Restaurant in Nun Monkton, United Kingdom
Michelin-recognised village pub, easy to book.
Alice Hawthorn Inn holds the Michelin Plate for 2024 and 2025 and scores 4.7 from 465 Google reviews — strong credentials for a ££ village pub on Nun Monkton's green. The kitchen covers substantial ground, from sea bass ceviche to pub classics, and the smart bedrooms make an overnight stay worth considering. Booking is easy, which is a genuine advantage over comparable venues in the region.
If you're comparing Alice Hawthorn Inn to a standard Yorkshire gastropub, this one sits noticeably above the category. It holds the Michelin Plate in both 2024 and 2025, it has a Google rating of 4.7 from 465 reviews, and it sits on one of the most photogenic village greens in the county. For a first-timer weighing up a meal or an overnight stay in the York area, the short answer is yes — book it, especially if you want a pub setting that delivers actual kitchen ambition at a ££ price point.
The more relevant comparison isn't other village pubs — it's the broader category of accessible Michelin-recognised dining in the north of England. Venues like Moor Hall in Aughton or L'Enclume in Cartmel operate at ££££ and require significantly more planning. Alice Hawthorn Inn delivers Michelin recognition at a fraction of the outlay, making it the most practical entry point into credentialled dining in this part of Yorkshire.
Nun Monkton is a small village northwest of York, and the Alice Hawthorn Inn sits directly on the village green , the same green that contains a duck pond and, notably, the tallest maypole in England. The setting is immediately readable: this is a proper village pub that has been modernised carefully rather than gutted. Exposed brickwork and beams are present throughout, but the overall feel leans toward the clean and considered rather than the aggressively rustic.
Guests are spread across multiple rooms, which means the dining experience doesn't feel like a single large restaurant floor. For a first visit, this works in your favour , different spaces suit different occasions, and the room variety means you're unlikely to feel like you've landed in the wrong setting. The bedrooms, described as smart and carrying a slightly Scandic character, are worth considering if you want to make a night of it rather than driving back to York after dinner.
The kitchen's approach is genuinely broad. The menu moves across borders without apology , dynamite shrimp and sea bass ceviche sit alongside fish and chips and leek and potato soup. That range is either reassuring or disorienting depending on what you're after. If you want a tightly focused regional menu, this isn't it. But if you want solid cooking that covers multiple preferences at a single table, the breadth is a practical asset. The dishes are described as hearty and well-presented, with some garden produce incorporated into the sourcing. At a ££ price point, the kitchen is punching at the right level for this kind of offer.
The Alice Hawthorn Inn's food doesn't suggest itself as an off-premise proposition. The appeal here is contextual , the beamed rooms, the village green outside, the unhurried service dynamic. Dishes like sea bass ceviche or dynamite shrimp don't travel particularly well in a technical sense, and a hearty bowl of leek and potato soup is better experienced in the room where it was made. If you're considering Alice Hawthorn Inn specifically because you want food to take away, this is not the right venue for that. The pub format rewards being present. Book a table, or book a room and eat in.
That said, the menu's range , from lighter plates to more substantial pub classics , means it works across meal types. Fish and chips, if offered as a main, is one of the more delivery-resilient formats, but the Michelin Plate recognition here is rooted in the full dining experience, not a takeout offer. Plan to go in person.
Booking difficulty at Alice Hawthorn Inn is rated Easy. For a village pub with Michelin recognition and a 4.7 Google score, that's a meaningful advantage over comparable venues in the region. You won't need to plan weeks out the way you would for Hand and Flowers in Marlow , another Michelin-recognised pub that routinely books out far in advance. That said, weekend evenings and Sunday lunches at well-rated village pubs in Yorkshire do fill, so booking ahead is still advisable rather than assuming walk-in availability.
The bedrooms add a second booking consideration: if you want to stay over, plan for that separately and earlier, since room availability at a small inn is more limited than table availability.
Address: The Green, Nun Monkton, York YO26 8EW. Price range: ££. Dress: No formal dress code is listed; the smart-casual register suits the setting. Reservations: Recommended, particularly for evenings and weekends , booking is rated Easy. Bedrooms: Available on-site, described as smart with a Scandic character. Accessibility: Village green location; no specific accessibility data available. Hours: Not confirmed in current data , check directly before visiting.
If Alice Hawthorn Inn is part of a wider trip around York and North Yorkshire, our full Nun Monkton restaurants guide covers the broader dining picture. For overnight stays in the area, see our Nun Monkton hotels guide. The bars guide for Nun Monkton, wineries guide, and experiences guide are also available if you're planning a fuller visit.
For regional dining at a different scale, Midsummer House in Cambridge and hide and fox in Saltwood both offer Michelin-recognised cooking in destination settings if you're building a longer itinerary. For international regional cuisine comparisons, Trattoria al Cacciatore - La Subida in Cormons and Thaller - Gasthaus in Sankt Veit am Vogau sit in a similar regional-pub-with-ambition category worth knowing about.
| Venue | Cuisine | Awards | Booking Difficulty | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alice Hawthorn Inn | Regional Cuisine | This smartly modernised dining pub sits on a large village green where, as well as a duck pond, you’ll find the country’s tallest maypole. Guests are spread across multiple rooms that are all packed with charm, character and the obligatory exposed brickwork and beams. The hearty, well-presented dishes showcase some garden produce and know no borders, meaning you could find dynamite shrimp and sea bass ceviche alongside fish & chips and leek & potato soup. Welcoming service and smart, slightly Scandic-style bedrooms complete the picture.; Michelin Plate (2025); Michelin Plate (2024) | Easy | — |
| Restaurant Gordon Ramsay | Contemporary European, French | Michelin 3 Star, World's 50 Best | Unknown | — |
| CORE by Clare Smyth | Modern British | Michelin 3 Star, World's 50 Best | Unknown | — |
| The Ledbury | Modern European, Modern Cuisine | Michelin 3 Star, World's 50 Best | Unknown | — |
| Sketch, The Lecture Room and Library | Modern French | Michelin 3 Star, World's 50 Best | Unknown | — |
| Dinner by Heston Blumenthal | Modern British, Traditional British | Michelin 2 Star, World's 50 Best | Unknown | — |
Key differences to consider before you reserve.
The menu at Alice Hawthorn Inn spans a deliberately wide range — from dynamite shrimp and sea bass ceviche to fish and chips and leek and potato soup — which suggests kitchen flexibility across formats. That range is a reasonable signal that dietary requests are handled, but specific allergen policies aren't documented in available venue data. Contact them directly before booking if dietary needs are central to your decision.
At ££ pricing with consecutive Michelin Plates in 2024 and 2025, Alice Hawthorn Inn is strong value for the recognition level. You're getting Michelin-acknowledged cooking in a village pub setting northwest of York, at a price point well below what comparable award-holding restaurants charge. For the category, the value case is clear.
No formal dress code is documented for Alice Hawthorn Inn. The setting — beamed village pub rooms on a village green in Nun Monkton — points toward relaxed rather than formal. Smart-casual fits the register without being a requirement.
The multi-room layout and pub format make solo dining workable here, without the self-consciousness of a formal restaurant counter. The welcoming service noted in Michelin's assessment supports it further. Solo diners looking for a low-pressure Michelin-recognised meal near York have a reasonable case for booking this over a more formal York city-centre option.
Nun Monkton is a small village, and Alice Hawthorn Inn is the primary dining destination on the green. For alternatives, York city centre is the practical comparison pool — there you'll find a wider range of price points and cuisines, though few at ££ with Michelin recognition. If you're flexible on location, our Nun Monkton restaurants guide covers the broader area.
A specific tasting menu format is not documented in the venue data for Alice Hawthorn Inn. The menu approach appears to be broad and à la carte in character, mixing international dishes with British pub staples. If a structured tasting format is central to what you're looking for, verify with the venue directly before booking.
The combination of Michelin Plate recognition, smart Scandic-style bedrooms, and a village green setting in Nun Monkton gives Alice Hawthorn Inn a strong case for low-key celebrations — birthdays, anniversaries, or a weekend away from York. It works better for occasions where the setting matters as much as the food, and where you want relaxed rather than formal. For a high-ceremony special occasion, a city-centre fine dining room would be more appropriate.
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