The Guide, which is scheduled for release on 5 October, officially confirmed the new accolades in a statement this afternoon after results were mistakenly leaked on the Michelin website for a brief period this morning.
“These are three equally worthy recipients of our two-star award but each restaurant is very different in nature," said the Michelin Guide's editor Rebecca Burr. "Michael Wignall’s cooking offers a distinct sense of sophistication; Jean Denis Le Bras at Sketch has a much more ambitious style; and Simon Rogan’s cooking has steadily evolved and is now much more aligned with nature.”
Eighteen restaurants have been awarded one Michelin star this year, eight of which are in London and two of which are pubs - Blumenthal's Hinds Head in Bray, overseen by head chef Kevin Love; and Guy and Britt Manning's Red Lion Freehouse in East Chisenbury.
“This suggests that the trend for British pubs acknowledging diners as well as drinkers, and striving to raise their standards of cooking, is continuing to move in a positive direction," added Burr.
Chef reactions...
Responding to the news of his second star, Michael Wignall said it was an 'incredible achievement'. "It's a goal I have been striving for ever since I came to Pennyhill Parkfive years ago," he said.
"I'm still in shock to be honest, it's the best news I've had in years and my team and I can't stop smiling. I am so proud of my team who work to exceptionally high standards for every service, and feel this really is testament to all of our hard work.”
A spokesman for L'Enclume told BigHospitality the restaurant was pleased to have achieved its second star, with the accolade coming just one month after L'Enclume scored 'the perfect 10' in The 2013 Good Food Guide.
Ollie Dabbous, who receives his first Michelin star for Dabbous in the same year he opened the restaurant,said the accolade was a real boost for his staff.
“If you’ve stepped foot inside the restaurant, you’ll realise we aren’t concerned with ticking boxed for guide books, said Dabbous, who was one of the chefs Restaurant magazine tipped to be a 'star of the future' in 2009.
"Nonetheless, it’s a lovely pat on the back for my incredible staff, who deserve every accolade that comes their way.
I’m glad Michelin enjoyed it and respect the fact they appreciate the simplicity and restraint of what we serve.”
Mark Poynton, chef-patron of Alimentum restaurant in Cambridge, which was awarded its first star, admitted he was 'pretty confused' when the results were mistakenly published, but revealed his delight once the results were made official.
“I was pretty confused this morning, not knowing if we’d actually won a star when they accidentally put the results up, but now it’s officially confirmed it’s been able to settle in," said Poynton. “The Michelin star’s a testament to the food, the service and the real hard work and dedication that the team’s put in over the three years that I've been here.
“We’ve all got certain goals of what we want to achieve but it’s always just in the back of your mind that it’s not going to happen. We’re not really that style of restaurant, we don’t do things that other restaurants do - we haven’t got tablecloths, we have live music on a Friday and Saturday, so we’re a bit different.”
Meanwhile, Tom Aikens Restaurant in Chelsea managed to regain its star, after losing it following a six-month closure for refurbishment.
Seven restaurants - Coworth Park, The Olive Branch and Beech House in Lincolnshire, Reed's in Faversham, Sharrow Bay in Cumbria, Auberge du Lac in Welwyn Garden City, Zafferano and Gauthier Soho in London - lost their Michelin stars this year.
New one stars:
- Bath Priory, Bath
- Hinds Head, Bray
- Alimentum, Cambridge
- Raby Hunt, Darlington
- Red Lion Freehouse, East Chisenbury
- Restaurant Tristan, Horsham
- Paul Ainsworth at No.6, Padstow
- Thackeray's, Royal Tunbridge Wells
- Dabbous, London
- Hedone, Chiswick
- Tom Aikens, Chelsea
- Medlar, Chelsea
- Launceston Place, Kensington
- Alyn Williams at The Westbury, London
- Trishna, London
- St John, Soho
- Locks Brasserie, Dublin
- Aniar, Galway
New two stars:
- L'Enclume, Cartmel
- Sketch, London
- Michael Wignall at The Latymer, Pennyhill Park, Surrey
The accidental leak of this year's Guide is not the first mistake to have been made around the publicising of the results; the full list for 2009 appeared on a US food blogger's website, while a year later Amazon accidentally sent an early copy of the book version to a featured restaurant.
In total, 346 restaurants and 138 hotels have been included in 2013 Michelin guide to Great Britain and Ireland, which will be available in bookshops from Friday 5 October 2012, priced at £15.99.