It’s my first guide of 2025, and I don’t know about you but I’m fired up for another year of good eating and drinking!
Read on to find out what’s opening this month, where you can celebrate Valentine’s Day, or where you can just enjoy a good munch. Let me know over on Instagram where you decide to go!
News
Let’s start with some awards and accolades; SquareMeal named BANK in Totterdown in their list of the UK’s Top 100 Restaurants for 2025, and the restaurant was also named as a Best Restaurant finalist at Trencherman’s Awards 2025, well done team!
Other in Bedminster was added to the Michelin Guide after less than a year of trading, and Farro was named among the best bakeries in the UK by British Baker magazine.
Bristol Beer Factory are now offering tours of their new brewery in Ashton, with slots available from April. Tickets are £25 and include a two-hour tour of the brewery with three pints from the onsite tanks, plus discounted drinks at the North Street Tap Room afterwards!
There’s a new Wine Quiz at Canteen on Stokes Croft for you oenophiles! This event is free to attend and includes free wine and lots of top wine facts, plus some questions to test your knowledge.
Good Chemistry Brewing are starting their 10 year anniversary celebrations this month with a series of events, from She Drinks Beer at The Good Measure Tuesday 4th Feb (or at The Kings Head on 4th March), to a tap takeover at the Greenbank in Easton on Thur 20th (which is their Kokomo launch weekend, so keep your eyes peeled for other events at Bristol venues and maybe even a pub crawl).
Festivals
Whiskey lovers should head over to Paintworks on Sat 8th for Exploring Whisky: Bristol, where for £36+bf you can enjoy as many drams as your heart desires from a range of brands. Food vendors will also be on site to line your stomach.
The first release of tickets for this year’s Feast On have go on sale, following the announcement of their 2025 line-up, including food from 40+ traders, talks and panel discussions, live music and more. This year’s traders include Pasture, The Granary, Pizza is Lovely, Caper & Cure, Gourmet Warriors, Danny’s Burgers, The Bank Tavern, Koocha Mezze Bar, Wangs, Nadu and Snobby’s – and there are still more announcements to come!
Valentine’s Day
Looking for some last minute date night ideas?
- Chocolate & wine tasting at Le Vignoble (Wed 12th, £35pp)
- Valentine’s Sip & Paint at Wiper and True Taproom (Wed 12th, £30)
- Wine Love: Cheese & wine tasting at KASK (Wed 12th, £40)
- 5-course Valentine’s menu at Second Floor Restaurant (£60pp)
- Valentine’s Dinner in the Dark Special (13th, £44.95)
- 6-course Valentine’s tasting menu at No.4 Clifton Village (£65pp)
- Valentine’s dinner with live jazz at Clifton Observatory (14th + 15th, £65pp)
- The Perfect Date at The Olive Shed (Sat 15th, £100)
- Valentine’s Day set menu at Racks (£30 for 2 courses, £34 for 3 courses)
Dinners
Here are some other special dining events taking place this month…
- Thu 6th – Caper & Cure 6 course tasting menu
- Fri 14th – Galentines bottomless bubbles at Pizza on the Park (£35)
- Fri 21st & Sat 22nd – Murder Mystery Dinner at Clifton Observatory (£40)
- Sat 22nd – Thai dinner at Coexist Community Kitchen (£35)
Tours, tastings & workshops
Learn or try something new over the next few weeks!
- Wed 5th – They Did What? wine tasting at KASK, £35
- Thu 6th – Pickling & Fermenting class at Coexist, £55
- Fri 7th – Jazz and Wine at Averys, £25
- Fri 7th – Gin Lover’s Masterclass at Psychopomp, £30
- Sat 8th – Tempering & Bar Moulding at Zara’s Chocolates, £55
- Tue 11th – Cheese & wine matching at The Scrandit, £45
- Wed 12th – Wine tasting at Carmen St Wine, £25
- Wed 12th – Sri Lankan Cookery Class at Coexist, £45
- Wed 12th – Whisky Tasting with Berry Bros. & Rudd at Spirited, £25
- Wed 12th – Wine Love: Cheese & wine tasting at KASK, £40
- Wed 12th – Chocolate & wine tasting at Le Vignoble, £25
- Thu 13th – Spanish tapas class at The Pony Chew Valley, £110
- Thu 13th – Ultimate Rum Experience at Old Castle Green, £30
- Fri 14th – Cook the perfect steak cookery class at The Pony Chew Valley, £75
- Fri 14th – Gin Lover’s Masterclass at Psychopomp, £30
- Sat 15th – Hotspots & Hidden Treasures food tour, £60
- Sat 15th – Speciality Coffee Brewing Masterclass, £50
- Sat 15th – Hong Kong Cookery Class at The Mazi Project, £45
- Sun 16th – Tarot & wine at KASK, £25
- Tue 18th – Gamay wine tasting & steak tartare at Cave, £45
- Wed 19th – Whisky Tasting with Cotswolds Distillery at Spirited, £25
- Wed 19th – One Night in Venice wine tasting at KASK, £35
- Sat 22nd – Wapping Wharf Street Food Tour, £30
- Tue 25th – No knead sourdough & pizza class at The Pony Chew Valley, £130
- Tue 25th – Grand Tour de France wine tasting at The Scrandit, £40
- Tue 25th – Fermentation Class at The Sundial Kitchen, £18
- Tue 25th – Kurdish Cookery Class at The Mazi Project, £45
- Tue 25th – Wines of Central Italy tasting, £35
- Wed 26th – Scotch Whisky Tasting with North Star Spirits at Spirited, £25
- Fri 28th – Spanish cookery class and wine tasting at Coexist, £75
- Fri 28th – Discover Mexican cooking at The Pony Chew Valley, £110
New places
Newly open in the city are: Mayflower in Broadmead, Frankie’s fried chicken and waffles on North Street, Elea Greek restaurant on Gloucester Road.
You can also now visit Jaded Dragon Chinese-inspired baiju and cocktail bar on Whiteladies Road, Loki Poke in St Nicholas Market, Hatter House cafe in Broadmead and The Pickled Parrot micro pub in St George.
Wapping Wharf is also seeing a raft of new openings: The Pancake Man and Port o’ Bristol wine bar and shop are both already open – the former does a range of sweet and savoury GF pancakes to take away, while Port o’ Bristol specialise in sustainable and high quality wines brought to the city by sail ship. Coming soon are Gurt Wings with their delicious fried chicken and tater tots in mid Feb, as well as contemporary French cooking at Lapin (from the team behind the award-wining BANK) in spring.
Coming in the next few weeks are Veburger on Whiteladies Road, Catley’s bakery in St Annes, and Mother’s Chewin’ cafe on St Nicholas Street.
A little further down the line, Burra are opening their third cafe in the former Bar Chocolat in Clifton Village, and the brilliant Niji Sushi are moving from The Galleries (last day 16th Feb) and reopening nearby on Union St in March.
Little Bagel Co. are coming to Baldwin St, and Jamaya will be bringing jerk chicken and rum to Millennium Walk.
Coming in April 2025 is The Key Cafe on Gloucester Road, a cafe that will be staffed by recently released prisoners as part of a rehabilitation project. I’ve long been an admirer of the successful Clink restaurants which employ people still serving time in prison.
If you found this or any of the other guides useful, you can shout me a coffee to say cheers if you like – it’s always appreciated!
That’s it for this month, let me know what you’re planning on booking over on Threads, see what I’m eating on Instagram or see the latest local food news by following A Life Less Organised on Facebook.
If you like this, you’ll also like:
- The Best Brunches in Bristol
- Food & Drink Offers (set menus, bottomless brunch and more)
- Country Pubs Near Bristol
A Life Less Organised 