50°40′35″N 3°52′26″W / 50.6765°N 3.8740°W
| Gidleigh Park | |
|---|---|
 | |
 | |
| Restaurant information | |
| Owner(s) | Andrew Brownsword |
| Head chef | Chris Eden |
| Food type | Modern British |
| Rating |  5 red stars (The AA) (2011-2016) - Michael Caines (2016-2018) - Michael Caines (2018-2019) - Chris Simpson (2023- ) - Chris Eden |
| City | Chagford |
| County | Devon |
| Country | England |
| Website | Official website |
Gidleigh Park is a 5-star hotel and restaurant located in Gidleigh, near Chagford, Devon, England.[1] The restaurant currently holds 1 Michelin Star and three rosettes from The AA.[2] The hotel belongs to Andrew Brownsword Hotels which was named AA Hotel Group of the Year 2017–18.[3]
Description
edit
Paul and Kay Henderson bought the hotel and restaurant in 1978.[4] The building is a Tudor–style country house set in 107 acres of gardens and woodlands.[5] In 2005, it was bought by entrepreneur Andrew Brownsword who completed a renovation during 2007, refitting both the restaurant and the hotel, adding another ten bedrooms.[5]
Restaurant and chefs
editThe restaurant gained prestige with Michael Caines as head chef (and later executive head chef) from 1994 until 2016.[6] In 2011, the restaurant was awarded with 1 Michelin Star, and then in 2016 with a second star.
From 2009, Caines became executive head chef, overseeing a number of restaurants, whilst Ian Webber remained on site as head chef.[7] Following this, a number of other chefs took over with Michael Wignall joining as Executive Head Chef from 2016 to 2018, coming from The Latymer at Pennyhill Park Hotel,[8] followed by Chris Simpson from Restaurant Nathan Outlaw.[9]
Simpson managed to retain one Michelin star during his tenure, but in 2019 the restaurant lost its remaining star.[10] In that same year Chris Eden joined as Executive Head Chef in September of that year, coming from his role at the Michelin-starred Driftwood in Portscatho, Cornwall.[11] to 2019.[10] Under Eden, the restaurant regained its Michelin Star status in 2023.[12] Eden announced in July 2024 his intention to leave Gidleigh Park,[13] and it was confirmed in September that he would be leaving for the Watergate Bay Hotel in Cornwall.[14]
Reception
editSusan D'Arcy of Times Online reviewed the hotel and restaurant in February 2007. It described the restaurant as offering "some of the best dining in the UK".[15] The food received a score of nine out of ten.[15]
In 2009, the hotel won the "Hotel of the Year award" in the Enjoy England Awards for Excellence. It was the first year that the small and large hotel categories had been absorbed into a single category based on quality.[7] In 2010, it was named as the best restaurant in Britain in the first ever Sunday Times Food List, beating The Fat Duck into second place, and Marcus Wareing at the Berkeley into third.[16]
In 2013, the restaurant won Harden's Sunday Times Restaurant of the Year, along with Wine List of the year and came second for Best Service of the Year[17]
See also
edit- Jesse Dunford Wood, a notable chef trained at Gidleigh Park
References
edit- ^ "Gidleigh Park". AA Rated Trips.
- ^ "Gidleigh Park". Michelin Guide.
- ^ "AA Hotel Group of the Year award | AA". theaa.com.
- ^ "Kay Henderson creator with husband Paul of..." The Caterer. 23 February 2015.
- ^ a b "About Gidleigh Park - Gidleigh Park". gidleigh.co.uk.
- ^ Harmer, Janet (8 October 2015). "Michael Caines to leave Gidleigh Park in January". The Caterer. Retrieved 31 December 2015.
- ^ a b Richardson, Nigel (24 April 2009). "Gidleigh Park: Why this Devon hotel was named England's hotel of the year". The Telegraph.
- ^ "Michael Wignall to leave Gidleigh Park for solo project". bighospitality.co.uk.
- ^ "Former Nathan Outlaw chef Chris Simpson to take reins at Gidleigh Park". bighospitality.co.uk.
- ^ a b Cooper, Joel (9 October 2019). "Swanky Dartmoor hotel Gidleigh Park has lost its Michelin Star". devonlive. Retrieved 16 February 2020.
- ^ Harmer, Janet (24 May 2019). "Chris Eden of Driftwood to join Gidleigh Park as executive head chef". The Caterer. Retrieved 10 October 2019.
- ^ "Gidleigh hotel retains its Michelin star". Okehampton Times. 14 February 2024.
- ^ Seo, Jungmin (31 July 2024). "Chef Chris Eden to leave Gidleigh Park in Devon". The Caterer.
- ^ Seo, Jungmin (16 September 2024). "Chef Chris Eden swaps Gidleigh Park for Watergate Bay". The Caterer.
- ^ a b D'Arcy, Susan (23 February 2007). "Gidleigh Park, Chagford, Devon". The Times. Retrieved 12 May 2011.[dead link]
- ^ Joint, Laura (1 November 2010). "Michael Caines' Gidleigh Park is named top restaurant". BBC Devon. Retrieved 12 May 2011.
- ^ "Sunday Times Foodlist | Harden's London & UK Restaurant News". hardens.com.