The AA Hospitality Awards are always a highlight of the foodie calendar. This year, over 1,000 guests gathered at London’s Grosvenor House in September to celebrate the best in the industry, and Jonathan Swain has the lowdown on Wales’ worthy winners.
LLANERCH VINEYARD
Hotel Of The Year for Wales was Hensol’s Llanerch Vineyard. Here, 37 rooms, many of which boast enviable views of the Welsh countryside, provide a five-star retreat from city life in the Vale.
Hensol Rd, Hensol, Pontyclun. Info: 01443 222716 / llanerch.co.uk
CRUG GLAS COUNTRY HOUSE
The Restaurant With Rooms award went to Crug Glas Country House in Solva, Pembrokeshire, where Janet and Perkin Evans have made a luxurious haven of “comfort, relaxation and flawless attention to detail” in a building that can be traced back to the Black Book of St Davids and the 12th century.
Abereiddy Rd, Solva, Haverfordwest. Info: 01348 831302 / crug-glas.co.uk
FERNERY AT THE GROVE
It was a big night for Fernery at The Grove, Narberth. In this 17th-century setting, they prioritise Welsh produce and their new four Rosette Award puts it “among the top restaurants in the UK, where the cooking demands national recognition… intense ambition, a passion for excellence, superb technical skills, and remarkable consistency.” A new Five Red Star award rates it as “one of the best hotels in the British Isles”; and as if that wasn’t enough, they also took the Wales Wine Of The Year prize.
Molleston, Narberth, Pembrokeshire. Info: 01834 860915 / ferneryrestaurant.co.uk
GEM 42
The highly competitive Restaurant Of The Year went to Newport’s Gem 42.
We reviewed it earlier this year, and we told you it “dazzles with its wit and inventiveness. Newport has a remarkable restaurant it should be proud of”.
42 Bridge St, Newport. Info: 01633 287591 / gem42.co.uk
There was acclaim for Saundersfoot’s Coast, which cemented its burgeoning reputation with a new Three Rosette award. But the Awards did more than celebrate the established faces of Welsh hospitality. The College Restaurant Of The Year runner-up was Cardiff & Vale College’s The Classroom: one of Cardiff’s gems, where young chefs learn under expert guidance. Their three-course, £15 Take Over lunch menu is a remarkable deal for cooking of that quality, with unrivalled views across the capital, and a chance to spot the hospitality stars of the future.
words JONATHAN SWAIN
