According to TripAdvisor’s user reviews, the top 10 restaurants as at June 2026 are:

• Mrs Salisbury’s of Maldon – Maldon
• Seafood at Dawn – Mersea Island
• The Peterboat – Leigh-on-Sea
• Yew Tree – Colchester
• Talbooth Restaurant – Dedham
• Smoke And Buns – Southend-on-Sea
• Dog & Pheasant – Colchester
• Central Park Cafe Chelmsford – Chelmsford
• Paper Mill Lock Tearooms – Chelmsford
• Bird & Bean – Frinton-on-Sea

It’s a interesting mix of fine dining and comfort food. Restaurants that produce excellent fine dining, according to the restaurant critics, but did not make the top 10 include Lambard’s Salt House, The New London Restaurant & Lounge and Alec’s Restaurant. Which shows that tastes, and budgets, vary, and any list reflects personal preferences.

We published a post on the top 5 restaurants in Essex according to TripAdvisor in 2024. Only one from that list makes today’s list: Mrs Salisbury’s of Maldon. It was founded in 2014, but takes you back to the 1950s or earlier, as a traditional village tea room.

Best things to do in Essex with kids

Essex offers a wide range of family-friendly attractions, combining wildlife experiences, outdoor adventures, educational days out and classic seaside fun.

Theatres in Essex struggle have very strong competition just south of the county, in London. Local theatres can’t match the glamour and star names of the West End, or the quality of the Royal Shakespeare Company of the National Theatre. Despite that, theatre is thriving in Essex. Here’s our top 10: please do let us know if you disagree.

It’s easy to think that the rise of the Paperless Office will mean the business of document scanning is going to enter a terminal decline. That may happen, but not yet.

Being the Best Essex Football Team is no great achievement, in truth.  There’s only two professional teams in the county who have ever competed in the top 4 divisions: Colchester United.  and Southend United.

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According to Trip Advisor, that is.

There’s some very strong contenders, but our pick is pure Essex and is here.

If you need an Essex company for PAT (Portable Appliance) testing TestSpec could possibly help.

We have a new page on how asbestos became a problem in Essex, and how to fix it.