Of all the things humans require for sustenance, food is easily the most fun. The Good Food Guide (GFG) is all about celebrating the joys of eating well, and earlier this week the guidebook revealed its latest recommendations for the finest places to eat across the UK. Here’s the highlights.
The Sportsman in Kent won best overall restaurant, praised by GFG co-editor Elizabeth Carter for maintaining relevance throughout its two-and-a-half-decade lifetime. According to her: ‘This restaurant is rock solid. They’ve never been out of touch with the local food movement. They’re in touch with their customers.’
As well as their first place win, The Sportsman was also awarded an even more exclusive title from the gastronomical guide, that of ‘world class’, joining only three other eateries in the entire country. Those are L’Enclume in Cumbria, Moor Hall in Lancashire and Ynyshir in mid-Wales. To be considered ‘world class’ by the GFG a restaurant has to be ‘pushing the boundaries of what eating in a restaurant is all about.’ Intimidating, eh?
Mountain in London’s Soho was named best new restaurant, and Helmsley and The Howardian Hills in North Yorkshire is officially the country’s most exciting food destination, a title which is vague but enticing. To be clear, this isn’t a restaurant, it’s a Yorkshire moor with multiple bistros nearby. See? Now you’re intrigued.
The restaurants were all measured on four key factors: warmth, deliciousness, uniqueness, and strength of recommendation. Essentially, any restaurants recognised by the awards are at the top of their games and definitely worth checking out.
You can find more info on the London winners here, as well as a full lowdown on winners and nominees on the GFG website here. If you’re looking for a second opinion, have a look at Time Out’s own roundup of the UK’s best restaurants.
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