lifestyle

Retaining Michelin Stars

The Pine Team Linda Hermans Photograpy

Restaurant Pine Retains Michelin Star And Michelin Green Star For Fifth Consecutive Year

The team behind Restaurant Pine, Northumberland, celebrated retaining both their Michelin Star and Michelin Green Star for the fifth consecutive year, reaffirming the restaurant’s position as one of the UK’s leading destinations for exceptional and sustainable dining.

Michelin Stars are awarded annually by anonymous inspectors and judged against five key criteria: the quality of ingredients, mastery of flavour and cooking techniques, the chef’s personality as expressed through the cuisine, value for money and consistency over time. One star denotes “high-quality cooking, worth a stop”, two stars recognise “excellent cooking, worth a detour”, while three stars represent “exceptional cuisine, worth a special journey”.

Retaining both a Michelin Star and Michelin Green Star for a fifth-year running is a significant achievement and a powerful endorsement of the dedication, consistency and shared vision of the entire Pine team, including head chef Ian Waller, head sommelier Vanessa Stoltz, and co-owners Cal and Siân Byerley. Since opening in a former cattle barn, Restaurant Pine has become synonymous with thoughtful, produce-led cooking and a deep commitment to sustainability and the surrounding landscape.

Chefs Cal Byerley and Ian Waller commented:
"To retain both our Michelin Star and Michelin Green Star for a fifth consecutive year is incredibly special for us. These awards are a reflection of the passion, skill and care shown by every member of the team, day in and day out. We’re hugely grateful for the dedication that goes into every service and every plate, and this recognition feels like the icing on the cake for the collective effort that has gone into making Pine the restaurant it has become.”

Tom Reeves Rogan & Co Head Chef Photo: Cristian Barnett Photography

Simon Rogan’s L’Enclume and Rogan & Co retain their Michelin stars

Simon Rogan’s flagship Lake District restaurant, L’Enclume, and its neighbourhood sibling, Rogan & Co, have successfully retained their respective Michelin stars.

The event brought together chefs and hospitality professionals from across the UK and Ireland to celebrate this year’s Michelin Stars, Michelin Green Stars and a range of Special Awards, including the Service Award, Sommelier Award, Exceptional Cocktails Award, Opening of the Year and Young Chef Award.

As the first restaurant in the north of England to hold three Michelin stars, L’Enclume continues to be recognised globally for its hyper-seasonal, fully traceable tasting menus and the pioneering farm-to-table philosophy championed by chef-owner Simon Rogan. The Cartmel restaurant has held three Michelin stars and a Michelin Green Star since 2022, reflecting both culinary excellence and its longstanding commitment to sustainability.

Rogan & Co, Simon Rogan’s neighbourhood restaurant in Cartmel, which follows the same ethos as L’Enclume, also successfully retained its Michelin star, a distinction it has held since 2018.

In Manchester, Skof, overseen by chef Tom Barnes and supported by the Umbel Restaurant Group, also retained its Michelin star, which it was awarded in 2025, making it one of only two Michelin-starred restaurants in the city.

Simon Rogan’s London outpost, Aulis, a 12-seat chef’s table in Soho, also retained its Michelin star. Opened in 2017 and awarded its first star in 2022, Aulis showcases Simon Rogan’s renowned farm-to-table ethos through an intimate, multi-course tasting menu using ingredients from Our Farm in the Lake District, while offering diners direct interaction with the chefs throughout the experience.

We’ve been on an incredible journey since we first opened our doors in Cartmel in 2002. I’m absolutely thrilled that L’Enclume, Rogan & Co., and Aulis have all retained their Michelin stars. This recognition is entirely down to the dedication and hard work of every single member of the team across the company. From the team at Our Farm to the office, from our Academy apprentices to our front-of-house and kitchen teams, and every role in between, without the efforts of everyone, none of this would be possible. Thank you all.”

Simon Rogan

(L-R) Kevin Tickle & Nicola Tickle owners of Heft Photo: Jenny Jones Photography

Heft retains its Michelin Star for a fourth year

Lake District inn and restaurant Heft, Newton in Cartmel, celebrated retaining their Michelin Star for a fourth successive year, reaffirming the restaurant’s place among the UK’s leading dining destinations.

Retaining a Michelin Star for the fourth-year is a significant milestone for Heft and a powerful endorsement of the vision and dedication of husband-and-wife team Kevin and Nicola Tickle, along with the entire Heft team. Since reopening the historic village inn following a full refurbishment in 2021, Heft has re-established itself at the heart of the local community while earning national acclaim for its ingredient-led, produce-driven menus.

Jack and Beth Bond Cottage in the Wood Photo: Lara Luis

The Cottage in the Wood also retains Michelin star

The Cottage in the Wood, nestled in Whinlatter Forest, celebrated retaining the restaurant’s Michelin Star. This marks the third consecutive year under the ownership of Jack and Beth Bond, and the seventh year the restaurant has held the prestigious accolade since first being awarded in 2019.

Since purchasing The Cottage in the Wood in the summer of 2024, Jack and Beth Bond have built on the restaurant’s strong foundations, earning three AA Rosettes for culinary excellence and securing a place in SquareMeal’s Top 100 UK Restaurants in both 2025 and 2026. In addition, Jack was awarded a Catey, the hospitality industry’s equivalent of an Oscar, being named Hotel Restaurant Chef of the Year 2025.

Jack and Beth’s philosophy is rooted in a deep connection to the surrounding landscape, celebrating seasonality and local produce while operating with a strong awareness of environmental responsibility and sustainability. The dinner tasting menu reflects this ethos, with notable dishes including beef fat waffle with tartare, smoked eel with tomato and chawanmushi, quail with flat bean and blackcurrant, monkfish with courgette and café de Paris, and desserts such as blackberry with red verjus and lemon, and apple with marigold and caramelised pastry.

The Old Stamp House Retains Michelin Star for Seventh Consecutive Year, While The Schelly Secures Bib Gourmand for Second Year Running

Ryan Blackburn in the Old Stamp House Kitchen Photo: Jenny Jones Commercial

Ambleside restaurant The Old Stamp House celebrated retaining their Michelin Star for a seventh consecutive year, while sister restaurant The Schelly successfully retained its Bib Gourmand for the second consecutive year.

At the heart of both restaurants is the simple, produce-led philosophy of chef-patron Ryan Blackburn, whose cooking champions fresh, local ingredients delivered with clarity, precision and creativity. At The Old Stamp House, this approach continues to evolve through an innovative tasting menu that celebrates the very best of Cumbrian produce while remaining rooted in a strong sense of place.

Stand-out dishes from The Old Stamp House dinner tasting menu include Yew Tree Farm hogget and bone broth, smoked trout cannelloni with horseradish and cucumber, halibut with hispi, fermented artichoke and dill, and gingerbread with forced rhubarb, sheep’s yoghurt mousse and bee pollen.

At The Schelly, the Bib Gourmand-winning menu highlights bold, generous cooking with dishes such as sardines with calamansi and fennel, poached chalk stream trout with samphire, vermouth and dill, wild boar and damson sausage with Cumberland sauce, Garside 22oz pork chop with roasted shallot and garlic, and desserts including chocolate torte with buckthorn and milk sorbet, and Cumbrian gingerbread with coconut and forced rhubarb.

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