Michelin-starred minibreaks
Forget the flowers, just whisk Mum off for a delicious dinner and stay at one of these top hotels, all with a Michelin-starred restaurant. If you’re Mum, circle which place you’d prefer and leave The Lady lying around!
Adam Simmonds, recently seen on the BBC’s Great British Menu, is a multi-award-winning super chef. He uses modern techniques to interpret flavours from fresh, seasonal produce: his superb restaurant at Danesfield House Hotel & Spa near Marlow, Buckinghamshire, has retained a Michelin star for the past three years. Three-course dinner costs around £65 per person, or the Michelin Dining Experience costs from £142 per person Tuesday to Friday; from £177 per person (two sharing) on Saturday. It includes à la carte dinner, overnight stay, English breakfast and use of spa.
01628-891010, www.danesfieldhouse.co.uk or www.adamsimmonds.com
The Restaurant at Holbeck Ghyll country-house hotel (pictured), overlooking Lake Windermere in Cumbria, has been awarded a Michelin star for 13 consecutive years. Head chef David McLaughlin specialises in traditional British cuisine with a French influence, using lamb and venison from Cumbria, duck from Lancashire’s Ribble Valley and fruit and vegetables from Yorkshire. Dinner costs from £65, or the one-night Diner’s Delight, from £195 per person Sunday to Thursday (based on two sharing), with afternoon tea, four-course dinner, an overnight stay and breakfast.
0800-089 3929, www.prideofbritainhotels.com
The Pass restaurant at South Lodge, a country-house hotel in Horsham, West Sussex, takes the chef’s table concept a little further, with just 22 guests seated in the heart of the action under head chef Matt Gillan, who also featured in the Great British Menu. The restaurant promises ‘fun dining’, with plates of unique food, a six-course tasting menu costing from £60 per person; or book the one-night Pass Delight Stay, from £177.50 per person (based on two sharing), Wednesdays to Sundays, which also includes overnight accommodation and a full English breakfast.
0800-089 3929, www.prideofbritainhotels.com
Meanwhile, you can have your own masterchef experience at The Crown at Whitebrook, near Monmouth, a Michelin-starred restaurant, with rooms. Guests can be ‘chef for the day’ with head chef James Sommerin, starting with coffee, followed by hands-on preparation and lunch service. Wine tasting is the reward, followed by a six-course menu with paired wines. Being ‘chef for a day’ starts from £495, including the cooking (per person), overnight accommodation for two, wine tasting, six-course dinner and Welsh breakfast.
01600-860254, www.crownatwhitebrook.co.uk
Finally, there’s the Terrace Restaurant at The Montagu Arms, Beaulieu, in the New Forest, Hampshire, under head chef Matthew Tomkinson, who takes advantage of abundant local produce and the kitchen garden. A la carte three-course dinner costs from £65 per person; tasting menu from £90 per person, or the Bond In Motion package, from £140 per person (based on two sharing), Sunday to Thursday; £165, Friday and Saturday, with a three-course à la carte dinner, overnight stay, full breakfast, two tickets to the National Motor Museum’s Bond in Motion Exhibition and souvenir guides.
0800-089 3929, www.prideofbritainhotels.com
Scillies season
Discover Tresco Abbey Garden with gardening experts on a special break: 29 April to 4 May, from £900 per person, including a five-night stay at the Sea Garden Cottages with dinner, bed and breakfast; flights from Land’s End to St Mary’s island, and transfers.
01720-422849, www.tresco.co.uk
Follow the script
Laurence Marks, co-author of Birds Of A Feather and Goodnight Sweetheart, is leading the first TV scriptwriting course at the Watermill at Posara, Tuscany: 29 June to 6 July, from £1,236 per person, including transfers from Pisa (not flights), tuition and seven nights’ full board.
020-7193 6246, www.watermill.net/writing-holidays
Holding Court
The Petersham Hotel, Richmond, and Context Travel are offering A Walk Back In Royal History, a four-hour tour of Hampton Court Palace, on selected dates until November: from £290 per person, including overnight stay, three-course dinner and champagne.
020-8940 7471, www.petershamhotel.co.uk
Adam Simmonds, recently seen on the BBC’s Great British Menu, is a multi-award-winning super chef. He uses modern techniques to interpret flavours from fresh, seasonal produce: his superb restaurant at Danesfield House Hotel & Spa near Marlow, Buckinghamshire, has retained a Michelin star for the past three years. Three-course dinner costs around £65 per person, or the Michelin Dining Experience costs from £142 per person Tuesday to Friday; from £177 per person (two sharing) on Saturday. It includes à la carte dinner, overnight stay, English breakfast and use of spa.
01628-891010, www.danesfieldhouse.co.uk or www.adamsimmonds.com
The Restaurant at Holbeck Ghyll country-house hotel (pictured), overlooking Lake Windermere in Cumbria, has been awarded a Michelin star for 13 consecutive years. Head chef David McLaughlin specialises in traditional British cuisine with a French influence, using lamb and venison from Cumbria, duck from Lancashire’s Ribble Valley and fruit and vegetables from Yorkshire. Dinner costs from £65, or the one-night Diner’s Delight, from £195 per person Sunday to Thursday (based on two sharing), with afternoon tea, four-course dinner, an overnight stay and breakfast.
0800-089 3929, www.prideofbritainhotels.com
The Pass restaurant at South Lodge, a country-house hotel in Horsham, West Sussex, takes the chef’s table concept a little further, with just 22 guests seated in the heart of the action under head chef Matt Gillan, who also featured in the Great British Menu. The restaurant promises ‘fun dining’, with plates of unique food, a six-course tasting menu costing from £60 per person; or book the one-night Pass Delight Stay, from £177.50 per person (based on two sharing), Wednesdays to Sundays, which also includes overnight accommodation and a full English breakfast.
0800-089 3929, www.prideofbritainhotels.com
Meanwhile, you can have your own masterchef experience at The Crown at Whitebrook, near Monmouth, a Michelin-starred restaurant, with rooms. Guests can be ‘chef for the day’ with head chef James Sommerin, starting with coffee, followed by hands-on preparation and lunch service. Wine tasting is the reward, followed by a six-course menu with paired wines. Being ‘chef for a day’ starts from £495, including the cooking (per person), overnight accommodation for two, wine tasting, six-course dinner and Welsh breakfast.
01600-860254, www.crownatwhitebrook.co.uk
Finally, there’s the Terrace Restaurant at The Montagu Arms, Beaulieu, in the New Forest, Hampshire, under head chef Matthew Tomkinson, who takes advantage of abundant local produce and the kitchen garden. A la carte three-course dinner costs from £65 per person; tasting menu from £90 per person, or the Bond In Motion package, from £140 per person (based on two sharing), Sunday to Thursday; £165, Friday and Saturday, with a three-course à la carte dinner, overnight stay, full breakfast, two tickets to the National Motor Museum’s Bond in Motion Exhibition and souvenir guides.
0800-089 3929, www.prideofbritainhotels.com
In other news …
Scillies season
Discover Tresco Abbey Garden with gardening experts on a special break: 29 April to 4 May, from £900 per person, including a five-night stay at the Sea Garden Cottages with dinner, bed and breakfast; flights from Land’s End to St Mary’s island, and transfers.
01720-422849, www.tresco.co.uk
Follow the script
Laurence Marks, co-author of Birds Of A Feather and Goodnight Sweetheart, is leading the first TV scriptwriting course at the Watermill at Posara, Tuscany: 29 June to 6 July, from £1,236 per person, including transfers from Pisa (not flights), tuition and seven nights’ full board.
020-7193 6246, www.watermill.net/writing-holidays
Holding Court
The Petersham Hotel, Richmond, and Context Travel are offering A Walk Back In Royal History, a four-hour tour of Hampton Court Palace, on selected dates until November: from £290 per person, including overnight stay, three-course dinner and champagne.
020-8940 7471, www.petershamhotel.co.uk