Good Food Guide piles the praise on York eateries

York Evening Press : by Tom Stirling : 3rd October 2006

GASTRONOMES rejoice! York is one of the top 20 cities in Britain for eating out. Six of York's restaurants have made it into the Which? Good Food Guide 2007, more than much larger cities like Sheffield and Nottingham.

Ryedale also does well in the guide's 55th edition, with five eateries nominated.

York's star turns are: J Baker's, in Fossgate The Blue Bicycle, in Fossgate Melton's, in Scarcroft Road Melton's Too, in Walmgate Middlethorpe Hall, in Bishopthorpe Road The Tasting Room, in Swinegate Court East.

Outside York, Ryedale is our region's other big success story, with mentions for:
The Star Inn, in Harome The Feversham Arms Hotel, at Helmsley The Appletree, in Marton, near Pickering The Fox And Hounds, at Sinnington The Blacksmiths Inn, at Westow.

Elsewhere in North Yorkshire, the Rose And Crown, at Sutton-on-the-Forest and Singers, at Tadcaster, also get nods.

The guide is dominated by London, which got 333 entries. In second place is Manchester, with 26. Leeds is in fourth place, with 14.

York's six entries put it in joint 15th place, on a par with Cardiff and Cheltenham.

Andrew Turvil, editor of the guide, said: "London has run away with the title, unsurprisingly, given the size of the population and the number of tourists it attracts. No other UK city can compete."
But Mr Turvil said it was "not so grim up North", pointing to the success of Manchester, Leeds and York.

He added: "A new entry, like J Baker's in York, is the kind of restaurant that would grace any city."
Jeff Baker opened his bistro in March this year, occupying the premises that was once Rish.

The guide praises J Baker's "good-value, straightforward dishes".
It adds: "The commitment to local produce and the quality home-made bread post notice of culinary intent, and inspection showed the kitchen setting a formidable early pace."

Jeff, as The Press reported in March, was the first chef in Leeds to achieve a Michelin star and is currently Yorkshire Chef Of The Year. He said: "We are pretty much full every night, and what the guide says chimes with what we have been hearing from our customers. Our main aim was to be a busy little bistro - that's what we are, and that is what the guide says we are."

"We came to give the people of York something - not the tourists. When we appear in a national guide like this, it is a tribute to all the hard work we have done here."

The Which? Good Food Guide 2007 can be ordered by phoning 01903 828557.