Best Sunday Lunch in Hexham

The Best Sunday Lunch in Hexham

Sunday lunch is something of a religion in Northumberland, and Hexham's surrounding villages are home to some of the finest roasts in the region. Whether you want a gastropub with serious culinary credentials or a community local with a genuine welcome, here's where to spend your Sunday.

The Rat Inn, Anick

If there is one Sunday lunch destination near Hexham that food lovers consistently name first, it is The Rat Inn at Anick. This historic 18th-century inn has featured on the Estrella Damm Top 50 Gastropubs list for 14 consecutive years. Sunday food is served 12-3pm, and booking well in advance is essential — tables go fast. Book online at theratinn.com or call 01434 602814.

The Heart of Northumberland

Right in the heart of Hexham at Market Street, The Heart of Northumberland takes its Sunday roast seriously. The kitchen uses locally sourced produce and Northumbrian tradition to deliver what regulars describe as a roast to rival home. There's a vegan roast option too — rarer than it should be. Open Sundays 12:00-19:00. Dog-friendly.

Rose & Crown, Slaley

A short drive south of Hexham in the village of Slaley, the Rose & Crown is a Grade II listed pub dating to 1675. Remarkably, it is the only community-owned pub-restaurant in the North East. Their Sunday roast is the stuff of local legend: three generous slices of meat, a homemade Yorkshire pudding, half a dozen vegetables, and outstanding roast potatoes.

The Beaumont Hotel

The Beaumont Hotel on Beaumont Street runs a stylish restaurant where Sunday lunch is very much part of the weekly programme. The kitchen uses seasonal, locally sourced produce and the room — overlooking the park, steps from the Abbey — makes it a refined choice for a family occasion. Booking recommended.

Dipton Mill Inn

About two miles south of Hexham, the Dipton Mill Inn doesn't do a traditional carvery — the menu is a long blackboard of daily-changing home-cooked dishes. But if you want genuine home cooking and exceptional beer in a sunken garden beside a mill stream, Sunday here (food served 12-2pm) is hard to beat.

Tips for Sunday Lunch Near Hexham

Booking is advisable at every venue on this list. The villages surrounding Hexham — Anick, Slaley, Corbridge — are all within a 15-minute drive and reward those willing to venture out of town.