Which North West restaurants made the UK Top 100?

Deanna Thomas 12 June 2018

There were one or two surprises this year

The eleventh annual 'Estrella Damm National Restaurant Awards' were held this week with a shindig at London’s Hurlingham Club.

The National Restaurant Awards - voted for by a panel of judges including industry experts, chefs, restaurateurs and food writers - is generally recognised as being the largest annual gathering of chefs and restaurateurs in the UK.

Unsurprisingly, 53 out of 100 of the top 100 are based in London, with a very decent 9% of the top restaurants hailing from the North West.

The best UK restaurant 2018 was Kiln, an affordable 50-cover Thai restaurant in London’s Brewer Street. Last year’s number one venue, The Sportsman, a seaside pub in Seasalter, Kent (which had also topped the list the year before that) came ninth. Mayfair’s newly opened Spanish restaurant, Sabor was number two, while Michelin starred Chinese restaurant, A Wong placed third.

Mark Birchall Pr 6 — **Chef Mark Birchall outside Moor Hall, which ranked at number 6**

The highest-ranking North West establishment this year was Simon Rogan’s L’Enclume in Cartmel, Cumbria, which ranked fifth - an improvement on last year’s rank of seventeenth. L’Enclume also holds two Michelin stars, five AA Rosettes and is ranked at number two in The Good Food Guide’s top 50 best UK restaurants with a maximum score of 10/10.

Moor Hall in Aughton, Lancashire, run by chef patron Mark Birchill, who was Rogan’s head chef at L’Enclume for over a decade, was hot on his former boss’s heels at number six – a massive leap from last years position at number 70.

20171013 Wreckfish Exterior — **Gary Usher and the Wreckfish team**

Predictably, a number of golden boy Gary Usher’s restaurants made the list with Liverpool’s Wreckfish placing a surprising 19th - meaning the crowdfunded Slater Street bistro ranked above esteemed establishments such as Raymond Blanc’s Le Manoir (25) and Heston Blumenthal’s Fat Duck (32). Meanhwile, Usher's Manchester restaurant, Hispi, placed at number 47 (above last year’s rank of 54).

Stockport’s Where The Light Gets In, which did not make last year’s list, despite a smattering of positive reviews from national critics, made a respectable 80th place this year. Chef owner Samuel Buckley had been recognised with a 'one to watch' award in 2017.

170926 Freemasons Wiswell 19983376 1531656773540264 8036006792906192612 O — **The Freemasons at Wiswell scored an impressive 18th place**

Other North West restaurants on the list include the Freemasons at Wiswell, which made a huge leap to 18th place after placing 77th last year; popular Clitheroe pub and restaurant the Parkers Arms, which placed 76th; Fraiche on the Wirral at 83rd, and Lancashire’s Michelin-starred Northcote at 97th.

A special OpenTable Diners Choice award was awarded to The Chef's Table restaurant in Chester.