The 2022 Michelin guide highlights the UK restaurants to visit

Simon Rogan’s L’Enclume in Cumbria joins the ranks of the three-Michelin-star winners

In February, the Michelin Guide announced the 2022 Michelin star winners across Great Britain and Ireland. Cumbria’s L’Enclume grabbed headlines winning three Michelin stars, having previously held one and then two – it was the only restaurant on the list to do so. It joins the existing eight three Michelin star winners concentrated around Bray and London. Here’s the full list of the UK’s three Michelin star winners in 2022:

• L’Enclume, Cartmel, Cumbria (NEW)
• Fat Duck, Bray
• Waterside Inn, Bray
• Alain Ducasse at The Dorchester, London
• CORE by Clare Smyth, London
• Fat Duck, Bray
• Hélène Darroze at The Connaught, London
• Restaurant Gordon Ramsay, London
• Sketch (The Lecture Room & Library), London

The UK’s New 3-Michelin Star Restaurant You Can’t Get a Booking At
L’Enclume earned its first star in 2005 and its second in 2013, and is currently celebrating its 20th year. The Michelin Guide said: “In that time, it has never stood still… an enormous amount of time and creativity goes into every superbly crafted, stimulating dish, which makes eating at this highly accomplished restaurant a truly memorable experience.”

Executive chef Simon Rogan added: “You could say it’s fantastic timing that we’ve received this news 20 years since I opened the doors of L’Enclume, which feels like forever but also just like yesterday. Following the win of our second star nine years ago, achieving a third star has always been front of mind and something we’ve been striving for every day; be it through the evolution of our dishes and honing of our service-style, the meticulous work undertaken on Our Farm, or how we work to make every one of our guests feel, from when they enter the restaurant to the moment they leave.

“We might have grown our operation over the past two decades, but we’ve remained true to our core ethos and maintained the close-knit community feel amongst our team, whilst all this time proudly remaining as an independent restaurant group. This is an incredible week for us all and it’s going to take some time for it to truly sink in, but we will be celebrating this moment for a long time to come.”

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Michelin Wins for Wales
It was a positive day for Wales, often overlooked by GCC tourists. The destination famous for its green valleys saw SY23 restaurant in Aberystwyth and James Sommerin’s Home at Penarth both awarded one star, while Gareth Ward’s Ynyshir in Machynlleth, Powys, became Wales’ first two-Michelin-starred restaurant.

Ynyshir’s creative director Amelia Eiriksson said: “We’ve got the strongest team we’ve ever had and we just feel like it’s the right time for it. It means everything – we’re the first ever two-star in Wales, no-one can ever do that again. We don’t just want to be one of these restaurants that’s just there for a few years and then forgotten about, we want to always be pushing forward, always making it better and be on the world map.”

She added that the pandemic lockdowns had enabled the restaurant to reopen stronger: “We’re stronger than we’ve ever been because we’ve had time to step back, assess what we do.”

2 Michelin Star Winners
Ikoyi in London’s St James’s was also among the five restaurants awarded two stars. Ikoyi opened in July 2017 and was awarded its first Michelin star in 2018. Chef and co-founder Jeremy Chan said: “This is hugely significant recognition for Ikoyi and for everything the restaurant stands for. We set out to bring something new that had never been done before and sat outside usual gastronomic restaurant categories. To be recognised by Michelin in this way, is testament to the collective belief and effort of everyone in the restaurant and especially the farmers, fishermen, producers and loyal guests who have all been part of our journey.”