If you’re into your Michelin-star food, take a look at these North East and Yorkshire restaurants that have retained their star for 2018. The Michelin Guide also features 27 new Bib Gourmands – chosen for their good-quality and good-value cooking – with four new additions from the region making the list in this edition. So there’s plenty of choice to add to your foodie bucket list this year.
TWO STARS
UNFUSSY FOOD
The Raby Hunt, in Summerhouse, Darlington, is housed in a 200-year-old Grade II- listed building and serves one menu of modern, unfussy food. This year has seen the launch of the Kitchen Table, where up to six diners per sitting are able to take a front row seat in the kitchen while owner and chef James Close and his team prepare an intimate 15-course tasting menu. rabyhuntrestaurant.co.uk
1 STAR
CREATIVE CUISINE
Owned and run by The Banks Family, who have lived and farmed around Oldstead for many generations, The Black Swan at Oldstead focuses on traditional Yorkshire food. Chef Tommy Banks offers a tasting menu of the best produce for that day, with a lot of the ingredients straight from The Black Swan’s garden, alongside produce that has been preserved from previous seasons. blackswanoldstead.co.uk
RELAXED DINING
James and Kate Mackenzie took over the Pipe and Glass Inn in 2006, rapidly transforming it into a warm, welcoming and award-winning pub with rooms. Relaxed dining options are available at the bar, while the restaurant is airy and elegant. Menus include lunch, dinner, specials, little people and Sunday lunch – and there’s even a take away menu where you can enjoy Michelin-starred food in the comfort of your own home. Afternoon tea is also available and wines are sourced directly from a family-run vineyard in Hérault, France. pipeandglass.co.uk
ECCENTRIC AND UNIQUE
Expect something different at The Man Behind The Curtain in Leeds. The Permanent Collection menu is served as a set tasting menu of between 10 and 14 courses, for tables of up to five people, and features Michael O’Hare’s eccentric and unique dishes such as hand-massaged octopus, coconut-roasted langoustine and txangurro (spider crab). themanbehindthecurtain.co.uk
FRESH AND SEASONAL
Just a stone’s throw away from Newcastle’s Tyne Bridge, House of Tides is a 60-cover restaurant in a 16th-Century merchant’s town house owned by Kenny and Abbie Atkinson. The building has been beautifully restored, and guests can enjoy a pre-dinner drink on the rustic ground floor before venturing to the first floor for the main event. A lunch menu is available Friday-Saturday and dinner from Tuesday-Saturday, with a tasting menu that showcases the freshness and seasonality of the ingredients. houseoftides.co.uk
AWARD-WINNING TEAM
A visit to the Nidderdale Valley wouldn’t be complete without stopping at The Yorke Arms, where chef Frances Atkins works her magic with the award-winning kitchen team. Menus are constantly changing and follow the arc of the seasons to tempt diners back time and time again. The restaurant, which has held a Michelin star since 2003, uses ingredients from the kitchen garden, the Yorkshire moors and the coast. Flavour and freshness is key. yorke-arms.co.uk
FRENCH AND FRESH
The Box Tree in Ilkley is steeped in culinary history. It was originally a Yorkshire farmhouse before becoming an antique shop and tearoom, and a fine-dining restaurant since the 1960s. Renowned chefs Michael Truelove, Edward Denny and Marco Pierre White have cooked up a storm here, and now, executive chef Simon Gueller leads the way with a combination of 21stCentury efficiency, modern French style and fresh, locally sourced ingredients. theboxtree.co.uk
MODERN MENU
Andrew Pern takes the helm at The Star Inn at Harome where his modern Yorkshire style of cooking focuses on regional and seasonal ingredients. You’ll find this restaurant on the edge of the North Yorkshire Moors, a few miles from Helmsley. There’s an à la carte menu, seasonal tasting menu and Sunday lunch menu. If you want to go all out, book The Star Inn Famous ‘Foodie Feast’ Break and enjoy a two-night DB&B break. thestaratharome.co.uk
Retained Bib Gourmand (Offering highquality products and services and good value for the money)
INDIAN VEGETARIAN
Indian vegetarian cuisine doesn’t get any better than Prashad in Drighlington. This familyrun restaurant uses authentic North Indian vegetarian recipes, handed down for generations, along with new and creative ideas from head chef Minal Patel. prashad.co.uk
MEAT AND FISH
Chadwicks Inn Maltby is found in a quite village on the edge of the North Yorkshire Moors. The restaurant team source the best ingredients for the dishes, using local suppliers as much as possible. Dishes are predominately meat and fish based, but there is a dedicated vegetarian menu too. chadwicksinnmaltby.co.uk
BRITISH CUISINE
Part of the 21 Hospitality Group, The Broad Chare offers honest, British home-cooked food, mouth-watering bar snacks, and a fantastic range of beers. Tuck into spicy black pudding, crispy duck leg or bubble ‘n’ squeak or the hearty Dish of the Day such as mince and dumplings. thebroadchare.co.uk
TOP CATCH
River Cafe on the Tyne is situated on the Fish Quay in North Shields and uses its location to its advantage with a seafood-heavy menu of dishes such as steamed mussels, North Shields crab salad, and the River Café catch of the day. rivercafeonthetyne.co.uk
New Bib Gourmand
MODERN INDIAN DISHES
Combining classical and traditional Indian recipes, Haveli in Ponteland serves fresh and carefully crafted dishes in a contemporary setting. Signature dishes include Murgh Makhani (Old-Delhi-style butter chicken) and Gosht Awadhi (braised Northumbrian lamb in a mild onionbased gravy and garnished with edible silver leaf). haveliponteland.com
FEAST ON FISH
To many, The Staith House’s Bib Gourmand is long overdue, as this is a very popular gastropub on North Shield’s Fish Quay. Enjoy the Feast of Fish and Shellfish tasting menu showcasing the finest seasonal produce from the Fish Quay. thestaithhouse.co.uk
SMALL PLATES
Forward-thinking small plates are the order of the day at urban restaurant Jöro in Sheffield. Pick from the eight or 10 course tasting menus or order dish by dish as you go. Try the barbecued Norwegian mackerel. jororestaurant.co.uk
INTERNATIONAL INFLUENCES
Skosh is having a very good year. Newly added to the Good Food Guide 2018, it’s also been awarded a Bib Gourmand. Defined as contemporary British cooking with an international influence, the menu is in the form of snacks and small plates. skoshyork.co.uk
Image © Andrew Hayes for The Black Swan at Oldstead
