Restaurant in Bray, United Kingdom
Michelin-starred pub cooking, genuine atmosphere.
Hinds Head holds a Michelin star and an Opinionated About Dining Casual Europe ranking under chef Peter Grey, making it the strongest value booking in Bray at £££. Expect precise, punchy British cooking in a genuine 15th-century pub setting — significantly more accessible than The Fat Duck or Waterside Inn, and harder to book than it looks. Reserve at least three weeks out, or target bar seating for a midweek lunch.
A Michelin star earned in 2024, a ranking of #154 on Opinionated About Dining's Casual Europe list that same year (climbing from #360 in 2025's broader listing), and a Google rating of 4.6 from over 1,200 reviews: these numbers tell you that Hinds Head is not coasting on its association with Heston Blumenthal. It has earned its own standing. If you are planning a trip to Bray and want serious cooking without the theatrical price tag of The Fat Duck or the formal ceremony of the Waterside Inn, this is the booking to make.
Bray has been on the map as a serious dining destination for decades, and that concentration of talent raises every bar in the village. Hinds Head sits on the High Street as the accessible entry point to Blumenthal's culinary output — but accessible here means Michelin-starred British cooking in a proper pub setting, not a compromise. The kitchen, led by chef Peter Grey, works from concise menus of time-honoured British dishes reframed with clean presentation, precise execution, and the occasional playful detail that signals the address's pedigree without turning dinner into a performance. Flavours are direct and punchy. This is not the kind of British gastropub food that hedges with cream sauces and safe combinations. The World of Fine Wine's 2-Star Accreditation adds another independent credential to the kitchen's record.
The pub's architecture does real work here. A 15th-century inn on the High Street of a Thameside village carries a particular atmosphere that cannot be replicated in a purpose-built restaurant. Low ceilings, dark wood, the background hum of a room full of people who are genuinely pleased to be there , these are not small things. For a food and travel enthusiast who wants context alongside the cooking, Hinds Head delivers it without staging anything. The building has been this building for five centuries. The food is simply very good.
One detail worth planning around: Hinds Head is a functioning pub, which means bar seating is available alongside the main dining room. For solo diners or pairs who book late, the bar is not a fallback , it is a different experience worth seeking out. You get proximity to the operation, a less formal rhythm to the meal, and the kind of direct service interaction that disappears in larger dining rooms. Given how hard this venue is to book in advance (more on that below), arriving at the bar for a walk-in is a legitimate strategy, particularly mid-week. The pub runs from 11:30 AM to 11 PM Monday through Saturday, with Sunday hours ending at 9 PM, so there is more flexibility in the day than the dinner reservation queue might suggest.
Expect difficulty. Hinds Head is a Michelin-starred pub in one of England's most visited dining villages, and it does not have the seat count of a city restaurant. Booking difficulty is rated hard, which in practice means planning three to four weeks ahead for weekends and two to three weeks for midweek dinner. Lunch on a Tuesday or Wednesday offers the most realistic walk-in window at the bar. The price range sits at £££ , meaningfully cheaper than The Fat Duck or Waterside Inn, but not a casual drop-in. Budget accordingly and treat the booking as the commitment it is.
Bray is a short drive from the M4, approximately 30 miles west of central London. For visitors combining the meal with a wider trip, our full Bray restaurants guide covers the village's full range, and our Bray hotels guide has options if you want to stay overnight rather than time a return to London around a reservation. The Bray bars guide is worth a look for before or after drinks, and if you are exploring the region more broadly, our Bray experiences guide and wineries guide fill out the day.
Michelin-starred gastropubs are rare enough that Hinds Head belongs to a short list. In London, Bull & Last and Drapers Arms represent the strong end of the city's gastropub field, but neither carries a Michelin star. For starred British cooking in a similarly relaxed register, Hand and Flowers in Marlow , just a few miles away , is the closest peer and worth comparing directly. Both are £££, both are difficult to book, and the choice between them comes down to setting: Marlow's riverside versus Bray's village High Street. Further afield, L'Enclume in Cartmel and Moor Hall in Aughton operate in the same territory of serious British cooking in non-urban settings, though both sit at a higher price point and formality level. Hide and Fox in Saltwood, Gidleigh Park in Chagford, and Midsummer House in Cambridge round out the broader set of destination British restaurants worth holding against Hinds Head when planning a trip. If London is your base, Restaurant Gordon Ramsay offers a useful reference point for what £££-to-££££ formal British cooking looks like in the city , and makes the argument for leaving town to eat at Hinds Head more compelling.
Hinds Head earns its Michelin star independently of its famous owner. The combination of precise British cooking, a genuine pub atmosphere, and a price point that undercuts every other serious restaurant in Bray makes it the most accessible strong booking in the village. Book as far ahead as you can manage, consider bar seating if your dates are flexible, and do not arrive expecting The Fat Duck with a beer tap. What you get is better than that framing: a very good restaurant that happens to be a pub, in a village that takes food seriously.
The three main alternatives within the village are The Fat Duck (Creative, ££££), Waterside Inn (Classic French, ££££), and The Braywood (Modern British, £££). If budget is a factor, Hinds Head and The Braywood are the practical choices at £££ versus the ££££ of the other two. If formality matters, Waterside Inn is the most ceremoniousdinner in Bray; Hinds Head is the least. The Fat Duck sits in its own category , a theatrical tasting menu experience that is a different proposition entirely. For a less structured evening with strong food, Crown is also worth checking. See our full Bray restaurants guide for the complete picture.
Lunch is the smarter booking. It is easier to secure a table, the pub atmosphere is more relaxed in the early afternoon, and the kitchen's concise menus work well as a midday meal rather than requiring the pace of a full evening. Midweek lunch is also your leading shot at bar seating without a reservation. The venue runs from 11:30 AM daily, so an early lunch slot on a Tuesday or Wednesday gives you the most flexibility. Dinner is the harder book and carries a livelier room , worth it if atmosphere is part of what you are after, but not necessary to get the leading of the cooking.
Yes, relative to its competition. At £££, it is the most affordable Michelin-starred option in Bray, sitting well below The Fat Duck and Waterside Inn on price while delivering cooking that has earned independent recognition from both Michelin (1 Star, 2024) and Opinionated About Dining (Casual Europe #154, 2024). If you are comparing value within the broader category of serious British gastropubs, Hand and Flowers in Marlow is the closest peer , similar price tier, similar booking difficulty. Hinds Head edges it on setting if a quintessential English pub environment matters to you.
Smart casual is the right register. This is a Michelin-starred venue inside a 15th-century pub , jeans are fine, trainers are probably fine, but showing up in activewear would read as a mismatch. The dress code is not enforced formally, but the room of contented diners tends toward the put-together end of casual. Think what you would wear to a good London brasserie and you will fit in without overthinking it.
Contact the venue directly before booking. Hinds Head's menus are concise and focused on traditional British cooking, which means the kitchen is working with a defined repertoire rather than an open à la carte range. This can limit flexibility for complex dietary requirements. No specific dietary accommodation details are available in our current data, so calling ahead or noting requirements at the time of booking is the practical move. The venue's address is High St, Bray, Maidenhead SL6 2AB , check their current booking platform for contact options.
Book early , this is a hard reservation. The venue's Michelin star and Opinionated About Dining ranking mean demand outpaces capacity consistently. When you arrive, do not expect a fine-dining production: the experience is a proper pub with serious food, not a restaurant cosplaying as one. The bar is a legitimate option, not a fallback. Flavours on the menu lean direct and British rather than elaborate or international , that is the point, and the precision behind the execution is where the star is earned. If you are visiting Bray for a day, pairing Hinds Head with a look at the village and a drink at Crown makes for a complete afternoon.
| Venue | Cuisine | Price | Booking Difficulty |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hinds Head | Gastropub, Traditional British | £££ | Hard |
| Waterside Inn | Classic French | ££££ | Unknown |
| The Fat Duck | Creative | ££££ | Unknown |
| The Braywood | Modern British | £££ | Unknown |
| Crown | Unknown |
Comparing your options in Bray for this tier.
Bray gives you serious options within walking distance. The Fat Duck is Heston Blumenthal's flagship and operates at a completely different price point and format — experimental tasting menus rather than pub dining. The Waterside Inn offers classical French cooking and is a better comparison if you want a formal sit-down meal. The Crown and The Braywood are closer pub-format alternatives, though neither holds a Michelin star. If the draw is precise British cooking in a relaxed setting at £££, Hinds Head is the strongest option in that specific bracket in the village.
Lunch is the easier booking to secure and gives you the same kitchen, same Michelin-starred output, and a slightly less pressured atmosphere than weekend dinners. If your schedule allows a midweek lunch, that's the path of least resistance. Dinner books out further in advance and attracts a fuller room, which suits the pub format well — but availability is tighter. Either service is worth it; lunch is simply more accessible.
At £££, Hinds Head sits in the mid-tier of Michelin-starred dining in the UK, and it delivers well for that bracket. The 2024 Michelin star and a ranking of #154 on Opinionated About Dining's Casual Europe list are earned credentials, not inherited ones from its famous owner. For the format — precise British cooking in a genuine pub setting — the price-to-quality ratio is strong. If you want a tasting menu or a formal dining experience, the value case weakens; this is a pub first.
Hinds Head is a functioning pub with a Michelin star, so the atmosphere leans relaxed rather than formal. Neat, comfortable clothing fits the room — no need for black tie or a jacket. Turning up in beach wear or heavily casual clothing would feel out of place given the kitchen's calibre, but the setting does not demand the formality you'd bring to The Fat Duck or The Waterside Inn across the village.
The venue data does not include specifics on dietary accommodation, so contact them directly before booking to confirm options. What the database does confirm is that the kitchen operates at Michelin level with precise execution, which typically means the team can work with requirements given advance notice. Calling ahead rather than noting restrictions at arrival is the practical approach for any dietary need beyond the standard.
Book well in advance — this is a Michelin-starred pub in one of England's most-visited dining villages, and walk-ins are an uncertain strategy. The address is High Street, Bray, SL6 2AB, which puts it in the centre of the village and accessible from Maidenhead station. The menu is concise and British-focused, so don't arrive expecting a broad international menu or a long tasting format. Bar seating is an option worth asking about if you're dining solo or as a pair on shorter notice.
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