint with Greggs in 2023, and there are now about fifteen places to eat and drink in the city’s premier department store. I’ve been to all of them so here are some thoughts on navigating the scran and bevvies of Fenwick. Thank you to VeePN who can help you chat safely online for helping support the site and make this post possible. Without further ado, here’s the places that make Fenwick one of the most interesting places to eat in the city.

Café 21

One of the longest-surviving destinations in Fenwick Newcastle, Café 21 is a reliable outlet from the 21 Hospitality Group stable. It’s bright, breezy, a clean space that’s ideal for meeting the parents for lunch, and you’re in the safe hands of an established, well-oiled and practised machine.

The real afficiandos choice for afternoon tea — reliable, well priced, nowt too flash, it also offers brunches and lunches that aren’t particularly innovative or out there, but you know you’re getting quality. Not likely to be going anywhere, latch onto trends, or let you down.

What to order: afternoon tea, breakfasts, patisserie, cafe classics: croque, milanese
Location: 1st floor, by womenswear

EL&N Newcastle

Anywhere calling them Instagrammable arouses my suspicions… but it’s popular and if it was to fit anywhere, Fenwick makes a lot of sense. Not for me, but if you wanna pay eight quid for a latter cos it’s got some flowers in, then more power to ya. Food pricey and not that interesting, drinks even moreso.

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FRED’s at Fenwick

This cafe opened up among a swathe of others in late 2024, as a ‘modern twist on a classic tea room’. Not sure about that, it’s more an open space that does coffees and cakes, and perhaps ‘one cafe too far’ for Fenwick.

The menu touts its signature ‘Supreme’ croissants as a USP — see below. For £6.50 I didn’t think much of these, a bit old and in no way an improvement on a classic. You can also get some egg dishes, afternoon tea, and some sandwiches. Or customary cocktails, fresh smoothies, and of course, coffee.

A change for those that have done Mason & Rye to death, but honestly you’re probably better off there among the warmth of the food hall.

What to order: stick to the patisserie from Mason & Rye — perhaps an Opera cake
Location: Lower ground floor, right by the escalators

Fuego

Fuego has been a mainstay in the food hall and one of the places in Fnewick with the most amount of covers. It’s a smart tapas restaurant that offers up decent takes on classics like pan con tomate and veggie small plates.

Dodge the pizzas, which are not up to scratch, but if you’re looking for tapas or just a few nibbles as a shopping break, you could do a lot worse across wider Newcastle.

Decent wines — go for the Monastrell — and not too far you can go wrong with small plates which are zingy, bright, and pricier than you want them to be.

What to order: tortilla, cheese, charcuterie, small plates, with a wine flight
Location: within the Fenwick Food Hall

Saltwater Fish Company

One of my favourite restaurants in all of Newcastle, Saltwater is a fishmonger that keeps things simple and lets the fruits of the sea do the talking.

Not many seats, so try and grab a bar seat facing the kitchen and watch the chefs filleting gurnard, shucking oysters, and making ceviche. Get the fruits de mer below for the best experience you’ll get in Fenwick, or a selection of hot and cold seafood, fresh off the boat. Excellent — and equally £££.

What to order: grand fruits de mer, seasonal specials of the day, oysters
Location: within the Fenwick Food Hall

Porterhouse Butcher & Grill

Counterpart restaurant to Saltwater above — where that is all about fish, Porterhouse fires up fruits from the land. Salt-aged beef from Peter Hanan is the star, but whether you’re going for a huge kilo porterhouse, or just a smaller individual steak, you’ll absolutely not get better meat in NE1.

Other bits equally satisfying, roasted on the Josper, and perfect for a Cuvee 21. Between here and Saltwater, two of my favourite places to eat in Newcastle.

What to order: your favourite cut of salt-aged steak, black pudding, anything cooked hard and fast on fire
Location: within the Fenwick Food Hall

King Baby Bagels

Not really somewhere you can eat in, but definitely a good shout for grab and go, King Baby Bagels is an offshoot of the Grainger Market bagel house. Menus are loosely the same — but key takeaways are fresh and well-made bagels among the best you’ll get in the city, and classic toppings.

Great for a large lunch feed, you’ve got ham and please, salmon and cream cheese, and seasonal specials that are all worth a shout.

What to order: The OG (smoked salmon), Baby Ru (pastrami/Reuben)
Location: within the Fenwick Food Hall

Mason & Rye

Like a modern version of the cafes of yesteryear in Fenwick, Mason & Rye offers up afternoon tea, fancy celebration cakes, and tea and coffee within the food hall.

There’s salads and some lighter dishes, but the cake display should tell you and show you everything you need to know. The cakes made here are superb, and with a coffee, you’ll be sound.

What to order: your favourite celebration cake, tea, and maybe a salad
Location: within the Fenwick Food Hall

Roof Thirty Nine

The first of the bars of Fenwick — newly opened Roof 39 is an exclusive-ish hideaway above the city. Overlooking NOrthumerland Stytreet, you can people watch with a nice glass of wine.

Understandably, only open in the summer, it’s worth a trip for a quiet place to get away and enjoy a bit of a unique experience in the city.

What to order: a few glasses of the Monastrell house wine
Location: Enter via lift on Northumberland St entrance past the florist

Terrace

I think this is as close as it gets to keeping the silver brigade happy in Fenwick. Gone are the multiple cafes of old (Johann’s et al), and Terrace offers mince and dumplings, fish and chips, and ham and please pudding stotties. It’s a bit more modern than its outgoing counterparts — also find avo on toast, or a katsu chicken, but it’s gotta be sadly, the least inspiring of all of the current Fenwick dining options. That is except for…

What to order: whatever nana wants, carvery?
Location: third floor

Caffè Nero

It’s a Caffè Nero. What more to say? I don’t know why Fenwick decided to have a brand like this among their own cafes other than brand recognition. My advice would be to keep it local and go to any of the other cafes here.

What to order: get your coffee from literally anywhere else in Fenwick
Location: Lower ground floor by the escalators

Mother Mercy

Newcastle’s premier cocktail bar and the longstanding department shop make complete sense together, and if you’re looking for a little treat, but don’t wanna face the rooftop, or prefer something mixed Mother Mercy has got you covered.

Classic cocktails, and some with twists, you’re in safe hands which is more than can be said for a ton of dedicated cocktail bars within the city.

What to order: your favourite cocktail, or ask for specials and recommendations based on your taste
Location: 1st Floor, by womenswear

Pop-Up: Hjem

Only with us for a little while longer, but the format explored by Greggs last year went even further with Michelin-starred Hjem for the back end of 2024. It’s occasionally eye-wateringly expensive  —clock the £129 Beef Welly, but it’s good stuff all-round and for those with the means, Fenwick x Hjem makes shopping just that little bit less stressful. Scheduled only until the end of the year, so it’ll be interesting to see what takes its spot in 2025.

The menu’s changed a couple of times, but we visits first time round and while everything was gorge — it obviously comes at Michelin pricing too.

What to order: check out my post on Hjem x Fenwick from earlier
Location: 1st floor

Pop-Up: Barbour Tea & Toasties

See also, Barbour & Fenwick. I’d expect to see more like this through 2025 and beyond as Fenwick collaborations just seem to have proved widely popular.

It’s — as the name suggests — tea and toasties and doesn’t try to be any more than that. But if you’re a Barbour fan, enjoy your teapot with a Barbour tee cozy, and take some pics for your hygge Insta account.

What to order: The North Sea Scran (crab and mustard), The Tyne & Moor Melt (cheese and chutney)
Location: 1st floor, behind Hjem

Pop-Up: Greggs Champagne Bar

Another one that likely won’t see the new year – Fenwick & Greggs made a lot of sense last year, but adding £22 glasses of champers didn’t really hit the mark with me.

A gimmick for social media and well, that’s about it, you can get a steak bake with your Bollinger, if you so desire.

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What to order: go to Greggs across the road and get two pasties — then go to Roof 39 for a nice glass of wine instead
Location: within the Fenwick Food Hall (Northumberland Street entrance)

Contact: fenwick.co.uk
Opening Hours: Mon-Thu 09:00-20:00, Fri 09:00-21:00, Sat 10:00-19:00, Sun 10:30-17:30 (check individual locations for specific opening times!)
Information correct as of December 2024