Surrey's fine dining is a short list, and a good one. Four restaurants kept their Michelin stars when the 2026 guide was announced in February: Latymer in Bagshot, Sorrel in Dorking, Starling in Esher and The Tudor Pass in Egham. They are very different rooms, so the useful question is which one suits the occasion.
Starling, Esher: the easiest way in
On the High Street in Esher, Starling is a self-described neighbourhood bistro, without stiff tablecloths or giant tasting menus. Chef Nick Beardshaw, a Great British Menu winner who spent years working with Tom Kerridge, opened it in 2024 as his first solo venture, and a star followed within about five months.
Start with the snacks: truffle cheese crumpets, steak tartare hash browns and hog roast fritters. His Great British Menu dishes, the scallops and the raspberry cheesecake torte, are on the radar too, and there is steak and duck with cherry ketchup.
It is also the gentlest on the wallet. There is a three-course set lunch at £30, Wednesday and Thursday only, from 12 to 2.30pm. On the à la carte, Harden's puts starters at about £17.50, mains at £32.50 and puddings at £12. It opens Wednesday to Saturday for lunch and dinner, and on Sunday for lunch. Call 01372 650015 or book through the restaurant's listing. Best for a date night, or a first taste of a starred kitchen.
The Tudor Pass, Egham: small and Tudor
At Great Fosters, Stroude Road, Egham, The Tudor Pass has just seven tables and opens Wednesday to Saturday for lunch and dinner. The estate sits in around 50 acres of grounds, and the kitchen draws partly on its gardens and orchards. Stefano Di Giosia, formerly of The Fat Duck and KOL, has led the kitchen since July 2025. The name nods to an interactive service style without the noise of an open kitchen.
Michelin describes a surprise tasting menu in two lengths and recommends the longer one, with a stroll round the formal gardens as part of the occasion. Prices on the hotel's page:
Weekday lunch (Wednesday to Friday): four courses £95, Signature £125
Saturday lunch: four courses £125, Signature £155
Dinner, Wednesday and Thursday: four courses £125, Signature £155
Dinner, Friday and Saturday: Signature £165
Chef's Table for 6 to 10 guests: £145 per person
Harden's lists a 12.5% service charge. The £95 weekday lunch is the cheapest route in. Book through the hotel page.
Latymer, Bagshot: the country-house grand occasion
Latymer is at Pennyhill Park Hotel & Spa, London Road, Bagshot. It holds a Michelin star and five AA Rosettes, and Head Chef Steve Smith and his team craft the tasting menu. Surrey Live, citing Condé Nast Traveller, describes a wood-panelled room in the oldest part of the hotel, which dates to 1849.
Go for the surprise tasting menu and allow about three hours, as Harden's advises. Harden's lists a seven-course dinner at £175, with shorter four- and five-course options at lunch and on some evenings, plus a 13.5% service charge. A cheese trolley can be added for extra. Prices vary between sources, so confirm before booking. You can phone on 01276 486150 or use TheFork. Because it is a hotel, Latymer also sells a Dine & Stay package with a six-course meal, a room, breakfast and spa access. It suits anniversaries and milestone birthdays.
Sorrel, Dorking: a former school on South Street
Sorrel is at 77 South Street, Dorking, in what Michelin calls an attractive 300-year-old former school in the town centre. Steve Drake founded it in 2017 and it won its star soon after. Alex Payne, who trained under Heston Blumenthal and Gordon Ramsay and came from The Tudor Pass, became chef patron in June 2025, with Drake staying on as owner.
Michelin offers a light à la carte and a surprise tasting menu, which it calls the best option, with produce such as Orkney scallops and Hereford beef. Earlier figures put the tasting menu at £145, but those predate Payne, so check the current menu. Michelin notes that Sorrel takes its own bookings, so contact the restaurant directly. A note on the star: Michelin's page shows it as a one-star restaurant in the 2026 guide, though Michelin's Surrey listing shows three, so the county count may differ by listing.
Booking and budgeting
Tasting menus here run from roughly £95 to £195 a head before drinks and service.
The cheapest starred meals are Starling's £30 midweek lunch and The Tudor Pass's £95 weekday lunch.
Sorrel books direct, Latymer by phone or TheFork, and The Tudor Pass through the hotel.
Latymer and The Tudor Pass are hotel restaurants, so staying over is easy.
If you want less formality
Michelin also lists Dastaan in Ewell, a Bib Gourmand for Indian cooking at ££, and The Anchor on the High Street in Ripley, Modern British at ££. Both make sense when a tasting menu feels like too much.
For the full picture, see Visit Surrey's round-up, the Great Fosters page for The Tudor Pass and the Latymer page.
