A foodie’s guide to earning Virgin Points with top UK restaurants

Earlier this year, Virgin Red partnered with SquareMeal, the UK’s leading independent restaurant guide for more than 30 years. You can now earn points every time you dine out.

There’s no better feeling than discovering new food you love, and you can experience that feeling with SquareMeal. From the best independent restaurants to the hottest new openings, it can be yours in just a few clicks. From reviews on over 7,000 restaurants and bars and online table bookings, earning points has never been easier for foodies, with squaremeal.co.uk and Virgin Red.

Sean Calitz

Top 100 Restaurants list

SquareMeal has announced the best restaurants the UK has to offer. With two lists, one for London, SquareMeal’s London Top 100 shines a spotlight on the Capital’s greatest places to eat, as voted for by both critics and diners. For food lovers outside the Capital, the second, SquareMeal’s UK Top 100, is the only one of its kind to allow the wider UK’s dining scene to truly shine.

SquareMeal

Using a combination of thousands of reader votes and SquareMeal’s own expert critics, the UK Top 100 Restaurants list is a true reflection of Britain’s beautifully varied dining scene - featuring everything from fine dining experiences through to farm-to-table restaurants and gastropubs. Each eatery is truly unique but all have one thing in common - an unmissable menu.

The winners - Osip, Somerset

Somerset restaurant Osip came out on top as the UK’s best restaurant. This tiny farm-to-table gem is located in the village of Bruton and is owned by ex-head chef of London favourites Portland and Clipstone, Merlin Labron-Johnson. 

Sean Calitz

The 22-cover restaurant is housed in a charming stone building which used to be the village ironmonger and brings top-quality cooking to this idyllic rural spot. 

Chef Founder of Osip Merlin Labron-Johnson said:

“It’s a huge honour to be awarded No1 in SquareMeal’s top 100 UK restaurants. I’m so grateful to my team, and the amazing local suppliers we work with who have been so integral to achieving this accolade. I’m really proud that this has been voted for by genuine, passionate people who love what we’re doing at Osip, so it truly does mean a lot."

Sean Calitz

Sean Calitz

Sean Calitz

The winners - BiBi, London

Chef Patron Chet Sharma has a seriously impressive CV, having completed a PhD in physics and worked at L’Enclume, Moor Hall and The Ledbury before opening BiBi last year. 

Stepping out from the side-lines and into the spotlight, chef Chet Sharma’s debut solo venture, BiBi,  is a confident addition to the Mayfair dining scene. Having sensed a gap in the market for contemporary Indian food made with best-of-British ingredients, his menu delivers plate after plate of vibrant fare. 

Sean Calitz

Sean Calitz

Sean Calitz

Chef Patron Chet Sharma shared: 

"Winning this award is a huge achievement for us at BiBi and made all the more special as we are still so early on in our journey. It drives us to work harder, to keep creating, innovating and looking after our guests the best we can. Thank you to SquareMeal and to our incredible team at BiBi." 

Sean Calitz

Sean Calitz

Sean Calitz

How can you earn with SquareMeal and Virgin Red?

Good things come in threes; points for a delicious meal, points for linking your payment card, and points for an enlightening review for your fellow foodies!

Earn Virgin Points* for pizza, puri or peking duck! But how much could you earn?

• 100 points for making a reservation and dining at your chosen restaurant

• 100 - 3000+ points each time you spend £20 or more in one of SquareMeal’s participating restaurants with your linked payment card

• 25 points for your opinion by leaving a review of your experience

The small print

*Your side of Virgin Points are only awarded at participating restaurants. 

You can earn 100 Virgin Points for making and completing your restaurant reservation through the SquareMeal website. 

You can earn 100-3000+ Virgin Points each time you spend £20 or more using a linked payment card to pay for your meal, so make sure you check in advance on the SquareMeal website to see if your chosen restaurant has available card linked offers. 

You can also earn 25 Virgin Points for leaving a review on the SquareMeal website after your restaurant visit; these will only be awarded for reviews of restaurant visits booked through the SquareMeal website. 

The points earned will show on your Virgin Red account within 30 days of your visit.