The 7 independent Birmingham restaurants named the best in the UK

Seven of the best independent restaurants in Birmingham are celebrating after being listed in the influential SquareMeal guide.

The restaurants were selected through customers and dining experts for SquareMeal, which is the only listing to exclude London venues in order to allow the UK’s wider dining scene to truly shine.

Opheem, headed up by chef Aktar Islam in Birmingham city centre, got the highest ranking coming in at number 13.

The overall winner went to a restaurant in Somerset called Osip. The team were delighted that so many restaurants from Birmingham were featured.

The city has more Michelin stars than any other outside London.

Which Birmingham restaurants are in this year’s SquareMeal guide and why?

13: Opheem

Headed by by Chef Aktar Islam, the restaurant offers a fine dining twist on Indian cuisine. Its aim is to push the boundaries of Indian cooking using techniques from all over the world to create something totally new and innovative. Aktar was a contestant on Great British Menu, becoming a finalist in the 2011 series and winning the fish course in the final (which is now on the menu at Opheem).

33: Adam’s Restaurant

The restaurant serves both an a la carte and signature tasting menu focuses on modern British cooking, which has impressed customers and judges alike.

35: Carters of Moseley

This fine dining restaurant has been praised for serving seasonal tasting menus for lunch and dinner. The SquareMeal team also pointed out that its steadfast commitment to seasonality means that the menu changes every day depending on what the team can source locally.

44: Purnell’s

Commended for being one of Birmingham’s most well thought of restaurants. Headed up by chef Glynn Purnell who won the Great British Menu TV competition twice. He later returned as a mentor and has appeared regularly on Saturday Kitchen.

46: Restaurant Folium

Modern and slick, Folium joins the ranks of Birmingham’s best restaurants due to its contemporary and inventive cuisine

78: Chakana

This peruvian eatery headed up by Chef Robert Ortiz, was commended for having relaxed and accessible dining at its heart.

94: Simpsons

Recommended for its classic, yet contemporary fine dining, with the restaurant that makes its home in an exquisite Georgian villa.

What has SquareMeal said about the range of Birmingham venues making into their 2022 guide?

Head of Content Caroline Hendry said: “A combination of votes from thousands of diners, along with the opinions of our professional restaurant critics has led to the spotlight firmly landing on the West Midlands dining scene. Long known as a creative hub in the UK, it’s brilliant to see so many of these restaurants featured in our UK Top 100.”

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