Latest news with #GoodFoodGuide
Daily Mail
20 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Would you spend £6 on a croissant? (Gen Z does)
Gen Z: Fancy a croissant for breakfast? Boomer: Go on, then. There's a Tesco Finest pack in the bread bin. Be real. I'm nipping to Baaria on Charing Cross Road to buy them fresh. Nipping? It's a 15km round trip. I'll run there, grab two of the £5.45 pistachio croissants and be back in no time. Are they made by a Michelin-starred chef? Baaria was recommended by influencer Emma Pudge in one of her 'Bun Run' series. To me, 'Bun Run' means nipping to the corner shop in my dressing gown. It's where Pudge shares a running route with her 23,000 Instagram followers, which ends at a specific must-try bakery. Does jogging 100 yards down the road and getting a Greggs jam doughnut count? Greggs? Please! That's for Boomers and builders. I'm not sure someone with 'digital vibe curator' on their CV is qualified to make vocation-based judgments. I've told you, a brand's social-media aura matters. Anyway, even The Telegraph says hipster bakeries are the new Gen Z hotspots. Where you eat your pastry barefoot in a shared community space while a man with a nose ring plays the bongos? [Eyeroll] The coolest ones are on The Good Food Guide's list of Britain's 50 best bakeries, which has become a bible for pastry lovers. All 50 must be in East London – the only place pretentious enough for someone to spend a tenner on an 'artisan' eclair. They're actually as far flung as Glasgow. The Guardian says it's creating a whole new travel trend called 'bakery tourism'. In my day, bakery tourism meant strolling down the bread aisle in the Co-op. One Gen Zer told the paper he'd completed a 14-day trek and two ferry hops to reach The Bakehouse in remote Mallaig on the west coast of Scotland. What's on the menu: a cream slice infused with haggis and Irn-Bru? That's actually xenophobic. The fishing village is famous for its hazelnut praline pain suisse. Sounds weirdly French. Anyway, what happened to your generation being skint? According to trade mag British Baker, 80 per cent of us Gen Zers believe a daily sweet treat is important for mental health. More essential than, say, a roof over their heads or a healthy savings account? 'I am held hostage by my need for a daily sweet treat,' one wrote on X. Another said: 'A mid-afternoon sweet treat might actually save my life.' So now we're supposed to be prescribing viennoiseries to you lot on the NHS? It's called self-care. You wouldn't get it. It's exactly how I feel about my 4pm Hobnob and cuppa. It just doesn't cost £8 or require a ten-mile trek across London. Bloomsbury's Fortitude Bakehouse is only down the road, with its delish £4.50 pistachio choux buns. Apparently, there's a 90-minute queue outside after Parkrun on Saturday morning. It's very popular with tourists. It's a cult with icing sugar! A cake and a latte there costs nearly a tenner. It's even pricier if you drink oat milk. What's the point of ordering oat milk when the pastries have enough dairy to milk an entire farm dry? It's eco-friendly, duh. Just like the fuel burned during that 180-mile pilgrimage to the bakery in outer Scotland. Influencer Toby Inskip, better known as Eating With Tod, told his 1.9 million Instagram followers Fortitude's £4.50 nutty crème bun has 'custody of my soul'. Sounds nutty himself. Either that or the bakery has paid him. He'd have to tag his post as an ad.
Leader Live
3 days ago
- Business
- Leader Live
Farndon restaurant up for multiple awards in first year
Restaurant 209 in High Street, Farndon, is celebrating the remarkable run of award nominations and accolades that are putting this young independent on the national map. The restaurant has been recognised across multiple prestigious awards, including several nominations at the Chester Hospitality People Awards including Felix Shore for Best Chef; Carys Shaw as Server of the Year, and Liv Davies in the Rising Star category. In addition, 209 has been nominated for Best Newcomer at the Cheshire Life Food & Drink Awards, and proudly features in the Good Food Guide's Local Restaurant of the Year nomination list – a national recognition of excellence and community connection. Adding to this growing list of achievements, 209 has also earned a place at the very top of the 360° Eat Guide. This accolade measures not only culinary quality but also environmental and ethical responsibility, and they now have a plaque proudly placed at the front door of the former farm building. Anna Roseblade-Shore, co-owner of 209, shared her delight at the nominations and said they always hope to be at the heart of Farndon's food community. She said: 'To be recognised in so many categories, from the skills and passion of our team to our sustainability efforts, is overwhelming in the best way. 'We opened 209 with a clear vision: to bring outstanding food and warm, thoughtful service to our local community, while staying true to our values. Read more 'To see that resonating with guests, critics and our industry peers in just ten months is something we're incredibly proud of.' Nestled in the picturesque Cheshire village of Farndon, at Top Farm, High Street, 209 has quickly become known for its bold seasonal cooking, elegant atmosphere, and exceptional service, all hallmarks of a team that balances fine dining credentials with a fresh, heartfelt approach. With the awards season underway and growing attention from the food world, 209 Restaurant is poised for an exciting future, but remains firmly grounded in the community that helped shape its story.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
'Best place to eat near Oxford station' named in Good Food Guide
A popular Ethiopian restaurant has been named the best place to eat near Oxford's train station by a well-known national food review website. The Good Food Guide has named Lula's Ethiopian Restaurant in Frideswide Square as the best place to eat near Oxford train station, in its definitive guide to eateries for rail travellers in Britain. The restaurant opened in 2021 in the central location run by community interest company Makespace Oxford after serving delicious food for years at Gloucester Green Market, and has won glowing reviews ever since. READ MORE: Oxfordshire recycling centre - smoke plume warning The family-run business owned and founded by Lula Kinnaird offers a range of fresh cooked Ethiopian and Eritrean dishes with a wide selection of vegan vegetarian and gluten-free options. Lula's Ethiopian Restaurant in Frideswide Square, Oxford Reviewers consistently praise the restaurants comfortable setting and community-focused vibe, with an emphasis on friendly service. The Good Food Guide said of the restaurant: "A cheerful celebration of multicultural Oxford, Lula's fits perfectly into its community-centre home near the railway station. Experience the pulse of Oxford at your fingertips 🗞️ With our flash sale, Oxford Mail keeps you updated for less: only £4 for 4 months or save 40 per cent on an annual subscription. Don't miss out on what's happening locally #DigitalDeal #LocalJournalismhttps:// — Oxford Mail (@TheOxfordMail) June 16, 2025 "Fairy lights and vibrant wall displays of ethnic artefacts temper the capacious, functional surroundings – as do enthusiastic staff and a menu of great-value dishes." READ MORE: Oxfordshire pub liquidated with thousands of pounds in debt Just a stone's throw away from Oxford train station, the restaurant is deemed to be a fantastic spot for a tasty lunch in between journeys. Ms Kinnaird of Lula's said earlier: "We are all about bringing people and community together, exactly as Ethiopian tradition would have it – our food is cooked with the love and care we would show to our family, and our customers are not just customers, they are friends. "The most important thing to us is bringing happiness to people with our food."
The Herald Scotland
16-06-2025
- Entertainment
- The Herald Scotland
Celentano's chef: I turned up with no experience but a hunger to learn
Celentano's was awarded a Michelin Bib Gourmand within the first six months of opening and has been recognised by the Good Food Guide. (Read more: Celentano's celebrates three years of success in Glasgow) This week, Parker steps up to the plate for our chef Q&A. Pictured: Parker outside Celentano's in Glasgow (Image: NAOMI VANCE PHOTOGRAPHY) What was your first kitchen job? My first restaurant job was at Harlem in West London in 2004. It was a late-night American restaurant serving the best gumbo, blackened salmon and New York cheesecake with a lot of Latin American influence. The head chef, Fiona Ruane, was a real kitchen mother to me; she took me under her wing. I turned up with no experience but just a real hunger to learn. Where is your favourite place to eat out? Having spent so much time in London, there are always new places in London I want to try when I go back to visit. Perilla in London is a favourite, Ben Marks is a truly gifted chef, and I'm sure I would try Wildflower from Arron Potter. Another on my list is Anglo Thai's new restaurant. What is your guilty pleasure meal? Chocolate mousse with salty oats. Can you share a memory of your worst kitchen disaster? It's usually got some sort of electrical or plumbing or gas fault over a weekend when no one can come out having to use some sort of bushman mechanic technique to get a temporary repair. What is your signature dish? Probably the malted barley affogato because it's hugely popular and is a staple on our menu. We have seasonal veggie secondi which are gems, this year we did a BBQ cauliflower walnut ragu hedgehog mushrooms. Read more: Who would you say is your biggest inspiration? There have been a few over the years, but my mum was probably my biggest inspiration. She never said no to any new hobby or interest. Later in life, she took up macrobiotic cooking (after being diagnosed with cancer). She was given six months to live but managed to survive for another three and a half years without medical intervention. This cooking involves healing through consuming certain foods. The art of fermentation touches on a bit of this as well. What is one of your pet peeves as a chef? Lack of punctuality and wasting produce. If you weren't a chef, what do you think you would be doing with your life? I used to draw plans of houses and swimming pools as a side-line hustle while studying at school so probably an architect What's your favourite trick for making cooking at home easier? Pre-cooked short-grain brown rice, really good quality soy sauce and miso paste from that dinner can be rustled up with a few vegetables in a matter of minutes. Since having a little boy thrown into the mix my home cooking feels like a 'ready steady cook'. Possibly the most stressful service of the week.. What has been the one highlight that stands out in your career so far? Opening Celentano's with my wife, she has been a superstar to work with. Someone with a real eye for detail and a driving force like no other.
Yahoo
15-06-2025
- Yahoo
14th-century 'picture-perfect' Cumbrian restaurant with a 'glorious garden'
A 14th-century 'picture-perfect hamlet' in the Lake District has been described as having 'a restaurant with a glorious garden'. Crowned by the Good Food Guide, the publication held nothing but praise for Askham Hall. Chef Richard Swale's restaurant has wowed critics for years, and it's clear to see why. Views from the 508 Bus from Penrith to Kendal that goes over Kirkstone Pass this evening — Angela Brady (@AngellinaBrady) June 2, 2025 They said: "Dining at chef Richard Swale's Allium at Askham Hall is like being a house guest in a small château. The 14th-century Pele tower in the picture-perfect hamlet of Askham was, until 2012, the family home of the Lowther family. "Sensitively converted for human-scaled hospitality, it remains family-owned and an integral part of the wider working estate. A hand-drawn sketch within the daily changing six-course menu illustrates the provenance of the vast majority of ingredients direct from their own perfectly tended market gardens, farms and upland game areas. "Produce this fresh demands cooking of absolute integrity and authenticity, and this Allium is certainly one lily that needs no gilding. The result? Uber-local dishes of joyous celebration, technical excellence and maximum flavour. "The Askham garden salad with sheep's curd, truffle and a duck-gizzard vinaigrette is a dish with nowhere to hide, offering simple perfection, leaf by carefully placed leaf. The bold approach to sweet Mull langoustines with red curry and cauliflower pays dividends, while tender red deer with summer savory, beetroot and elderberries captures the essence of this distinctive place on a single plate. "A geranium set cream with rhubarb evidences a lightness of touch and preparedness to elevate humble plants to elegant status. "Dining in the airy garden room, sensitively appended to the original castle walls, emphasises its proximity to the produce which is the bedrock of brilliance underpinning this 'charming experience'. Recommended reading: Men arrested in Carlisle as part of robbery investigation Kendal Calling pay tribute after Brian Wilson death Free heart screening weekend set up to honour Liam Dodd "To match the quality of cooking, an awe-inspiring leather-bound wine list navigates an A-Z of the world's great wines from the private cellars of passionate collectors. Despite some unique rarities costing an average UK annual salary, there are many well-chosen options at prices accessible to ordinary mortals. "All is lovingly stewarded by charming house manager/maître d'/sommelier Nico Chieze, who approaches customers of differing wine knowledge with equal grace and curates flights that cut through any complexity or concern. "Some restaurants may appear arbitrary in their location, but Allium and its close-knit family at Askham Hall has deep roots into the local land, history and community."
