Restaurant in Cardiff, United Kingdom
Book the tasting menu. Don't overthink it.
Cardiff's only Michelin-starred restaurant (2024), Gorse delivers produce-led Modern British tasting menus from a small, personally run room in Pontcanna. Built around the Welsh larder — Gower salt marsh lamb, seafood, seaweed — with informal but focused service. Book the longer tasting menu, reserve well ahead, and expect cooking that competes nationally at a price that still makes sense for Cardiff.
The practical tip that matters most at Gorse: if you can get a table, take the longer tasting menu. The restaurant runs Tuesday through Saturday only, with lunch sittings from noon and dinner from 6:30 PM, and it is closed Monday and Sunday. With just two short daily sittings per service and a small, personally run room in Pontcanna, Cardiff, availability disappears fast. Treat any Tuesday or Wednesday slot as your leading shot at a booking — demand is highest at weekends. Book as far ahead as the reservation window allows.
Gorse holds a Michelin star (2024) and sits at the leading of Cardiff's fine-dining tier. It operates out of a compact, intimate room at 186–188 Kings Road in Pontcanna, one of Cardiff's quieter, more residential neighbourhoods. The format is tasting menus rooted in Welsh produce: seaweed, seafood, and Gower salt marsh lamb are the kinds of ingredients that anchor the kitchen's output. This is Modern British cooking with a clear sense of place — the Welsh larder is not a decorative concept here but the actual organising principle of the menu.
What the Michelin inspectors specifically noted is telling for a room at this price point: you are greeted by the chefs themselves when you arrive, service is genial rather than formal, and the open kitchen means the cooking and the hospitality are extensions of the same small, focused team. That informality is not a trade-off against quality , it is the point. Gorse delivers at Michelin level without the stiff formality that often accompanies restaurants in this bracket. For food explorers who find white-tablecloth ceremony a distraction from the actual meal, this is the better end of the deal.
The Google rating sits at 4.9 from 65 reviews, which at that sample size signals consistent execution rather than a statistical anomaly. Restaurants that maintain a 4.9 over dozens of visits are doing something structurally right, not just getting lucky on a handful of great nights.
Gorse is leading suited to diners who care about produce-led cooking and want a Michelin-starred experience that does not feel like a performance. If you are visiting Cardiff and want a single standout meal that reflects what Welsh ingredients can do in skilled hands, this is the clearest answer in the city. It is also a strong option for Cardiff locals who want something genuinely ambitious without travelling to London. Comparable cooking at venues like CORE by Clare Smyth in London, L'Enclume in Cartmel, or Moor Hall in Aughton would cost you significantly more once travel and accommodation are factored in. Gorse is priced at ££££ by Cardiff standards, but it competes with venues that charge considerably more for a comparable level of ambition.
It is less suited to large groups expecting a social, high-energy room. The intimate format and tasting menu structure mean the experience is calibrated for tables of two or four who want to focus on the food. If you want a livelier room for a group celebration, Asador 44 or Thomas in Cardiff are better fits.
Reservations: Hard to get , book as far in advance as possible; Tuesday and Wednesday lunch are your leading windows. Hours: Tuesday–Saturday, 12 PM–2 PM and 6:30 PM–8:30 PM; closed Monday and Sunday. Budget: ££££ , tasting menu pricing; commit to the longer menu for full value. Dress: No stated dress code; smart casual is appropriate for the room and the price point. Location: 186–188 Kings Road, Pontcanna, Cardiff CF11 9DF.
See the full comparison below, and browse our full Cardiff restaurants guide for more options across price tiers. If you are planning a wider trip, our Cardiff hotels guide, bars guide, and experiences guide cover the rest of the city.
Gorse runs tasting menus built around the Welsh larder, which means the kitchen is doing detailed, composed work on every course. Contact them directly when booking to flag any dietary needs — tasting-menu restaurants at this level (Michelin-starred, ££££) typically accommodate with advance notice, but last-minute requests are harder to absorb when the menu is fixed.
Take the longer tasting menu. Michelin's own guidance on Gorse is explicit: go for the longer option and you won't regret it. The kitchen, led by local chef Tom, builds the menu around Welsh ingredients including Gower salt marsh lamb, seaweed, and seafood — the longer format gives that produce focus room to develop across courses.
Gorse is a small, intimate room rather than a bar-and-dining split operation. There is no bar seating mentioned in available venue data, so plan for a full seated-table experience. At ££££ with a tasting menu format, that is the expected frame regardless.
Yes, for what it is. Gorse holds a Michelin star (2024) and prices at ££££, which puts it at the top of Cardiff's dining tier. For a produce-led, personally run tasting menu experience built on the Welsh larder, the value holds — particularly at lunch, where you get the same kitchen at a format that is typically more accessible.
Lunch is the smarter booking if you can get it. Gorse runs Tuesday through Saturday, 12 PM–2 PM and 6:30 PM–8:30 PM, and Tuesday and Wednesday lunch are your best windows for actually securing a table. The kitchen is the same regardless of service; lunch lets you spread the cost of a ££££ tasting menu across an afternoon rather than a late evening.
Heaneys is the closest like-for-like comparison: Welsh produce focus, tasting-menu format, strong local reputation. Asador 44 is a better pick if you want a la carte flexibility and a wine-led experience rather than a set menu. Cora suits diners who want something more casual at a lower price point without stepping outside Cardiff's quality tier.
Yes, but book it as a considered meal rather than waiting for a milestone to justify it. The atmosphere is intimate and service is described as genial rather than formal, which makes it work for celebrations without feeling stiff. The Michelin star and ££££ price point give it the weight a special occasion calls for — just make sure the tasting menu format suits your group.
Keep this venue in your Pearl passport, rate it after you visit, and track it alongside every other place you collect.
