Cambridge is the perfect destination for a city break. There is history and architecture at every turn, from the classical colleges to the crooked, timber-framed pubs. The river meanders through the city, crowded with punts and rowers as well as resident swans and geese. And while there’s plenty for visitors to see, if you want to spend all day under a willow tree with a Cambridge gin and tonic, that’s fine too.

WHERE TO SLEEP

The University Arms is more than 180 years old and is the city’s oldest, most historic hotel. After a four-year, multi-million-pound renovation, it has reopened wholly transformed. Inspired by academia, the rooms are beautiful, with old-fashioned writing desks, glass drinks tables and framed vintage prints. The east side of the hotel looks out onto the green expanse of Parker’s Piece, which has been used by the city’s residents as a park and playing field for four hundred years. The hotel’s bar and bistro are the go-to drinking and dining spots for those in the know.

On the other side of Parker’s Piece, the Gonville Hotel is far enough from the centre to be a peaceful haven at the end of a long day’s sightseeing. What sets it apart from other Cambridge hotels is the outstanding service; nothing is too much trouble for the attentive staff. Rooms are decorated with botanical-print fabrics and bathrooms come with rain showers and roll-top baths. In 2018, the hotel opened its own luxury ESPA spa Gresham House Wellness, offering a full range of treatments.

for the last 14 years, the menu includes tantalizing offerings like buttermilk poached guinea fowl and hay-crusted pork. There is a focus on local and foraged ingredients, so don’t be surprised to find lovage, wild garlic or purslane in your dish. Owner Daniel Clifford is one of the UK’s most popular chefs, and with creations like baked pineapple and cheesecake ice cream, it’s easy to see why.

Inside the Gonville Hotel, Cotto’s chef is Hans Schweitzer, who earned a Michelin star for his restaurant Table in Germany when he was just 28. He creates exquisite dishes, and, as a former chocolatier, desserts that are akin to works of art.  On the menu right now you’ll find Suffolk venison, Squash Wellington and Iberico pork. Don’t worry if you’re vegan – the kitchen will create a bespoke dish for you.

 If your budget doesn’t stretch to the above, head to Parker’s Tavern in the University Arms Hotel.  When it opened in 2018, chef Tristan Welch thrilled the food critics with a menu of tempting English classics like buttered Dover sole and Duke of Cambridge Tart, as well as more eccentric creations like tandoori roast quail. He’s a keen supporter of local farmers and producers, so you’ll find Suffolk lamb, Cambridge trout and Newmarket smoked salmon on the menu too.

Cambridge is known for sky-high property rents, and as a result, many of the best restaurants are outside the city centre. Around fifteen-minutes’ walk from the river, Mill Road is known locally as the city’s most multicultural street and has a unique mix of foodie places. You’ll find Lebanese food at Lagona, Korean at the tiny, cash-only Bibimbap House and Italian groceries at Limoncello. The best is newly opened Atithi which has a menu of classic dishes from all over India, including North Indian staple Daal Makhani and South Indian Lobster Neerulli. The food is beautifully prepared, rich, and full of flavour.

Athithi on Mill Road in Cambridge

Like many cities, Cambridge caters for a growing number of vegans and vegetarians, and the top choice is vegan-only Stem and Glory.  What started as a crowdfunded restaurant in a Cambridge neighbourhood became one of the city’s most popular eateries, prompting a move to the city centre and a second venue in London. The menu offers everything from vegan curries to cakes and cocktails.  

 Back on Mill Road, you could easily walk past Number 38 and write it off as a vacant shop. In fact, it houses one of Cambridge’s newest restaurants, Vanderlyle. While not strictly vegan or vegetarian, Vanderlyle’s menu is full of vegetables used in imaginative ways. Roast aubergine comes with a black olive caramel sauce, and a semifreddo dessert is made with celeriac and white chocolate. Food is paired with wine, craft beer, and non-alcoholic brews like black tea Kombucha. Owned by ex-Masterchef finalist Alex Rushmer who is devoted to sustainable cooking, at the time of writing it was fully booked for the next month.

WHERE TO DRINK

Restaurants inside houses, places with no signage – you really do have to work hard to find out where to eat and drink in Cambridge. Quirky cocktail bar 196 is yet another great place in a far-flung location. At the bottom end of Mill Road, it is a long schlep from the city centre, but you won’t regret it once you’ve seen the hand-written cocktail list.

 Excellent cocktails can be found in a more central location at members-only club 12A. Despite having a strict policy regarding admission, it’s possible to apply via their website for temporary membership. With welcoming staff, views of the historic Market Square and an 85-strong cocktail list, it beats the city’s hotel bars hands-down.

Aromi in Cambridge

Wine lovers should make a beeline for the Bridge Street Wine Bar near Magdalene Bridge. This is one of the oldest parts of Cambridge, the location of the medieval Quayside where produce was transported in and out of the city. Part wine shop, part wine bar, you can choose from the menu or, for a small corkage fee, buy and drink any bottle from the huge range on the shelves. A handful of tables on the pavement face the bridge and the ramshackle 17th century houses of Magdalene Street.  It’s perfect for watching city life go by on a summer evening.

Pubs have existed in Cambridge for more than 500 years, and many have fascinating histories; the Eagle has an ancient cobbled courtyard and 19th century balustraded gallery, the Pickerel Inn was a haunt of Tolkien and C.S Lewis. When it comes to food and drink however, three stand out. Tucked away behind Bridge Street, the family-run Maypole is part Italian, part English gastropub and has a long list of real ale, craft and Belgian beers. The tiny Free Press is worth seeking out for its superb food and quirky character. Slightly easier to find, Pint Shop 72 in the city centre has a comprehensive craft beer menu written on a chalkboard above the bar, which changes every time a beer runs out.  

COFFEE

Coffee lovers will find plenty of places to satisfy their cravings in Cambridge, but the best is the long-running Aromi, an independent Sicilian cafe on Bene’t Street. Always crammed-full of people, you won’t be able to resist their cannoli or occhi di bue to go with your coffee. And because they have a liquor license, you can pop back later for an Aperol spritz.

FOODIE THINGS TO DO

Until recently, Cambridge didn’t have much to excite foodies. However, the scene has finally begun to flourish, led by innovative chefs and passionate locals who are fervent about their products.  As the evenings grow longer, pop-ups, al-fresco dinners and more are advertized on social media. If you’re here at the weekend, seek out Calverley’s Brewery. Every Thursday, Friday and Saturday, the award-winning brewery opens its taproom until 10.30pm, with tables in the yard and artisan food trucks appearing on rotation.

which is sandwiched between a hairdresser and an outdoor clothing shop on Green Street. Their botanical gin comes from the Cambridge Distillery in Grantchester, three-times winner of ‘Most Innovative Distillery in the World.’ Mix your own bottle or sneak into the backroom for a Truffle Gin and Tonic. You can even attend a molecular cocktail-making class here, run by a Cambridge scientist who mixes drinks on the side. Like the new places appearing in Cambridge right now, it’s slightly cool and under-the-radar – in a geeky sort of way.