Restaurants in Lincoln: No38 at The Tower
This month we’re enjoying a return visit to No.Thirty8 at The Tower Hotel off Westgate where Finn Dillon, Craig Wilkes and the team all offer exceptional à la carte dishes as well as table d’hôte dining that offers quality and value
In the centre of Lincoln, Westgate Water Tower is nearly 115 years old, 36 metres or 1174ft tall and it has a tank that can hold 1,350,000 litres of water. The tower was commissioned by Lincoln Corporation officials and the water board, and it was constructed for the very practical reason of providing fresh drinking water for the city, ensuring Lincoln was no longer reliant on the mucky water of Hartsholme Lake and the Witham.
In the mid-20th century such a build would probably have ended up a hulking anonymous block of concrete, austere and functional. But this was back when Britain could still show a bit of flair, and so instead the architect Reginald Bloomfield was enlisted. He created the now Grade II listed Baroque revival tower with fancy fleurs-de-lys relief and the city arms carved in a cartouche on the south elevation.
Still in use today, the water tower is very much a practical building, serving the city with about seven million litres of its water supply each day, but it’s also a great looking building, prove that form and function can exist harmoniously.
Another example of that is in the dishes that Craig Williams has been creating next door as Head Chef in the kitchens of No.Thirty8, at The Tower Hotel on Westgate. Dishes are well considered in terms of their ingredients and flavours, but also presented with grace, looking absolutely fantastic when they arrive at the table.
The Tower Hotel was created as a car garage in the halcyon days of motoring, a purpose which endured before local builder Jim Andrew converted it in 1990. His daughter Philippa Creasey wanted to run a B&B or something similar, so the creation of The Tower Hotel was a little more ambitious than she was anticipating, but she rose to the challenge and today the hotel is owned and managed by her son Finn Dillon and the family.
Adjacent to Lincoln Castle on Westgate, there are 15 bedrooms for guests, a really cosy bar and a dedicated restaurant with about 45 covers in all. A terrace in the summer months is a sun trap in the centre of the city, and the hotel’s accommodation has earned three AA stars for its accommodation plus two rosettes for its dining.
For the past two years the Craig has been in charge of the kitchen and in 2024 he was joined by his brother Liam who had spent a couple of year travelling, returning with lots of inspiration including the addition of the Thai-inspired roasted halibut dish pictured above.
Otherwise, the menu comprises European and British dishes with lots of local suppliers favoured and a focus on flavours and on chefcraft ensuring imaginative dishes, that are well-executed and consistent.
The hotel is, of course, open to non-residents and a visit soon is recommended. We’ll start with the all-day menu, which includes a few nibbles, a range of quality sandwiches and sides, as well as four starter dishes and five main courses, plus four desserts. Running during both lunchtime and evening service, the à la carte menu provides five dishes more in depth in their preparation. There are five starter options, four main courses and desserts.
However, we’ll also draw your attention to No.Thirty8’s table d’hôte menu which was reintroduced after the hotel’s festive menus ended.
This menu offered from Monday-Friday during daytime service and Monday-Thursday in the evening provides two courses for £22 or three courses for £25. The team says that whilst the à la carte dishes change seasonally, the TDH menu changes weekly – sometimes more frequently than that – affording more flexibility to the team and enabling them to create dishes with ingredients that their trusted supplied identify as especially good that day.
The TDH menus allow the team to be creative and also offer diners the chance to try dishes currently in development such as a sea bass dish during our visit with its lobster bisque and samphire… we hope that particular dish will make it onto the à la carte menus permanently as we’re certain it’ll be popular.
Local suppliers are very well represented across both table d’hôte and à la carte menus with just about everything prepared in the kitchens, from desserts and sauces to ice creams. The exception is bread which the kitchen team source from Saxilby-based Vines Bakery with their range of artisan sourdough loaves, focaccia and ciabatta.
Otherwise the Ruskington-based butcher Mel Ward provides meat, including the 12-hour roast beef and rump of lamb served on a dedicated Sunday lunch menu. Butchery is also supplied by Derbyshire’s Owen Taylor, whilst fish sourced from Direct Seafood is delivered daily from Grimsby docks.
A constantly-refreshed range of real ales are sourced from smaller craft breweries such as Osset breweries whilst a wine list is curated in conjunction with Hallgarten with ad hoc wine tasting events held throughout the year.
What’s it like, I asked Craig, working in the kitchen with your brother? Very good apparently. He says they get on really well together, and the proof of that is in the dishes that the kitchen produces… they look great, taste brilliant and you really can’t dispute the value of the TDH menu relative to the quality of the dishes that kitchen produces.
In fact, with its great food, lovely team, warm welcome and the feel of the place generally, we reckon No.Thirty8 is one of the best places to dining in Uphill Lincoln, presenting well-executed classic dishes prepared with skill and presented with flair. It’s definitely worth a visit this spring, and whilst you’re there, do take a few minutes to admire Reginald Bloomfield’s handiwork, too.
No.Thirty8 at The Tower Hotel, Westgate, LN1 3BD. Call 01522 529999, or see www.thetowerlincoln.com.
For images of the restaurant’s food and sample menus, read our full feature in the March edition of Lincolnshire Pride at https://issuu.com/pridemagazines/docs/lincolnshire_pride_march_2025