13 Coolest Restaurants in Ouseburn (by a local)
I was born and raised in the lovely city of Newcastle, so I’ve spent loads of my life exploring the place.
Like any other intolerable hipster from the city, I’ll tell you my favorite Newcastle neighborhood is Ouseburn (or ‘the Ouseburn,’ as us locals like to call it). Edgy, trendy, arty and interesting, it’s brimming with plenty of great stuff… including lots of unique places to grab some meals and morsels.
So in this guide, I’ve brought you the 13 best restaurants in the Ouseburn. Expect bicycles, riverside pubs, roasted vegetables, too much brunch, and (inevitably) a whole load of shipping containers.
Come join the foodie fun!
1. Ernest
Ernest is the best-known restaurant in all of the Ouseburn.
It’s most famous for its excellent brunch menu, which includes homemade porridge, cinnamon French toast, a whole bunch of eggy treats, loads of avocado (of course), and one of the best English breakfasts I’ve ever wrapped my mouth around.
Aside from breakfast and brunch, they also offer flatbreads, grazing platters, sandwiches, wraps, a range of interesting and unusual snacks and sides, and tasty twists on old regional classics (including beef stew and dumplings).
Make sure you also get one of their inventive and flavor-packed hash bowls (which all include salty chunks of hashed-up potatoes, served in… a bowl).
Lots of Ernest food is locally-sourced, and comes from suppliers in and around the Ouseburn.
When you’re done eating here, hang around on an evening. They offer DJ sets, late-night events, and a surprisingly big crowd.
2. Cook House
If you like the types of places where your meal looks more like an art installation than an actual plate of food, you’ll love the Cook House.
All of the food is beautifully-presented, and combines big bold flavors with nuanced tastes that lurk surprisingly in the background (like a balaclava-wearing mugger in a dimly-lit parking lot)
But although the place makes food delicately and thoughtfully, it’s not pretentious in any way. Yeah, the food is fine-dining style, but the atmosphere is all Ouseburn.
They take pride in rotating menus, seasonal flavors, fresh ideas, and locally-sourced ingredients. Some of the unique tastes you might encounter include capers, roasted artichokes, english mustard aioli, poppy seed salads, miso butter, and whipped feta. I guarantee you’ll spot some on-menu treats you’ve never seen before.
Cook House is also home to a deli, a summer terrace, a small outdoor seating area, and hands-on cookery workshops.
3. Kiln
If you’re looking for trendy, you’ve found it.
In terms of absolute edginess, this place (somehow) eclipses all other restaurants in the Ouseburn.
And here’s how: yes, Kiln is a restaurant. But it’s also a functioning pottery house, where you can watch the clay-botherers make some stuff while you munch. I told you this area was hip.
The menu offers some of my favorite flavors in the Ouseburn. Expect hot and cold meze (highlights include burrata, beetroot hummus, julienned kohlrabi, tahini-roasted cod, and a whole load of liberally-used fresh herbs).
Kiln is also a popular brunch spot—offerings include shakshuka, roasted plums, kedgeree, Turkish eggs, and huevos rancheros.
4. Tyne Bar
Alright, this place is more a pub than a typical restaurant.
But it serves way better food than your average pub, with a taste-packed menu of massive flavors… and appealing super-low prices.
It’s no-fuss food executed excellently. Popular favorites include shawarma platters, big burgers, and stuffed-to-the-brim burritos.
They also have a huge drinks selection of both regional and international stuff. On a sunny summer day, the riverside seating area here is one of Newcastle’s most appealing outdoor places. And on some evenings, they have indoor live music.
And get this: if you spend £7 (or more) on drinks here on a Tuesday, you get a free meal. I’ve taken advantage of this insane offer countless times, and I still can’t wrap my head around how good it is (or how they can possibly make any profit).
5. The Tanners Arms
For the best Sunday roast in Newcastle, get yourself to the Tanners Arms.
Most locals will tell you this is the top Sunday roast they’ve ever eaten. Expect buttery greens, lots of root vegetables, and possibly the best roast potatoes you’ve ever stuffed into your big fat mouth.
On any given Sunday, you’ll always find the kitchen churning out plate after plate of the stuff.
Apart from Sunday roasts, the Tanners also offers breakfast trays, breakfast sandwiches, and inventive bar snacks.
This place is a great option for anyone hunting a family-friendly pub. While some pubs in the Ouseburn can feel a little more like drinking dens than child-friendly ones, the Tanners is on the opposite end of the spectrum. They offer lego, board games, a pool table, crayons, and more. If you want your little ones distracted while you munch, you won’t find better than here.
6. The Ship Inn
If you’re meat-free, you’ll think this is the best restaurant in Ouseburn.
The kitchen is completely vegan, and offers a wide bunch of great stuff.
The menu changes pretty regularly, but you can expect seitan stews, meat-free roast dinners (absolutely stuffed with loads of tasty veg), cauliflower wings, lentil curries, and lots more genuinely-interesting meat-free alternatives.
Because I’m an immoral carnivore, I sometimes find vegan menus a bit boring. But that’s not the case here—the food is excellent and inventive, and the outdoor seating area offers a nice little Ouseburn vantage point. Check out the iconic graffiti daubed on either side of the building.
Quick note: the drinks menu here isn’t as vast or interesting as the drinks menus you’ll find in other parts of the Ouseburn. But it still has a decent range.
7. The Bake Original
At the very northern end of the Ouseburn, where the neighborhood meets Byker, you’ll find The Bake Original (or just ‘The Bake,’ as it’s also known—the ‘original’ part is because the team behind the place have since opened more venues in other parts of the city).
A Lebanese joint serving up some super-authentic stuff, you can expect hummus, excellent salads, and some of the best grilled meats I’ve ever eaten. The bread is soft and chewy, the chili sauce is spicy, and the tabouleh is brimming with fresh flavors.
Inside, it’s laid-back and no-frills, and that’s one of the reasons I love the place.
It’s also a great option for a very-late-night meal. Most places in the Ouseburn aren’t open particularly late—but The Bake stays busy until 1am.
All in all, the Bake is one of the best and most popular restaurants in the Ouseburn. Visit the place, and you’ll see why.
8. 2knives Bar & Kitchen
This trendy hangout mainly serves up big juicy burgers, which some people seem to reckon are the best on the planet.
Truthfully, I haven’t been here, so I can’t offer an informed opinion. But I have friends who love the place, and the reviews are consistently impressive. There are lots of taste-packed burger bars in Newcastle… so if this place is making a stir, it really must be something impressive.
Burger flavors include haggis, halloumi, and (of course!) classic beef.
They also offer loaded fries, a hearty breakfast menu, and lots of freshly-made sweet pies (expect pecan, and key lime, and all that stuff).
9. Ouseburn Garden
If you’re looking for laid-back and casual, this event-packed place is one of the best restaurants in the Ouseburn.
A versatile multi-purpose venue, they host DJ sets, live music, film screenings, and more. So make sure you stick around after you’re done chowing down.
But before the late-night stuff starts, you have plenty of saliva-inducing eats and treats to look forward to. Like lots of the places we’ve already served up, Ouseburn Garden has an informal menu of bold but unpretentious flavors—and lots of it is surprisingly affordable.
Expect burgers, loaded fries, chicken strips, and lots more US-inspired stuff. You won’t find much nutrition here, but you’ll find plenty of big tastes.
If you like interesting and atmospheric outdoor areas, you’ll love it—the Ouseburn Garden is a largely-outdoor mishmash of wood, shipping containers, sporadic firepits, and lots more trendy touches.
10. The Cycle Hub
Okay, calling this place a ‘restaurant’ is probably a bit grandiose.
It’s actually just a popular cycling center with an inviting on-site cafe.
So, yeah, you’re not gonna find the world’s most interesting food here (and it’s therefore not reeeaally one of the best restaurants in the Ouseburn). But you’ve come here for cool hangouts, and this place is one of the coolest hangouts in the city.
It has a beautiful right-on-the-riverside location (with a nice terrace!), a super-friendly bunch of staff, and a welcoming atmosphere. On-menu meals and morsels include scones, sandwiches, savory baked goods, and lots of cakes (many of which come from local suppliers).
And as a nice bonus, you can hire a bike, or get your bike fixed, or just chat to some of the city’s cycling aficionados. I genuinely love this place so much—and I think you will too.
11. Hotel Du Vin
For classy, elegant, and upmarket, you want to head here.
Hotel du Vin is very different from all other venues in the Ouseburn. Sitting on the brow of a little hill, it’s a classy retro-style restaurant, rather than a hip and happening bohemian hangout.
It’s therefore popular with older people, classy couples, and anyone who’s trying to impress a date. That said, in terms of food quality, it’s one of the best restaurants in the Ouseburn.
The menus regularly change, but it’s all classic bistro-style fayre, offering a fusion of both British and French tastes. The menus feature phrases like ‘entrées’ and ‘plats principaux’, which I think tells you everything you need to know about the place.
It gets very busy, so you need to book in advance—you can’t just turn up. For an additional complication, trying to work out their opening hours is like trying to solve a Rubik’s Cube.
12. Brinkburn Street Brewery
One of my favorite venues in the Ouseburn, Brinkburn Street Brewery is most famous for being… well… a brewery.
But aside from serving up an excellent range of local slurp-fests, they also have a menu of tasty-with-a-twist pub classics (think fish and chips, chili con carne, roast dinners, chicken liver pate, and gammon with pineapple).
But they’re most well-known for their iconic small plates (or ‘Geordie tapas’). Expect black pudding bon bons, pork and black pudding scotch eggs, 3-way hummus, and vegetable quiches.
Aside from the food and drink, another highlight is the excellent atmosphere. Made up of a hodge-podge collection of strange colorful furniture, the venue is brimming with personality and allure. They also host events, including tours, DJ sets, and late-night parties.
You’ll fall in love with this place, guaranteed.
For more well-executed snack-based pub-style treats, head just outside the Ouseburn to the Broad Chare.
13. Gingerino’s Kitchen
If you’re on the hunt for incredible pizzas, this is one of the best restaurants in the Ouseburn.
Yep, you can get your mouth around pizzas all over the Ouseburn—but this place specializes in them. Freshly-made, Italian-style and stonebaked, these are among the best pizzas you’ll find anywhere.
They offer both full pies, and pizza by the slice (try the garlic chicken, which is packed with outrageous amounts of lip-smacking flavor), along with mini calzones, and handmade cake bars (expect lots of chocolate and salted caramel).
For almost-as-good pizzas in the Ouseburn, head to riverside cafe Di Meo’s. Alongside great pizzas, they also serve excellent coffee, and some of the best ice cream I’ve ever eaten (people come from all over the region just to slurp on it).
Before You Go
Thanks for joining us on our munch-packed odyssey around the 13 best (and coolest) restaurants in the Ouseburn.
If you want to know anything else about my endlessly-loveable hometown, check out our guides to the best things to do in Ouseburn, the 13 best day trips from Newcastle, the 22 best things to do in the city, and the outrageous ridiculousness of the insane local accent.
And for more irresistible eats, check out our guide to all the best restaurants in Newcastle.
Thanks for choosing Travelness, thanks for reading, and we’ll see you again soon!
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But with some insight and experience, it’s not as difficult as you think. So in this book, I’ve gathered my 6 years of digital-nomadding experience… and I’ve used it to answer all your questions, soothe all your fears, and get you on your way. After reading this, you’ll realise being a digital nomad is much easier (and much more possible!) than you think.