Michelin star delight for husband and wife team
Restaurant caps magnificent opening year with top accolade
JUST one year after opening, Solihull restaurant Grace and Savour has been awarded a Michelin star.
The Hampton Manor spot, situated in the manor’s walled garden, received the star at a ceremony on Monday night (March 27) at Silverstone in Northampton.
It’s great news for Hampton in Arden, which lost a star when Peel’s closed after 14 years last year.
Run by husband and wife team David and Anette Taylor, it’s described as an “idyllic countryside retreat”.
It’s yet another brilliant accolade for the restaurant following a year of plaudits. It was named best restaurant in the country by SquareMeal last year, has four AA Rosettes, plus they were named in the Good Food Guide’s 20 most exciting restaurants of 2022.
The 15 course tasting menu is priced at £135 a head and quality and the restaurant has quickly become a favourite among fine dining fans in Birmingham and beyond.
Head chef David is from Nottingham and he learnt his craft under chefs including Glynn Purnell, who has maintained a Michelin Star at Purnell’s since 2009.
Mr Taylor worked for Glynn for seven years before embarking on a journey to restaurants in New York, Chicago and Copenhagen.
The Nordic minimalist style is evident at Grace and Savour, a restaurant with exposed wood and a menu of dishes where the ingredients were chosen with “a commitment to soil health, bio-diversity, ethics and sustainability”.
The food is all served from an open kitchen, and before dining, customers are free to tour the garden where everything is grown for this immersive dining experience.
His partner is wife Anette, who he met in Oslo when David won three Michelin Stars at Maaemo. Her passion for good quality produce and creating a special Scandi experience for diners was clear when we met the pair following Grace and Savour’s opening in 2022. She is house manager at Grace and Savour.
No fewer than 20 restaurants were awarded their first Michelin Star at the special ceremony.
The Michelin Guide describes Grace & Savour: “The restaurant and gardens of Hampton Manor were brought together by this new building overlooking their restored Victorian kitchen garden. A multi-course menu begins with some fine snacks before leading on to seasonal dishes that use top quality ingredients sourced from across the UK, and are accompanied by low-intervention wines. The kitchen blends classical and modern Nordic cooking techniques, so some of the dishes are eye-catching and elaborate in their make-up, while others more defined by their simplicity. Make it an occasion by booking a bedroom.” Grace and Savour joins five restaurants in Birmingham who held on to their Michelin star status this week. They are Carters of Moseley, Simpsons, Adam’s, Opheem, and Purnell’s.