12 minute read
ONCE UPON A TIME…
WHERE TO EAT
ONCE UPON A TIME…
Who doesn’t love a fairy tale with a ‘happy ever after’ ending? Sadly, this is the stuff of make believe not real life. Or is it?
Our story starts with the classic boy meets girl scenario. In this case, Jack and Beth. Both were in the hospitality sector - Jack, a chef and Beth, a front of house / sommelier. They met at Marcus Waring nine years ago and all the ingredients for the perfect love story were in place.
Fast forward a few years and by this time Jack was at the three Michelin star Restaurant Gordon Ramsey in Royal Hospital Road in research and development and Beth was the restaurant manager of Apricity, the low waste sustainable restaurant in Mayfair from Chantelle Nicholson, which boasts a Michelin Green Star. (Think chairs made from coke cans, a desk made from corks and the yummiest food and wine - quirky but divine.).
Not only had their careers flourished but so had their relationship and Jack proposed. Jack was originally from Liverpool and every family holiday had been spent in the Lake District, a place he feels very connected to. So, when the wedding was being planned, Jack suggested it as the perfect place. Beth was from the Peak District and thought she may have visited the Lakes once when she was a child but had little recollection of it but assumed it was not dissimilar from the Peaks and agreed to the plan. They found a venue for the day and were looking for a hotel to stay for their honeymoon
and they chose somewhere called Another Place who coincidentally were looking to hire a Food and Beverage Manager. It seemed a sign and Jack and Beth whimsically and spontaneously decided maybe they should not return to London after they got married but stay in the Lakes. Fate seemed to agree with them and Beth was successful in her application for the job at Another Place. They moved up North in January, a few months before their wedding to give themselves time
As a wedding gift, Beth’s mum got them a two night stay at another Michelin star restaurant with rooms, The Cottage In The Wood,
to find somewhere to live and for Jack to get a job. Jack with his super culinary skills quickly got snapped up as head chef at the Gilpin, a five star hotel with a Michelin star restaurant.
As a wedding gift, Beth’s mum got them a two night stay at another Michelin star restaurant with rooms, The Cottage In The Wood, and they arrived there the day after the wedding. As they were having dinner, both of them just fell in love with the place and started dreaming about how wonderful it would be to one day own something very similar; a thirty cover restaurant, eight bedrooms; the perfect size and in a glorious location. They said they had to really grasp how they were feeling, to remember it and to focus on trying one day to make it happen. This was June 1st 2023 and in October of the same year, Beth received an email from her old boss, Chantelle, from Apricity saying she had received a letter from the said The Cottage In The Woods’ owners saying they were looking to sell and wondered if she was interested as through research and common acquaintances they had identified her as being the perfect replacement for themselves. Chantelle felt it was not the right time for her - but…… yes, you can guess what happened next.
Chantelle introduced the owners, Liam and Kath Berney to Jack and Beth who recounted the story of their stay a few months previously. It was obviously a - or should we say anothermatch made in heaven. And continuing in the theme of how some things are just meant to be, Liam explained that they were losing their head chef on New Years Day and offered Jack the job so that he and Beth could learn the ropes while the sale was going through. In the months that followed Liam and Kath passed on their knowledge and experience to Jack and Beth and eventually offered them a cottage to live in. They moved in on the 31st May - their one year anniversary. On the 2nd of June their baby, Reuben was born - just to add another miracle into the mix. They completed the purchase on the 2nd July.
I had met Beth when she was at Apricity and as two fellow wine lovers we got on immediately so I had keenly been following her adventure on Instagram and was obviously - as a self proclaimed foodie - desperate to go to The Cottage In The Wood. My partner in all food and wine crime, Paul, did not take much persuading and we got the train to Keswick on July 10th just a week after Jack and Beth had officially taken over. We arrived in the pouring rain but as we were taken to our room, The Garden Room, our spirits far from being dampened by the weather could not have soared higher. The views were just exquisite. The Cottage In The Woods is literally that. It is in the middle of Whinlatter Forest, perched 1000 feet up and is a 17th Century building in Braithwaite in the Northern Lakes - and the
The ‘room’ is more of a suite with a separate sitting area with a huge sofa, a tv and stunning views. The bathroom was stunning. And of course there was a garden with a table and chairs - the perfect place to read a book, sip a glass of wine or just take in the scenery. Soon it was time for the main event, dinner in the Michelin starred restaurant and the opportunity to sample Jack’s artistry. The Cottage works on a very clever basis. The menu is a tasting menu but as most people stay two nights, there are two completely different tasting menus every two day stint.
As we entered the restaurant, the sommelier, Joel, greeted us with a glass of English sparkling wine. On discovering I was a huge tennis fan and had been glued to the men's quarter final most of the afternoon, he kept updating me on the score. He was so friendly - as indeed every single person working there was. There definitely is a difference between Northerners and us lot from down South!
As we sipped our drinks and drooled over the menu that showed us the feasts we were awaiting, we were entertained by red squirrels, a sight I had not seen since I was a child. Because the restaurant is small and because the staff are so friendly, there is a hugely relaxed atmosphere in the room; guests chat amongst themselves and it feels like we are all at a friend’s house. A friend who is an amazing cook by the way!
We stayed two nights and had both the tasting menus which are 7 courses and on the second night we went for the wine pairing also - which I would most definitely recommend. Each course is served by one of the chefs who come out from the kitchen to explain the dish - which makes it so personal and special.
I would love to go through each of the fourteen courses (and the absolutely exquisite three course breakfasts - think pine cured sea trout, forest mushroom omelettes, french toast with
there is a hugely relaxed atmosphere in the room; guests chat amongst themselves and it feels like we are all at a friend’s house. A friend who is an amazing cook by the way!
banana, pecans and maple syrup) we savoured but this article would be of Tolstoy length so suffice to whet your appetites with a picture of one of the menus. I cannot even pick a favourite dish as it really was a case of the one I happened to be eating at the time was my fave - until the next one came along. Weird as it sounds, Paul was obsessed with the bread and while I tried to limit myself to one bit so I could fit in everything else, he ate the entire loaf and asked for a second one which he also devoured.
The beef tartare was out of this world and deserves a mention, as was the turbot with fennel and romesco. And the cappelletti with peas and ham were exquisite. I adored the courgette, verbena and mint. But truth be told there was not one mouthful of any dish that did not delight.
Now for those of you who regularly read the restaurant reviews here, you will know Paul and I are lucky enough to have eaten at some pretty amazing places but I can honestly say this was definitely in my all time top three ever. The food looks like art and it tastes absolutely delicious. It is clever and creative but without being intimidating or tricksy. The ingredients are all British, sourced as locally as possible, of the highest quality and absolutely nothing is wasted.
Jack says;
“We want to make the ingredient work as hard as it can, I find waste is lazy. We currently have a pea dish on the menu. Just to take the peas out and throw everything else away is such a waste; we make both an oil and a vinegar out of the shells and try and use everything up. It takes two months to grow so it's such a shame to just then use it once.”
Beth has worked hard to introduce a different wine experience to Cumbria. In London, natural wines are very much the norm today but in the Lakes more pub type wines like Merlot and Malbec have been the go to for a lot of people.
“I don’t want to scare people or intimidate them into buying a bottle of something they have never heard of and they don’t know if they will like, so our pairing menu is a perfect way to try different things and to explore. I want it to be an adventure; I want Joel, our sommelier, to share his passion and the stories behind the wines and to really inspire enthusiasm.” And, rest assured, the wines are really sensational.
As beautiful as The Cottage In The Wood isand trust me it really is - Jack and Beth want to make it even better. They want to up the aesthetics and put their inimitable stamp on it and so plans are underfoot to redesign and upgrade the rooms and the dining area - even the crockery is going to be bespoke - with imprints of ferns. They want a ‘Scandi but cosy’ feel. Already they are welcoming guests with homemade warm scones brushed in birch sap and served with elderflower curd - everything grown and picked locally - but they are working on lots more touches like this to make the whole experience even more magical.
The breathtaking scenery which encompasses the house is more than matched by the food and wine and hospitality Jack and Beth offer. It is the most perfect place to switch off, to recharge and to thoroughly indulge. Go before word gets out and it becomes impossible to get a room or reservation. Stay for two nights - and if you want to extend your stay in the Lakes, fit in a night at Simon Rogan’s famous L’Enclume too, or the Old Stamp House in Ambleside or the newly refurbished Heft in Grange-OverSands. ■
The Cottage In The Wood really is the place where fairy tales come true.
The Cottage in The Wood is open for room, dinner and breakfast stays WednesdaySaturday; for dinner only Wednesday - Saturday and lunch Thursday - Saturday.
The Cottage in the Wood, Magic Hill, Whinlatter Forest, Braithwaite, Near Keswick, Cumbria, CA12 5TW
The Cottage in the Wood,
Magic Hill,
Whinlatter Forest,
Braithwaite, Near Keswick,
Cumbria,
CA12 5TW
Email - relax@thecottageinthewood.co.uk
Phone - 017687 78409
The breathtaking scenery which encompasses the house is more than matched by the food and wine and hospitality Jack and Beth offer. It is the most perfect place to switch off, to recharge and to thoroughly indulge.
