The rules of fine dining have been turned upside down. There is no longer any need for dressing up or a starched tablecloth, and eating out in British restaurants is now officially an informal occasion.

This is the verdict of Harden’s UK Restaurant Guide 2008, the popular, food-lovers’ directory, which is published today.

It has even turned away from traditional Michelin-starred outlets to crown a modern bistro in Reigate, Surrey, as the winner of this year’s excellence award from Rémy Martin, the cognac producer, which is chosen in association with the guide.

This may all be too much to stomach for some food snobs, but the guide is in no doubt that those in search of a good reasonable meal should head for The Westerly in Reigate town centre. It has triumphed as a smart but informal eatery where prices are geared for the middle market.

These days the town is dubbed the “new Wimbledon” by estate agents, as city professionals move into the well-heeled, leafy suburbs to raise their families. However, they are used to eating out regularly.

Harden’s suggests that the average meal for one person at The Westerly would cost £36 for three courses, half a bottle of house wine and coffee. The restaurant does not charge for service, but the guide has included a 10 per cent tip in the price.

Richard Harden, co-editor of the guide, said: “This is an excellent neighbourhood bistro and is exactly what we should be trying to cultivate in dining out. I admit it is not something we normally go for, which has tended to be restaurants charging over £75 a head. But we seek to be a democratic guide and our 1,800 regulars who report to us on restaurants are championing informal middle-of-the-road places.

“This is a sign of the times. Smart-casual is the order of the day. You already see it in London – the only people dressed up in restaurants these days are people on business or provincials up in town.

“Most people going out to dinner no longer regard it as a super-special event, which is great and how it should be.”

The Westerly is run by Jon and Cynthia Coomb, with Jon in charge of the kitchen. The couple originally built up a following in the area when they managed the Michelin-rated Stephan Langton restaurant in Dorking.

Mr Coomb, 40, who trained as a chef with a banqueting company used by City livery companies, said that he was thrilled by the award. The Westerly opened only in January, but since then Mr Coomb has had a regular clientele of about 40 on week nights and up to 50 on Fridays and Saturdays. He said: “We have created the type of place we like to go to. We are serious foodies but we don’t put any emphasis on the ceremony of fine dining. We go under the banner of modern bistro.” Mr Coomb suggested that too many young chefs were aiming for a dazzling market, trying too hard for a Michelin star and then missing out on the middle market. He said that his approach was to keep prices down so that people would come back twice a month.

“A neighbourhood restaurant must be accessible,” he said. “We need people to come back. We don’t even add service to the bill, though people do tip our staff. We prefer undergarnish rather than flamboyant.”

Priced for success

Winners of the 2008 Rémy Martin awards included:

The Westerly Reigate £36*
Acorn House King’s Cross £40
Barrafina Soho £49
El Faro Isle of Dogs £34
Magdalen Southwark £40
Scott’s Mayfair £58
The Glasshouse at Eskmills Musselburgh £35
Zutshi’s at The Toll Bar Fowey, Cornwall £32
El Gato Negro Ripponden, West Yorkshire £25
Hipping Hall Kirkby Lonsdale, Cumbria £58
Shanghai 30’s Oxford £35

* Prices for a three-course dinner for one person with half a bottle of house wine, coffee and service or a 10 per cent tip

Source: Harden’s UK Restaurant Guide 2008

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