6 Amazing Places To Eat and Drink in Lincoln

I moved to Lincolnshire in August of 2023, after 30 years of living in Essex. I’ve pretty much enjoyed every aspect of it so far and I’ve loved exploring my brand new county so far. From pumpkin patches in Autumn to retreats in the Summer, there’s been so much to explore and enjoy so far.

When I lived in Essex, I rarely did any exploring. I stuck to the same restaurants and places and the only time I ever really genuinely *explored* was when I was away from home, for example, when we visited York.

I really felt no love for living in Essex. I needed something new, so moving to Lincolnshire has been one of my best decisions.

And one thing that my partner and I have really spent some time doing since coming here is trying out new restaurants and places to eat. We’re big foodies, so finding new gems of places to eat is always super exciting for us and in Lincoln, there are so many places to try.

I’ve been keenly following Lincoln based Instagram accounts for inspiration and recommendations as well, which has been key to helping us find smaller and more independent places to eat.

Here are 6 amazing places to eat in Lincoln that I’d highly recommend!

The Botanist

What? Gastrostyle dining with specialist botanical cocktails
Where? 15-17 Cornhill, Lincoln, LN5 7ET

You can find a few Botanist chains scattered around the UK in most major cities and areas but as this is a Lincoln based list of recommendations, I can only vouch for this particular brand. And it is incredible! The Botanist hosts a really cool and different vibe, being adored in all things flowers and foliage, with plants everywhere you look.

Their downstairs bar area is perfect for cocktails and their range of cocktails is great, usually with interesting botanical twists on your favourite classics. I’ve tried both the Cherry Blossom Martini and the Lilypad Martini, both of which are really lovely and something a bit different.

We’ve eaten a full meal at The Botanist and honestly, I have nothing bad to say about it. The Gambas Pil Pil (king prawns in spicy garlic butter) were to die for and we both had the Chicken Bang Bang Noodle Salad for mains which was absolutely delicious. The stand out has to be the beautifully presented Cookie Dough Sharer though – what a treat!

Stokes Coffee

What? Most notable for their Stoke’s brand tea and coffee
Where? 207-209 High St, Lincoln, LN5 7AU

It’s not just the coffee in Stokes Coffee that’s worth visiting for. The High Bridge Café is situated on the bridge above the river Witham, which runs through Lincoln and is the only bridge in the UK to still have a building on top of it!

The Tudor High Bridge café oozes charm in its timber framed building – a truly one of a kind coffee shop and would highly recommend popping in if your in Lincs.

Stokes are a family-run business with over 120 years experience. Sourcing, roasting, blending and supplying their own unique coffee beans, you can absolutely expect incredible quality coffee – which you get. The cakes are great too!

Pho

What? Modern Vietnamese street food style cuisine
Where? 5 Cornhill Pavement, Lincoln, LN5 7BT

We’d never tried Vietnamese cuisine before and I’m not one to turn down trying something new when it comes to food so we headed to Pho (next door to The Botanist) in Lincoln to test it all out.

We went for 3 starters to share; the rainbow rolls, crispy squid and pork and lemongrass meatballs. All were delicious although the squid in particular gets a standing ovation from me.

With the street-food-style-esque vibe to the restaurant and the menu, you can expect lots of rice and noodle dishes. I went for the prawn curry which was absolutely *chefs kiss*. It was very peanutty with dreamy sticky rice. Heaven.

Lincs Sushi

What? Small and intimate independent sushi restaurant
Where? 13 B, Garmston St, Lincoln, LN2 1HZ

Sushi is our favourite food, so we’re always on the lookout for new sushi restaurants to try. And I’m SO GLAD I found Lincs Sushi on Instagram. It’s easily and quickly become our new go-to sushi place.

Lincs sushi is owned by chef Agnes, who learned the art of sushi making from sushi-master, Matayoshi Haraguchi, when she lived in Poland. At Lincs Sushi, she serves healthy Japanese fusion food with buckets full of flavour.

This sweet little restaurant is tucked away, with only 7 tables, I’d highly recommend booking. Lincs Sushi has the best salmon I have EVER tasted, their fish is fresh and handmade right there and then when ordered. Exquisite is the only word to describe this food!

The King’s Head

What? Quaint traditional village pub
Where? 31 High St, Navenby, Lincoln, LN5 0EE

Truth be told, we don’t typically head to pubs for dinner but after seeing The Kings Head featured on the Lincs Eats Instagram page and reading their glowing reviews of the place and the food, I couldn’t resist.

The Kings Head is situated in the quaint village of Navenby, just 15-20 minute drive from the city of Lincoln. It’s a small pub, with a cosy, low-beam, dedicated dining area for meals. The service and hospitality from all staff was excellent as well.

The stand-out meals were the mains; I went for the beef wellington, having heard many good things and it wholly lived up to each one of them. Carl had the lemon sole which was so beautifully seasoned.

Fancy a boozy dessert? Try the sticky toffee pudding with the added Amarula bomb!

Pale Restaurant

What? Irish inspired seafood
Where? West Parade, Lincoln, LN1 1JT

The Pale Restaurant is a new an exciting restaurant opened in Lincoln, serving seafood dishes with an Irish twist. As soon as I saw this place on Instagram, I knew I had to try it. Seafood is my favourite and I was excited to try some new dishes with Irish twists.

The restaurant itself is small and cosy, decked out with decor reminiscent of a restaurant you’d find by the seaside, with art from local artists adoring the walls. The service was absolutely excellent as well.

We started with oysters, as neither of us had tried them before. I was pleasantly surprised and would definitely have them again! Starters were definitely the highlights of the meal; the oysters, along with the mussels in a tomato and garlic sauce and the prawn and sausage skewers my partner had. Absolutely divine.

If you’re heading to Lincoln for a trip, definitely hit up some of these places for guaranteed amazing meals and a lovely evening out.

Whether you’re in need of a strong coffee and a piece of cake to wake you up or you fancy some delicate sushi, there’s something for everyone to try in this gorgeous city!

I love calling Lincoln my city now and I can’t wait to continue to try more amazing places for food.

Which of these places would you like to try? Do you have any recommendations of place to eat in Lincoln?

Want more exclusive content? Sign up to my mailing list for access to my freebie library, where you can grab your Non-Fiction Reading List along with 10+ other freebies!