Into another decade, and if this one has half as many as the 2010s, Newcastle will be chock full of places to eat – good and bad. Restaurant openings aren’t as rapid as they have been in the past few years (and there was of course a certain pandemic in the midst of this, making these doubly difficult), but there’s still plenty going on. For previous years, check out, 2018, 2017 and beyond. And if you’ve anywhere you’d like included here, let me know.
A Bit on the Side was long touted as yet another replacement for Rockafella/Solano’s/All the Other Restaurants that Have Tried And Failed to make this location Work. Was due 2019/2020, aiming for ‘quality food and drink, with urban chic decor’ but never happened. And as of 2024, is Hula Co
90 Side, NE1 1PR
Acropolis Street Food – who opened a full-time venture in the Grainger Market in July.
All Bar One is having a pop at NCL. in the old Browns site.
51 Grey St, NE1 6EE
Avopoke is serving up what the name suggests, located in Gosforth.
40 Station Road, Gosforth, NE3 1QD
Banyan is a bar/that serves food, replaced Jamie’s Italian in March. It’s much more bar than food, so closer to the Botanist than Jamie’s was.
3 Monument Mall, NE1 7AL
Bao Bar is a new spot from ex-21 chefs who set up a simple bao bar selling bitesize buns of joy. Nice little treat and a great addition to the area – will be visiting a few times in the coming months…
206 Chllingham Road, Heaton, NE6 5LN
Bar Soba (Collingwood Street) – New bar on the Diamond strip. Wouldn’t hold your breath…
Barrio Comida might make a long-awaited comeback finally this year, in Durham. Update: it finally opened in Durham finally reopened in a permanent home, and it’s even better than before. If anything opens as good as this in Newcastle this year, it’ll be a surprise.
34 Church Street, DH1 3DG
Beeronomy (Hood Street). Craft beers, decent food, central location. This comes from the Mordue Brewery guys, and has some quality chefs at the helm, meaning the food is way, way better than you might expect. Eventually Mordue pulled out, and the site had a bit of ahistory, before becoming what is now in 2024, Castro’s (cocktail bar).
3-5 Hood Street, NE1 6JQ
Block & Bottle moved to a bigger shop in Heaton — is lovely.
188 Heaton Road, NE6 5HP
Bonded Warehouse in Sunderland called it a day.
Boquerones. Onhe old site of Lost & Found is now a tapas bar which retains some of the old staff (crucially, chefs). Food looks great actually, but that end of Heaton Road is just cursed, so we’ll see.
Box Pizza (Northumberland). These guys are crowdfunding a pizza restaurant up in Northumberland but it looks interesting so I’ll be visiting when it looks to have opened in April 2019.
Brandling Villa / Punch Bowl (Jesmond). Owners of the Brandling have taken over the Punch Bowl and will likely do something good with it. Yay!
Brooklyn Pizza Slice graduated from Durham Market to its own unit this summer, and it’s likely still the best pizza in Durham.
Burger Drop is yet another burger spot on the West Road, originally serving takeaway only during lockdown but now open for dining.
Cafe Lutz (Whickham) Only got my attention because this little joint has opened with one of the old 21, and then The Patricia chefs Alex Walker. Looks to be proper scran, in a neighbourhood restaurant which is right up my street, so we’ll be heading along soon.
Café 21 opened a new outlet in York this year.
Cake Stories opened a second location at Hoult’s Yard Clocktower, expanding their offerings of cakes and pastries.
Chucho’s Tacos opened a second site on Acord Road in Jesmond.
Del Archo is a new Mexican restaurant opening on The Side in Newcastle, though not much is known about it yet.
Disco Burger is a pop-up at Ye Olde Inn in Ryton, run by Chef Tony Renwick as a side project.
Dot Bagels opened on Chili Road, offering homemade bagels with plentiful toppings and great options for any time of day. They’re also expanding with new locations in the Haymarket and Jesmond.
Drop Everything and Drink – another venue from the world-dominating Black Storm Brewery. Craft beers on High Bridge is good with me. Opened March.
Eatali (NE1) – Stack vendor looking to get a full-time premises.
Enigma Tap in North Shields is a new microbrew/pub opening in Bedford Street, North Shields of all places. These are proving very popular, so will definitely be heading along.
Eleven in Ponteland opened mid-2020 as a serious-looking restaurant with a strong chef team.
FEDs is a fried chicken venture by the MeatStack team, offering their unique take on the classic.
Full Circle Brewery opened late 2019 or early 2020, adding excellent craft beer to Ouseburn’s lively scene.
Geisha opened in mid-2020 as an Asian fusion restaurant just off Sandyford, though the timing has been challenging.
German Donner Kebab opened in July, promising higher-end kebabs.
Gino D’Acampo’s latest restaurant can be found at the Innside Hotel on the Quayside — a top location, indeed.
Grate is a cheese specialist that opened in Jesmond, near Papa Ganoush and Dene’s Deli, offering a range of hard-to-find cheeses and deli items.
Hard Rock Cafe (Guildhall) on the Quayside opened in May 2021. If you’re a Newcastle local, with its many independent restaurants, this chain might be a surprising choice.
The Haymarket remains one of those long-anticipated venues with no progress. Who knows if it’ll ever happen.
Hen & Hops is an American bar and grill that took over the Nova site.
Hoult’s Yard Developments – include a new microbrewery & tap.
Horticulture opened last year but has continued to thrive with its bar and small-plates dining upstairs.
The Ivy is taking over the Byron site (Byron is relocating for those burger fans out there). It may be a scene for posers, but judgement is reserved until visiting. Update: of course it never did, and as of 2024, remains nowhere to be seen, despite appearing up in every other UK city.
Khai Khai is a fresh concept from Dabbawal, focusing on Josper grill cooking, now open in the former Vujon site.
Kennedy & Rhind will be taking over Cal’s Own unit in Jesmond. This exciting collaboration between David Kennedy and baker Murray Rhind promises something special.
LOCAL is a charming corner shop on Acorn Road, stocked with quality items from local suppliers.
The Loading Bay in North Shields on the Fish Quay has a vibe similar to Salt Market Social, located next door.
The Log Fire Pizza Co. has been working on new sites in Durham and South Shields. Fingers crossed for openings this year!
Leila Lily’s – don’t know much about this other than it’s got Ronald Robson at the helm, so must be alright.
Market Shaker – another one on the Big Market, this one made interesting by Scream for Pizza NY-style pies in residency…
Matei Baran famed from MasterChef, has opened a cafe in Ouseburn serving coffee, cakes, and more, along with regular street food pop-ups.
NEST is coming to Chili Road with limited details currently, but it promises a serious menu worth watching.
North Shore Coffee added a permanent unit in Grainger Market, to be joined by other vegan vendors soon.
Ouseburn Coffee are branching out with a Milk Bar on Heaton Road.
Pink Lane Bakery opened their Gosforth location following a successful crowdfunding campaign. More cakes, pastries, and bread for all!
Pop Up Wok – street food gals opened a proper unit on Saville Row in NE1 in May.
Redheads Mac & Cheese opened in the Grainger Market in September 2019, dishing up cheesy comfort food.
Rebel is a proper restaurant from former House of Tides chef Lindsay Rushton, and Motus Dining has followed suit with a pop-up from a similar team.
Riley’s Fish Shop is set to open in Tynemouth, not far from Gareth James, for all things seafood.
Sabas on the Quayside is a rebranding effort combining Sabatini and Signor Prosecco.
The Salt Market in NE29 is the area’s own take on HWKRMRKT, Stack, or Boiler Shop, with food, live music, and a Fish Quay location. It’s taken a while, but it’s finally happening.
Scream for Pizza has expanded with a Quayside site offering ice cream and slices under the name “I Scream for Pizza.”
Smoke & Sear is another street food spot expanding to Chili Road/Heaton, close to the original Brew and Bite, which is also opening a second location in Gosforth.
The Social Cafe Bar on Ridley Place serves up pizza and sandwiches as a permanent extension of Eatali, originally part of Stack.
Softee is the soft-serve ice cream and cereal bar from the Pablos team, while Sobremesa has returned after a brief pre-Covid stint and is now thriving.
Sorcerer Coffee opened in July at the cool Forth Banks Arches.
Spent Grain in Sunderland is a top choice for good food and beers in SR1.
Tomahawk Steakhouse – must be doing OK, as they’ve opened another in Ponteland.
The WC opened in the Bigg Market’s former toilet space, transforming it into a cosy bar for wine and cocktails.
Urban Green Cafe in Exhibition Park brings locally sourced bread, cakes, and a pizza oven to the scene.Zucchini Pasta Bar is expanding rapidly, with a pop-up at No. 28 and a new location in the Metrocentre.
It’s been a tough year for the industry in general, so hopefully not too many of these make it to the list closed Newcastle restaurants, although some unfortunately already have… If there’s anywhere missing on this list, or if you’re a restaurant/bar that would like to be added, just send me an email and I’ll have a look.