The story
The Riverside at Aymestrey is a modern British restaurant at Aymestrey, Herefordshire, HR6 9ST, near Leominster. It holds 2 AA Rosettes for culinary excellence (2026), and the kitchen works inside a 16th-century half-timbered building on the banks of the River Lugg.
Andy Link leads the kitchen, which grows much of its produce in its own kitchen garden and smallholding and sources the rest from nearby suppliers. The modern British menu follows the seasons. The Good Food Guide, which lists the restaurant as Good for 2026, singled out crispy garlicky Herefordshire snails with truffle mayo and river trout cured in beetroot and local Chase gin.
Heavily beamed rooms with open fires offer quiet corners for two and separate spaces for bigger groups. The terraced garden is at its best on fine days. Guests with dogs can sit at designated dog tables in the bar.
Recognition
Details
History
Off the beaten track, and not an easy place to find, this 16th-century half-timbered building stands on the banks of the river Lugg, positioned by an old stone bridge on the Mortimer Trail (a 30-mile walking route from Ludlow to Kington). Inside, a warren of heavily beamed rooms with wonky floors and open fires provides nooks for a quiet tête-a-tête and separate spaces for louder crowds or those with their four-legged friends; the terraced garden comes into its own on fine days. Service is friendly and welcoming. In the kitchen, Andy Link and his team take sustainability, ethical sourcing and food miles seriously, seeking out the very best that the region has to offer from local farms and artisan suppliers, backed up by their own kitchen garden (and their own hens). We noticed that lunchtime regulars tended to favour the perfectly cooked rare-breed Herefordshire steak sandwich with truffle chips, but we enjoyed a light meal of crispy garlicky Herefordshire snails with truffle mayo, followed by eye-catching river trout cured in beetroot and local Chase gin, plus a delightful poached pear accompanied by a scoop of assertive blue-cheese ice cream to finish. Many other items have been singled out for praise, from a generous piece of grilled and lightly caramelised cod served on a pile of peas and mangetout with a lovely lovage sauce to a dish of chicken with courgettes, garden chard and wild herb pesto that 'had some body’. For afters, readers have endorsed the nettle cake and the rhubarb purée with 'custard mousse'. A good chunk of the decently priced wine list is vegan or vegetarian – though given the impressive ethos of the place, there are surprisingly few English offerings.
2 Rosette Award for Culinary Excellence
Location
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