For the gourmands amongst my readers, I thought I should let you know that the MICHELIN Guide Great Britain & Ireland 2011 is now available, priced at £15.99 (and €18.99 in Ireland).
This edition is rather special, as this year marks the guide’s 100th anniversary, and to celebrate this milestone each guide comes with a booklet recounting the guide’s history. You’ll discover, for example, that the first Michelin guide to the British Isles was produced in 1911 to help the new breed of motorists plan journeys across the country. As well as places to stay and places to eat, it also included pragmatic advice on changing tires and finding the local garage! Nowadays of course, the guide provides information on a large and diverse selection of hotels, guesthouses, restaurants and pubs in all price categories and across every region of the UK and Ireland.
Of course the guide’s particular gift to restaurants is the MICHELIN Star and there is a new ‘two star’ restaurant listed in London this year – the Connaught, where you’ll find home-grown English chef Hélène Darroze at the helm. Other notable establishments include the delicate, playful cooking of Viajante and the vibrant natural flavours found at Petersham Nurseries Café, its bucolic setting contrasting nicely with the ornate surroundings of Galvin La Chapelle, another recipient of a star. You’ll find all of these restaurants and more in the additional MICHELIN Guide London 2011 (reviewed by my friend the London Eater here), and which is priced at £10.99 (€12.99), which has extended details of London’s restaurants, with additional photographs and information on all starred establishments.
Now it goes without saying that they couldn’t launch this year’s Guide without a swanky do to accompany it, and that took place at Michelin House on the Fulham Road last week. Check out the video below, which features Heston Blumenthal and other culinary greats discussing the MICHELIN Guide over it’s 100 year history…