1. The Brewery Tap

Spitting Feathers started brewing beer on a Cheshire farm in 2005. Three years later, they took over this atmospheric Jacobean feasting hall in the city centre. It's a holistic operation. For instance, spent brewing grains are used to feed the pigs at the farm, which in turn are used in the kitchen, to make the Brewery Tap's moreish black pudding. The food, naturally, is robust stuff tailored to a real-ale market. Tasty dishes like rabbit and chicken pie with mashed potato; calves heart with watercress; or Goosnargh duck terrine with fruit chutney and onion toast, come in man-sized portions. Notably, the Tap even manages to produce a good version of that most reviled affectation: the chunky chip. Stomach lined, work your way through the seven-strong mix of guest and Spitting Feathers' ales (from £2.50).

• Starters from £3.95, sandwiches from £4.50, mains from £6.95. 52-54 Lower Bridge Street, +44 (0)1244 340999; the-tap.co.uk

2. Joseph Benjamin

Run by the Wright brothers - that's chef, Joe, and manager Ben - this delicatessen and (newly expanded) bar and restaurant is a first-rate modern food hub. Whether picking up a takeaway salad box (from £3.75), or eating-in, their ethos - sharp treatment of quality produce - shines through. Those on tight budgets may find the evening mains, such as half rotisserie chicken with chips, gravy and aioli, a little expensive (from £10.50), but by day there are various snackier options - their ciabatta bacon rolls (£3.95) are great. Later, chow on gourmet sandwiches, deli platters and (between 3pm-6pm, from £2.50) light bites like tortilla and salad or pâté and toast. Excellent coffee, too.

• Lunch dishes from £5.60. 140 Northgate Street, +44 (0)1244 344295; josephbenjamin.co.uk.

3. Chez Jules

With its red check tablecloths and pork rillettes, Chez Jules pays reverent homage to the classic French bistro, but on a brasserie scale. Prices are keen, the cooking is reliably good, and consequently this warm, buzzy space is one of Chester's busiest restaurants. At lunch, you can eat two courses - say, chicken liver parfait with caramelised Cointreau and orange compote, followed by grilled sardines in a Provençale tomato sauce - for £8.50. The Tuesday night deal, two courses and a bottle of house wine for £15, is legendary. Book ahead.

• Lunch, two courses, £8.50. 71 Northgate Street, +44 (0)1244 400014; chezjules.com.

4. The Terrace at Number Ten

There are times at the height of summer, and particularly on race days, when you cannot move in Chester. At such times, you need a bolthole sufficiently off the main drag as to remain civilised. Number Ten is just the job. All glamorous antique furniture and candelabra, it's a stylish, very Chester kind of place, made all the more appealing by some surprisingly democratic pricing. A brunch dish of eggs benedict (£5.95) is well executed, the hollandaise sharp and creamy, the eggs perfectly poached, the ham tasty, real pig. A lunchtime soup and sandwich combo (£6.95) is one of several "deals" on offer, although the brasserie menu proper starts at a reasonable £8.95 for dishes like sausage and "creamed potato" and moules mariniere. Wines by-the-glass from £3.50. Friendly, accommodating staff.

• Starters from £3.95, mains from £8.95. 10 Commonhall Street, +44 (0)1244 313258; theterraceatnumberten.co.uk.

5. Delikate

Katie Hughes packs a lot into this small, quirkily decorated space. From beers brewed at nearby Dunham Massey to paella rice, Uppercrust's gourmet pies to champagne, pretty much every gastronomic base is covered. There are a handful of seats in the corner, where you can eat in, but the majority of Delikate's regulars pop in for interesting takeaway sandwiches, fresh, homemade soups and good-looking hot, boxed meals. Delikate's cup cakes, made locally by Katja Harrison, who trained at Manhattan's Cupcake Cafe, also have a loyal following (from £1.95).

• Sandwiches from £2.50, hot meals from £3. 11 Handbridge, +44 (0)1244 677112; delikate.co.uk.

6. 1539

This crisp, modern restaurant, overlooking Chester's Roodee racecourse, was, until recently part of chef Paul Heathcote's regional empire (it's now run by the racecourse itself). It is a restaurant very much made in Heathcote's modern British, regional, seasonal image. Each afternoon (until 5pm), in the Ruinart room, you can enjoy the likes of Cheshire Smokehouse smoked salmon, with lemon and capers, an upmarket steak sandwich, using meat from the Vale of Clwyd, or a substantive afternoon tea (£10.50). As for the restaurant proper, Sunday lunch is particularly good value (£25 for two people, two courses).

• Dishes from £4 (Ruinart At The Roof, afternoons). The Racecourse, +44 (0)1244 304611; restaurant1539.co.uk.

7. La Brasserie

For travellers on a tight budget, there is often a trade-off between eating lots and eating well. The cheaper brunch, bakery and light bite snacks on the menu at La Brasserie won't fill a gaping hunger hole, but they are an affordable way of inveigling yourself into this very comfortable Francophile restaurant and lounge at the five-star Grosvenor hotel. The pairing of a wedge of Appleby's Cheshire cheese with a warm, richly-spiced Eccles cake, may be driven more by county pride than impeccable culinary logic - a tart Lancashire cheese would be more suitable - but, with its cheffy swirl of clean apple puree, it's a stylish plate of food that, even at £5.25, is good value. You could certainly pay more, to eat worse, in less grand surrounds. Treat yourself.

• Snacks from £2.95. Eastgate, +44 (0)1244 895618; chestergrosvenor.co.uk.

8. Watergate Deli

Note to visitors: a "row" address refers to the upper tier of shops on Chester's famously two-tiered streets. That will help you find Watergate, a busy eat-in/takeaway cafe with a modest selection of delicatessen goods (Nudo oils, Steenberg seasonings etc). Sandwiches and salad boxes - dressed seasonal leaves and vegetables, homemade cous-cous and coleslaw, topped with meats, cheeses, tuna, hummus and the like (£3.50) - are the main offer. Otherwise, wash down a slice of decent homemade cake with a pot of Yorkshire tea (£1.50, coffee from £1.60). Points deducted for having to listen to the Lighthouse Family whilst eating.

• Sandwiches from £2.60 (takeaway), filled rolls from £3.95 (eat-in). 53 Watergate Row, +44 (0)1244 323502.

9. Blue Moon Cafe

Of several eateries that line a very pleasant stretch of the River Dee, Blue Moon is the most interesting. A retro homage to the coffee bars of the 50s and 60s it's packed with vintage memorabilia, from old covers of Picturegoer Magazine to Beatles' artworks. The menu - whilst taking in such exotica as Sardinian fish stews or the Spanish ham and chorizo casserole, potaje - harks back, in its way, to a time of fuss-free home cooking. If you crave nostalgia, try the liver and onions, "scouse" or the corned beef hash with two fried eggs (£5.95). What the latter lacked in finesse it more than made up for in taste. You could well imagine Albert Finney's Arthur Seaton wolfing down a plateful in Saturday Night & Sunday Morning, before a big night on the town.

• Light bites from £3.95, meals from £5.50. 23 The Groves, +44 (0)1244 322481; bluemooncafe.eu.

10. Telford's Warehouse

In a city that often looks and feels like an open-plan episode of Hollyoaks, Telford's is as close as it gets to "alternative". With its slightly out-of-the-way canalside location, interesting modern art displays, basement gig venue, and its sizeable selection of real ales and European beers, it is at both a literal and metaphorical remove from the designer-clad city-centre. The menu is a crowd-pleasing mix of homemade burgers, pastas, freshly cooked Thai curries, salads and wraps.

Starters from £3.95, sandwiches and mains from £5.95. Canal Basin, Tower Wharf, +44 (0)1244 390090; telfordswarehousechester.com