Stourbridge pub loved for proper Sunday roasts named as one of the UK's best pubs in the Good Food Guide

The Old Wharf Inn in High Street was ranked 33rd in the top 100 list, which has been compiled for the first time by the Good Food Guide.

The pub, which overlooks the Stourbridge Canal Basin, was described by the Good Food Guide as an industrial-era pub which attracts fervent local support and offers a wide range of pub food as well as a selection of real ales.

The Good Food Guide said: "Squeezed between a busy road and the Stourbridge Canal basin, this recently renovated industrial-era pub attracts fervent local support, especially for its Sunday roasts, where ‘perfectly pink’ beef, ‘amazing’ beetroot Wellington, and ‘phenomenal’ Yorkshires are singled out.

"The modern interior, with wooden flooring, sensitive lighting and a woodburning stove, has a homely, family feel in winter, while a tarmacked beer garden with views of the canal adds summertime appeal and is soon to be converted into a separate dining area."

The standard of cooking was also heavily praised, with the portion sizes and attention to detail mentioned, as well as the quality and mix of the food on offer.

The Good Food Guide said: "Local suppliers are proudly name-checked on the main menu, which offers an appealing blend of modern pub food and Mediterranean-accented cooking.

"The kitchen is renowned for 'very generous portions’, and our visit began with an unnervingly huge ‘small plate’ of tender beef brisket surrounded by cheesy Parmesan polenta and topped with salsa verde.

"A request for horseradish brought a saucer of the freshly grated root in cream, the kitchen’s attention to detail is impressive.

"The ensuing ‘large plate’ was equally full flavoured and bountiful: a glisteningly white fillet of cod resting on a stew of beans, tomatoes and chorizo."

Finally, the puddings were given praise, as were the breakfast options, while the pub also earned high praise for the quality of the drinks menu, from the wine list to the four regularly rotated ales.

The Good Food Guide said: "Puddings are also enticing and our tangy Bramley and cranberry crumble (paired with salted caramel ice cream) came with unexpected squares of toasted gingerbread to boost its crunch. 

"Staff receive universal praise; we found them polite, on-the-ball and exceedingly prompt. 

"Breakfast (served Thursday to Sunday) includes the likes of kedgeree and shakshuka as well as the ‘Full Monty’. 

"Wines are supplied by a local vintner, and the brief, good-value list is a cut above the norm; alternatively, enjoy a pint of real ale from a choice of four regularly rotated brews. This is, after all, a proper pub."

The Good Food Guide’s 100 Best Pubs 2025

1. The Highland Laddie, Leeds

2. The Kinneuchar Inn, Fife

3. The Merry Harriers, Surrey

4. The Beckford Arms, Wiltshire

5. The Radnor Arms, Kent

6. Greyhound Inn, Pettistree, Suffolk

7. The Pelican, London

8. The Abbey Inn, North Yorkshire

9. Inn at The Sticks, Carmarthenshire

10. The Pack Horse, Hayfield, Derbyshire

11. The Eagle, London

12. The Barrington Boar, Somerset

13. The Sun Inn, Dedham, Essex

14. The Kerfield Arms, London

15. The Broad Chare, Newcastle – Readers’ Choice Award

16. Church House Inn, Devon

17. The Killingworth Castle, Oxfordshire

18. The Felin Fach Griffin, Powys

19. The Gunton Arms, Norfolk

20. The Plough, Rye, East Sussex

21. The Bath Arms at Longleat, Somerset

22. The Parakeet, London

23. The Rat Inn, Northumberland

24. The White Hart Inn, Essex

25. The Pipe & Glass, East Yorkshire

26. The Bull Charlbury, Oxfordshire

27. The Farmers Arms, Devon

28. The Devonshire, London

29. Hop Pole Inn, Somerset

30. The Waterman’s Arms, London

31. White Horse Holme, Norfolk

32. The Olive Branch, Rutland

33. The Old Wharf Inn, Stourbridge

34. The Star Inn, Harome, North Yorkshire

35. The George at Burpham, West Sussex

36. Fox & Hounds, Hertfordshire

37. Tichborne Arms, Hampshire

38. The Bull Inn, Totnes, Devon

39. Parkers Arms, Lancashire

40. The Woolpack Inn, Gloucestershire

41. The Double Red Duke, Oxfordshire

42. The Cat Inn, West Sussex

43. The Canton Arms, London

44. The General Tarleton, North Yorkshire

45. The Anchor, Walberswick, Suffolk

46. The Camberwell Arms, London

47. The Brisley Bell, Norfolk

48. The Swan, Suffolk

49. The Riverside at Aymestrey, Herefordshire

50. The White Horse, Brancaster Staithe, Norfolk

51. The Kirkstyle Inn & Sportsman’s Rest, Northumberland

52. The Grove Inn, Devon

53. The White Hart, Fyfield, Oxfordshire

54. The Silver Cup, Hertfordshire

55. The Anglesea Arms, Hammersmith, London

56. Heathcock, Cardiff

57. The Feathers Inn, Northumberland

58. The Anchor & Hope, London

59. The Taybank, Perthshire & Kinross

60. The Queens Arms, Somerset

61. Hare & Hounds, Glamorgan

62. Applecross Inn, Highlands

63. The Punch Bowl Inn, Cumbria

64. The Clachan Inn, Dumfries & Galloway

65. The Bull Freehouse, Troston, Suffolk

66. The Exmoor Forest Inn, Somerset

67. The Ship Inn, Northumberland

68. The Bell at Selsley, Gloucestershire

69. The Tamil Crown, London

70. The Millbrook Inn, Devon

71. The Drunken Duck Inn, Cumbria

72. The Bull’s Head, Herefordshire

73. Dylan’s at The Kings Arms, Hertfordshire

74. St Kew Inn, Cornwall

75. The Pilgrim, Buckinghamshire

76. The Howard Arms, Warwickshire

77. The White Horse, Churton, Cheshire

78. The Alford Arms, Hertfordshire

79. The Plough, Bolnhurst, Bedfordshire

80. The Cotley Inn, Somerset

81. The Cornish Arms, Tavistock, Devon

82. Kilchrenan Inn, Argyll & Bute

83. The Red Lion, Isle of Wight

84. The Greyhound Inn, Letcombe Regis, Oxfordshire

85. The Halfway at Kineton, Gloucestershire

86. The Crown, Hastings, East Sussex

87. The Bonnie Badger, East Lothian

88. The Owl Hawnby, North Yorkshire

89. The Blind Bull, Little Hucklow, Derbyshire

90. The Surprise, London

91. The Leicester Arms, Kent

92. The Old Eyre Arms, Derbyshire

93. The Dartmoor Inn, Lydford, Devon

94. The Longs Arms, Wiltshire

95. The New Inn, Herefordshire

96. The Duck at Yeoford, Devon

97. White Horse, Lincoln, Lincolnshire

98. The Gurnard’s Head, Cornwall

99. The Manor House Inn, Somerset

100. The Bunch of Grapes, Rhondda, Pontypridd