Food lovers across the globe now flock to Aughton, near Ormskirk, where there is a new Star in town, says food editor Emma Mayoh
There was once a time when Cartmel, the small but gorgeously formed village in the south Lakes, was the place with small but mighty food pulling power. Simon Rogan and his world-renowned restaurants - three Michelin starred L’Enclume and one star Rogan & Co, as well as the sticky toffee pudding the village is so known for, of course – have seriously upped the ante and have turned the gaze north to the thriving food and drink scene we all know and love.
In the 21 years since L’Enclume’s doors opened, Simon has surely and steadfastly created culinary heaven in his corner of the Lake District. He is credited with the boom in the Lakes food scene. Following Michelin’s new star announcement on March 27, the Lake District and Cumbria have a whopping 13 stars. This is no mean feat.
But Cartmel has competition. Step in the (relative) new kid on the block, Aughton. Over the past six years – coincidentally right around the time chef Mark Birchall opened his now hallowed two Michelin star dining room at Moor Hall in March 2017 – there has been a sleeping giant in our midst. Within six months, Moor Hall had received its first star, closely followed with a second a year later. In 2022 The Barn at Moor Hall, headed up by head chef Nathan Cornwell, received a star. Last night, so-lo, the restaurant from chef Tim Allen was named one of 22 new Michelin stars in the UK. That means four huge culinary gongs in a village with a population of only a few thousand.
Tim, who has previously worked in Yorkshire, the Cotswolds and the South East has been awarded Michelin stars at Launceston Place in South Kensington, Carole Bamford’s Wild Rabbit in Kingham and at Flitch of Bacon in Essex where he was a partner.
Some might see it as too much competition to have such strong rivals, but the arrival of these restaurants – along with new small independents in the village – have made it thrive. How thrilling too, to have such strong food destinations like Lancashire and Lakeland pulling diners from across the globe to our region. There’s the downside of course – bookings can sometimes be thin on the ground – but we’ll excuse that for the sheer wonder of what is happening.
Lancashire and the Lakes has always been our undisputed food capital. Now the rest of the world is catching on. Long may this continue.
