The Black Rat

Delightful experience. Relaxed. Fab staff. Great background music and... A. really tasty well considered flavoursome meal

Excellent option in Winchester. Great food for reasonable prices.

Just really good - service was on point and the food was well portioned and the taste was fantastic.

Very much enjoyed and 100% will visit again when back in Winchester

Food was amazing! And staff were really lovely! Would really recommend a visit. Only issue is there is a long wait between courses, but this was explained at the top of the menu.

Amazing place, the food was fantastic, the staff were very knowledgeable & friendly. We will 100% be back

We sat outside and it was very pleasant with good service.

The staff were all very friendly and attentive, they enquired about any dietary requirements which is encouraging when eating out. The food was unusual, but everything was cooked from fresh, which made our lunch an enjoyable relaxed afternoon. Would highly recommend.

Really good,loved it, hopefully will go back pretty soon.

A long overdue visit didn’t disappoint. Proper cooking, a great wine list and friendly, helpful service.

The quality of food and wine was outstanding - choice for both was terrific. The staff were all very friendly and helpful

Great food with unique menu choices delivered with amazing service

Great food and overall experience.
Great wine menu.

Reliably excellent. Interesting menu options. Friendly service. Great value.

We were in the garden so it was so peaceful. The staff were very polite and the service was fantastic. The food was delicious.

The food speaks for itself but the staff were also incredible. Gareth was especially attentive. My girlfriend made him aware it was my birthday and he gave us a glass of champagne and a free desert.

Food was spot on, and certainly deserves to still hold a star from what my family and I experienced. Unbelievable value for money as well.

Excellent food, presented well & tasted amazing.
We'll definitely be back.

We love going to The Black Rat.
The food is supurb, even if we've never heard of many of the ingredients!!
Sublime cookery.
Go!

We had an excellent Meal. We were running late as just got engaged, so they kept the table and they gave us 2 glasses of complimentary champagne when we arrived. Definitely be going again

We had the most wonderful dining experience at the Black Rat last night with friends.

The food, atmosphere and dining experience in the outdoor huts were exceptional.

I would highly recommend this restaurant.

Superb!

Lovely food, quite pricey but was delicious. Staff were good and was an enjoyable evening.

Their starter of rare beef is actually raw. The lamb for the main was incredibly dry but we were told it was supposed to be like that 🤔 Either way the whole meal was wildly over priced and not that great at all. The complimentary breads were nice and the service was great. But in all the food experience was somewhat pretentious and really not that good at all.

Amazing food, slightly slow service and I had to ask for more drinks and to see the dessert menu etc so it wasn’t as attentive as I would expect.
Very flavoursome food, would definitely come back.

Fantastic restaurant and food. The staff were very friendly and welcoming.
Would highly recommend.

Beautiful food, great service.
Not much choice of wine by the glass and wine prices were high.
My pet hate - 12.5% service charge added to the bill.
If you want an extra 12.5% then add it to the menu prices!

Loved the ambience of the place, tables nicely distanced so felt ‘social’ but not overcrowded nor as if you were isolated. Staff very attentive and eager to explain the menu if required. Food was

Had a lovely evening last night with friends for my husbands birthday. We had a table in an outside cabana which had a lovely ambience (and was warm enough to not need jumpers), and the service was exceptional. Despite an upfront warning that staff levels were below normal (Covid) asking for understanding, we couldn’t have asked for more attentive waiters, the food was well paced, we were asked if everything was ok, and our glasses were never empty. The menu was limited to 4 options per course (can’t remember if this is normal or due to staff shortage) and were all combinations that none of us had tried which is both a positive for the new experience it brought, but at times a little challenging as nothing lept out as the obvious choice. Between the 4 of us we tasted most dishes, and particularly liked our starters (steak tartare was exceptionally well balanced and light) and main courses (the lamb read like it would be quite heavy hence why I didn’t chose it, but was delicate and looked beautiful), although I would have preferred the Bream to have been pan fried to get the skin crispy to contrast the softness of the fish and orzo, the flavours nonetheless were very good. In honesty we found the desert menu more challenging and none of the menu choices gave that sweet satisfaction that a creamy ice cream or desert would bring. My husband enjoyed his cheeseboard and the madeleines were good, but two of us both struggled with the mushroom chocolate dish which, whilst interesting, became too much after a while and left us wanting something sweet (I went home and had an ice cream!). Still, having seen a trend for vegetable deserts on cooking programs I can now say I’ve tried it! Thank you all for making our evening one to remember!

Delicious and imaginative food, sensibly priced wine list ever expanding choice of gins, and very good service. Thank you.

Very disappointed, waited to go for a long time but was so disappointed.
Style over substance.
Beef starter had so much cracked black pepper that you couldn't taste the beef, completely overpowered!
The main of duck was very average.... for £32 for a main you expect more.... portion size was so small, & was just very average.

Our previous trip to The Black Rat was in the Autumn 2020, with a handful of prior visits over a couple of years. We were always impressed with the quality of the food and the fantastic flavour combinations that always worked for us. Recognising that the staffing may have been stretched, our visit yesterday was a bit disappointing. The roast chicken starter was cold and although the chicken itself was quite bland, the leeks and onions were very nice. The pork cheek and tenderloin was also cold and quite bland and not helped at all by the bizarre peach and tonka bean ketchup. The braised fennel was almost too hard to cut and the choi sum was almost invisible. I never understand why restaurants, in general, seem to avoid putting more vegetables in their dishes. For dessert, the madeleines were nice and fluffy with crunchy edges and a sweet butterscotch sauce - but there were too many. Can we have more vegetables and less dessert, please? I feel sad having to write this review because we have always enjoyed the food at The Black Rat - it was one of only a few restaurants we regularly go to. Sadly, the meal wasn't memorable or in keeping with the reputation of this restaurant; we have eaten far better quality (and value for money) Pub meals recently. Hopefully, the issues will iron themselves out as everything gets back to 'normal'.

Outstanding!

Food, drink, service and environment all outstanding!

Often go for a birthday celebration or special occasion as we know the food and service will be great.

A great restaurant with unusual food and an environment that’s like stepping back in time. We liked the squid ink bread that look like lumps of coal. Also the fresh madeleines for dessert were delicious.

Lots of new tastes to try at this interesting restaurant along with the Black Hole B&B across the road and the Black Dog pub it made for a very enjoyable break in Winchester. A bit more pricey than we are used to but it made our anniversary that much more special.

The quality of food is outstanding, there is always something quirky on the menu and perfectly executed. As is often the case with fine dining a bit more carbs on the main course wouldn't go a miss, my choice had none but it was so delicious.

Fantastic place. Great food, service and range of spirits. Pub opposite is also cracking.

This must be our favourite restaurant serving food that you wouldn’t be able to cook yourself… so great but amazing service from lovely people

Excellent food and very caring service. Excellent experience!

Excellent food & super service. Great restaurant, would wholeheartedly recommend.

We had a lovely meal. The staff were very attentive and we actually appreciated having a compact menu so there was less to choose from! We both had lamb for main which was delicious and the Madelines with butterscotch sauce were amazing! Definitely a place to go for a special occasion.