Two Newcastle restaurants named among UK's best for brunch and Sunday lunch according to OpenTable

With many families deciding where to take their mams for a meal out this Mother's Day, a new survey is offering further food for thought as it reveals a top 50 list of the UK's best restaurants.

And in good news for the North East, two of them are in Newcastle.

Historic restaurant Blackfriars and the Mediterranean-style Fuego have both made the list of Britain's best places to go for brunch and Sunday lunch.

Read more: 10 'cream of the cream' afternoon teas around Newcastle

Eating out is always one of the most popular choices when it comes to a Mother's Day treat and online reservation site OpenTable has revealed the top 50 pick - based on 1.2m reviews written by its diners in the past year - in advance of Mothering Sunday on March 27.

Its list, designed to offer people inspiration for where to go, includes eight restaurants in London and its two Newcastle names are already firm favourites with city diners.

Blackfriars Restaurant, housed within a former 13th Century Dominican friary just off Stowell Street, has become renowned for its Sunday lunches while Fuego at Fenwick Newcastle - which is named after the Spanish word for 'fire' - is popular for its tapas-style menu featuring Napoli-style pizzas, charcuterie, cheese and delicatessan food.

Both have been enjoying a return to normality, after offering 'at-home' take-out services during the pandemic lockdown, and both also took part in January's successful Newcastle Restaurant Week, which is set to make a return in August.

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Just as families are looking forward to celebrating Mother's Day in style once again, the restaurants are keen to welcome them back.

This year's celebrations are expected to be seen as more important than ever following the past two years of the pandemic which left many people unable to enjoy the day as they would wish.

OpenTable reports a whopping 53% increase in reservations in the 12 months up to Mother's Day, compared to the same period previous year, and it says new consumer research shows that people are keen to make up for lost time, with a survey finding that 74% of the nation plans to spoil mothers this year with a special meal.

Robin Chiang, vice president of growth markets for OpenTable, said: “After two years of spending Mother’s Day at home, our data shows pent-up demand for dining out for the holiday, with reservations exceeding pre-pandemic levels.

"For those who haven’t selected where they’ll be dining with their mum this year, OpenTable’s Top 50 list is the perfect place to start.”

For OpenTable's full list of the UK’s top 50 Best restaurants for brunch and Sunday lunchsee here.

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