4 Best Restaurants in Salisbury, The South

Both the taste and presentation of its creative dishes have been winning rave reviews for this family-run, centrally located restaurant. Produce is largely fresh and local; meats and poultry are free-range and sustainably farmed. There's a six-course set-price tasting menu for sharing as well as shared plates that allow diners to sample a broader mix of dishes. Options might include roast cod with oyster mushrooms in a green curry cream, venison haunch with walnuts, and pigeon breast with roast celeriac.

For a refreshingly modern take on Indian cuisine, try this bustling restaurant a few minutes from the town center. Classic recipes are taken as starting points for the artistically presented dishes, which include tandoori breast of guinea fowl with fenugreek sauce, pistachio chicken korma with sweet basil and clove, and a Singapore-style chickpea and baby eggplant curry (part of an extensive vegetarian selection). A two-course seasonal set lunch and an early evening set menu offer good value. The setting is contemporary and cosmopolitan, and service by staff in traditional dress is friendly and prompt. Live performances by a musician or dancer occasionally take place at dinner.

Part of a chain specializing in quick, nourishing meals, this relaxed café in a 14th-century former inn allegedly once patronized by Shakespeare, Cromwell, and Pepys serves hot and cold breakfasts, lunches, and afternoon snacks. Choices include cheeseburgers served with bacon and fried egg, a Moving Mountains beetroot, mushroom, and soy version, or a sweet corn hash with halloumi, avocado, and poached egg. You can eat upstairs in the spectacular Tudor great hall or in the quieter side room.

A former grain mill, Fisherton Mill houses independent shops as well as artists' studios and a gallery showcasing paintings, sculptures, textiles, jewelry, and all manner of crafts. Enjoy a light lunch or Wiltshire cream tea in the highly regarded café specializing in healthy, home-cooked options. It shuts down for the day at 5.