No 8 Bistro - York

Great stop for a quick bite and a local brew of course! Tired tourists needing refreshments and we were treated very well indeed.

Good god, people. Eat here. I don't often leave reviews on Yelp (see my profile) but I must praise this unassuming restaurant. I found myself taking smaller and smaller bites hoping to extend the experience of eating the most savory dinner and no matter how small, each bite exploded with flavor. Do yourself a favor. Eat here.

We came here for a quick lunch and the food was fantastic. However I feel I cannot give 5 stars since I the prices were fairly high for small portions. It felt slightly pretentious. I went for the goats cheese and pesto on a toast which left me wanting more. This was because of two main reasons. 1 it was absolutely fantastic. 2 I was still hungry. For the £8 I spent (one of the cheaper options) I only got 1 piece of toast which was a little disappointing. The actual bistro is very cute and has a pretty garden out the back.

Recommended in a few local lists but distinctly overrated as far as Sunday lunch is concerned. Too at least 10 mins to get menus then longer to get served. Only then did they mention that it might take longer to get served because they were switching to lunch menu. Starters of soup and bread basket were actually pretty good but beef roast mains were distinctly average and relatively expensive. Meat was fine but gravy was too cold and not enough of it. Yorkshire puddings didn't do the county proud and were too dry. Likewise the roast potatoes were sub par and veg too soft. They might have got away with all this with more attentive staff who noticed our disappointment but as it was, they didn't. Too bad we won't be going back. As a postscript, it looks like it could be really nice in summer with the garden out back.

Our daughter never wanted to taste chicken livers or pate, she begrudgingly tried mine and ate most of it--astonishing. The roast beef and pig platter were delicious. Can't wait to go back, an unexpected delight.