06-08-2010, 07:55 AM
Food lovers should journey to Wales this British Food Fortnight to discover arguably the best locally produced food and drink in the UK.
Through its management of the Wales the True Taste Food & Drink Awards, the Welsh Assembly Government has helped to create a climate of support for the local sourcing of high quality produce among restaurants and gastropubs across Wales. These eateries form the basis of an exciting "True Taste road trip", to enable Brits to experience Wales as a top food destination over British Food Fortnight. The trip winds its way through the south east corner of Wales, an area put firmly on the map by the advent of the Ryder Cup golf tournament (1 – 3 October), which just happens to coincide with the end of British Food Fortnight.
True Taste road trip: six True Taste Award-winning restaurants
Newport; Whitebrook; Monmouth; Skenfrith; Abergavenny; Nantyderry
The trail commences in Newport at The Chandlery Restaurant (thechandleryrestaurant.com). Since opening in 2002 it has won a clutch of awards including True Taste regional winner in 2008 and UK Seafood Restaurant of the Year. Head chef Ryan Mitchell is keen the menu should be seasonal and uses local produce where possible. He's particularly enthusiastic about the local grass-fed Welsh lamb, which he serves as a loin fillet in filo pastry together with braised shoulder. His salamis and cured meats come from True Taste winner Trealy Farm Charcuterie, which produces traditional smoked and air-dried sausages and meat from its own free-range Gloucester Old Spot, Saddleback and Welsh pigs.
From Newport the coast road skirts the coastal plains, then heads north up the Wye Valley with each bend revealing new views of the gorge carved by the river. On to Whitebrook and The Crown (crownatwhitebrook.co.uk), one of four restaurants in Wales to hold a Michelin star. Their meat comes from Neil James at Raglan – one of few butchers with an abattoir and where traceability of the meat he sells is not just back to the farm, but to individual animals. Handcock of Monmouth provides bacon and sausages and Munday and Jones supplies organic vegetables, while the ewes-milk cheese comes from Caws Mynydd Du in nearby Talgarth.
Back on the ridgeway road, the route circumvents Monmouth and heads north to Skenfrith, bypassing the remains of a triangle of castles – Skenfrith, White Castle and Grosmont. The next port of call is The Bell (skenfrith.co.uk) at Skenfrith; a 17th century coaching inn owned by William and Janet Hutchings. Since 2006 they have been growing their own vegetables in the organic kitchen garden. The fact that all game is shot by William reflects his belief in the link between food and the land, and that it's a bonus for visitors to enjoy produce that comes from the countryside they walk in.
From Skenfrith, join the road back towards Abergavenny – the market town famed for its annual food festival – where you come to The Walnut Tree (thewalnuttreeinn.com). Run by Shaun Hill and David Griffiths, the restaurant was awarded its first Michelin star this year. The availability of good local produce was one of the things that brought Shaun to Abergavenny: "I am currently building up a group of all-year-round local suppliers," he says. "If you are working with rather ordinary ingredients it takes a lot of effort and fancy footwork to make something good out of it. But if the produce is good you are half way there."
Next, head to the big junction south of Abergavenny and out on the old Raglan road which brings you to The Hardwick (thehardwick.co.uk), a country pub and restaurant owned by chef Stephen Terry and his wife, Joanna. Stephen's menu works around what is local and seasonal. "With the great pork, beef and lamb we can get around here, salad and vegetables, local ales, cider and perry…it's a no-brainer, we're spoiled for choice," he says. It's an approach that won them the top award for use of local food in the 2008 Good Food Guide. The Hardwick looks like it will be part of the Abergavenny food scene for some time to come as building work has started to add eight bedrooms and increase the restaurant size to 100 covers.
The trail ends almost full-circle a little further down the road at Nantyderry where Matt Tebbutt and his wife Lisa have turned a former stationmaster's house and pub into a restaurant that's won both a True Taste Dining Out Gold Award and AA Welsh Restaurant of the Year – The Foxhunter (thefoxhunter.com). Matt is a London-trained chef and he echoes Stephen Terry in praising the quality of the local ingredients and keeping the menu seasonal: "Our menu changes twice a day to make the most of the best ingredients available. A lot of dishes have been designed to incorporate the wild and foraged foods our professional forager brings us."
The Foxhunter offers foraging trips with their expert after which participants can enjoy a wild food lunch incorporating their finds. Depending on the time of year you might bring back marsh samphire, whinberries, ceps or seabeet.
All the above Welsh restaurants have won accolades at the Wales The True Taste Food & Drink Awards. The scheme was launched in 2002 and is managed by the Welsh Assembly Government as part of its commitment to developing the food and drink sector and to building awareness of the Welsh food brand 'Wales the True Taste'. Year-on-year the True Taste Awards grow in strength and popularity and are regarded as the 'Oscars' of the Welsh food industry.
Through its management of the Wales the True Taste Food & Drink Awards, the Welsh Assembly Government has helped to create a climate of support for the local sourcing of high quality produce among restaurants and gastropubs across Wales. These eateries form the basis of an exciting "True Taste road trip", to enable Brits to experience Wales as a top food destination over British Food Fortnight. The trip winds its way through the south east corner of Wales, an area put firmly on the map by the advent of the Ryder Cup golf tournament (1 – 3 October), which just happens to coincide with the end of British Food Fortnight.
True Taste road trip: six True Taste Award-winning restaurants
Newport; Whitebrook; Monmouth; Skenfrith; Abergavenny; Nantyderry
The trail commences in Newport at The Chandlery Restaurant (thechandleryrestaurant.com). Since opening in 2002 it has won a clutch of awards including True Taste regional winner in 2008 and UK Seafood Restaurant of the Year. Head chef Ryan Mitchell is keen the menu should be seasonal and uses local produce where possible. He's particularly enthusiastic about the local grass-fed Welsh lamb, which he serves as a loin fillet in filo pastry together with braised shoulder. His salamis and cured meats come from True Taste winner Trealy Farm Charcuterie, which produces traditional smoked and air-dried sausages and meat from its own free-range Gloucester Old Spot, Saddleback and Welsh pigs.
From Newport the coast road skirts the coastal plains, then heads north up the Wye Valley with each bend revealing new views of the gorge carved by the river. On to Whitebrook and The Crown (crownatwhitebrook.co.uk), one of four restaurants in Wales to hold a Michelin star. Their meat comes from Neil James at Raglan – one of few butchers with an abattoir and where traceability of the meat he sells is not just back to the farm, but to individual animals. Handcock of Monmouth provides bacon and sausages and Munday and Jones supplies organic vegetables, while the ewes-milk cheese comes from Caws Mynydd Du in nearby Talgarth.
Back on the ridgeway road, the route circumvents Monmouth and heads north to Skenfrith, bypassing the remains of a triangle of castles – Skenfrith, White Castle and Grosmont. The next port of call is The Bell (skenfrith.co.uk) at Skenfrith; a 17th century coaching inn owned by William and Janet Hutchings. Since 2006 they have been growing their own vegetables in the organic kitchen garden. The fact that all game is shot by William reflects his belief in the link between food and the land, and that it's a bonus for visitors to enjoy produce that comes from the countryside they walk in.
From Skenfrith, join the road back towards Abergavenny – the market town famed for its annual food festival – where you come to The Walnut Tree (thewalnuttreeinn.com). Run by Shaun Hill and David Griffiths, the restaurant was awarded its first Michelin star this year. The availability of good local produce was one of the things that brought Shaun to Abergavenny: "I am currently building up a group of all-year-round local suppliers," he says. "If you are working with rather ordinary ingredients it takes a lot of effort and fancy footwork to make something good out of it. But if the produce is good you are half way there."
Next, head to the big junction south of Abergavenny and out on the old Raglan road which brings you to The Hardwick (thehardwick.co.uk), a country pub and restaurant owned by chef Stephen Terry and his wife, Joanna. Stephen's menu works around what is local and seasonal. "With the great pork, beef and lamb we can get around here, salad and vegetables, local ales, cider and perry…it's a no-brainer, we're spoiled for choice," he says. It's an approach that won them the top award for use of local food in the 2008 Good Food Guide. The Hardwick looks like it will be part of the Abergavenny food scene for some time to come as building work has started to add eight bedrooms and increase the restaurant size to 100 covers.
The trail ends almost full-circle a little further down the road at Nantyderry where Matt Tebbutt and his wife Lisa have turned a former stationmaster's house and pub into a restaurant that's won both a True Taste Dining Out Gold Award and AA Welsh Restaurant of the Year – The Foxhunter (thefoxhunter.com). Matt is a London-trained chef and he echoes Stephen Terry in praising the quality of the local ingredients and keeping the menu seasonal: "Our menu changes twice a day to make the most of the best ingredients available. A lot of dishes have been designed to incorporate the wild and foraged foods our professional forager brings us."
The Foxhunter offers foraging trips with their expert after which participants can enjoy a wild food lunch incorporating their finds. Depending on the time of year you might bring back marsh samphire, whinberries, ceps or seabeet.
All the above Welsh restaurants have won accolades at the Wales The True Taste Food & Drink Awards. The scheme was launched in 2002 and is managed by the Welsh Assembly Government as part of its commitment to developing the food and drink sector and to building awareness of the Welsh food brand 'Wales the True Taste'. Year-on-year the True Taste Awards grow in strength and popularity and are regarded as the 'Oscars' of the Welsh food industry.