The launch of the new-look Trencherman's Guide 2014/15 took place on March 24 at an exclusive lunch held at ABode restaurant in Exeter. The new guide sees Somerset leading the gastronomic way with more entries than any other county.
Bristol alone celebrates 14 entries including Pony and Trap, 2nd Floor Restaurant at Harvey Nichols, and Casamia at Westbury on Trym. Whilst Bath cooks up six entries with gourmet treats such as The Bath Priory, The Olive Tree and Chequers. There are a further 13 entries spread across the region that include foodie faves such as The Willow Tree in Taunton, and newcomers The Langford at Langford Fivehead Country House, and Augustus, Taunton.
The launch saw some of the region's top chefs joining culinary forces to create a fabulous five-course tasting menu. A 'who's who' of the gastro world in the South West, it includes Michael Caines MBE, and Nick Topham (both ABode, Exeter), Matt Budden (Highcliff Grill Restaurant at the Bournemouth Mariott Hotel), James Wilkins (Wilks Restaurant, Bristol), Craig Beacham (The Elephant, Torquay), and John Hooker (The Cornish Arms, Tavistock). A new cocktail, The Trencherman, has also been especially created for the launch by the team at Southernhay, Exeter.
This year The Trencherman's Guide, renowned as the South West's most prestigious and long-standing restaurant and foodie hotel guide, takes on a new format which will include more restaurants and hotels than ever before. Inclusion to the guide is by invitation only and members have to meet a strict criteria agreed by the editorial board, chaired by two-Michelin-starred chef Michael Caines, MBE.
Michael Caines comments, 'The Trencherman's Guide showcases only the very best dining experiences in the South West. It's the only independent, quality-controlled guide for the region and is run by, and for, the industry.'
Some 166 restaurants and hotels from across eight counties will feature in the 22nd edition of the guide (2012/13 edition saw 122 entries), which also highlights 85 'Rising Stars' as ones to watch. The increase in entries is a renewed statement of the South West's culinary importance. It's also a mouth-watering opportunity for the public to recognise and support those leading the foodie revolution.
Top chef Paul Ainsworth, of Paul Ainsworth at Number 6, Padstow also endorses the guide: "For customers looking for a guide book that showcases everything that's brilliant about the South West, nothing beats The Trencherman's Guide."
Established over 22 years ago by Kit Chapman of The Castle Hotel in Taunton and Paul Henderson of Gidleigh Park, the Trencherman's is known as as the guide 'by chefs for chefs'. It has continued to gain in reputation and now offers the ultimate dining guide to the South West. A foodie's dream, it now covers eight counties including Devon, Cornwall, Dorset, Gloucestershire, Wiltshire and Oxfordshire.
In addition to the guide's sophisticated new look, it has also undergone a significant multimedia make-over. Alongside the brand new website (www.trenchermans-guide.com), the guide will also be available digitally and through book retailers for the first time. (RRP: £6.99). It will also be available from members' restaurants and hotels. All this will allow the public to experience the trusted guide in a new light.
Foodies are also invited to join the new Trencherman's Club which will give them access to exclusive offers and VIP events across the region. New club members will receive the guide's fortnightly newsletter, emailed to its 25,000 subscribers with offers and news from the Trencherman's restaurants.
The new guide also heralds the launch of The Trencherman's Award (voted for by the public) which will take place this Autumn.
The guide's editor Jo Rees comments: "It's remarkable how the food and drink industry in the South West continues to develop, and the increased number of restaurants in the Trencherman's Guide this year is testament to that. Outside of London, the South West continues to lead the field."
