Restaurants in Ormskirk and Peckforton pick up a clutch of rosettes
ONLY four months after achieving their third rosette, Moor Hall in Ormskirk, Lancashire has been awarded four AA Rosettes - the only restaurant to be awarded this accolade in January’s set of honours.
The Automobile Association has been awarding rosettes to the best UK restaurants since 1956 as a mark of excellence in hospitality. The multi rosettes are handed out twice a year, in January and September, determined by one or more visits by an AA inspector.
Over 2000 venues, from village inns to smart city restaurants and country hotels are visited regularly in the hope of being listed in the well-respected travel guide.
Rosettes range from one to five rosettes; the latter being the absolute pinnacle of quality (only thirteen UK restaurants currently hold five) where the cooking compares with the best in the world.
The latest awards were announced on 22 January 2018, with 1851 Restaurant at Peckforton Castle, Tarporley, also awarded three rosettes.
Moor Hall opened in March 2017 and managed to win a coveted Michelin star within months, thanks to the excellent dishes (review here) produced by chef Mark Birchall and his team.
In September, they opened The Barn – a ‘more accessible’, casual restaurant in an adjacent building (read more here). Fruit, vegetables, herbs and edible blooms are all grown in the surrounding gardens and plans are on going for an onsite dairy, charcuterie and microbrewery.
Stephen Wilkinson, Area Manager at AA Hotel & Hospitality Services said, “Mark’s food continues to evolve but the focus has always been on balance and clarity of flavour whilst sourcing the best core ingredients. The team has an impressive kitchen garden which is a key resource for many dishes”.
Further into Cheshire, 1851 Restaurant at Peckforton Castle was one of only eight newly awarded three AA Rosette restaurants.
The AA guide commends its, 'slick and stylish dining room matches the modern thinking in the kitchen, with its sparkling glassware and cutlery and a shimmering wall of wine bottles as you enter. Chef Jason Hodnett has a knack for coaxing out the max from flavours...'
