The AA announces new three and four rosette restaurants

Alchemilla in Nottingham was the only restaurant in the UK to be awarded four rosettes out of a maximum five, while The Lady Helen Restaurant in Thomastown, Co Kilkenny, Ireland also received the quadruple ranking.

A further 11 restaurants were awarded three rosettes, including Jason Atherton’s No.5 Social and Nathan Outlaw’s Siren in London.

The AA announces its rosettes bi-annually, usually in January or September, and says they are determined following “one or more” visits from an inspector. Three rosettes recognise “outstanding” restaurants while those with four are “among the top restaurants in the UK”, according to the guide.

For the first time this year standalone restaurants that hold one or two rosettes are being asked to pay £180 to join the award scheme or they will not be included in the AA Restaurant Guide 2021 when it is published in September. Those with three rosettes and above are not charged a fee.

The AA says the payment is to cover the costs of compiling the guide and to allow the scheme to continue.

The rosette scheme has been running since 1956 and currently recognises over 2,000 restaurants in the UK.

The full list of new three and four rosette restaurants is as follows:

New four AA Rosettes:

Alchemilla, Nottingham, Nottinghamshire

The Lady Helen Restaurant, Thomastown, Co. Kilkenny

New three AA Rosettes:

Cavendish Hotel, Baslow, Derbyshire

Edinbane Lodge, Edinbane, Highlands

Hammet @ Castell Malgwyn, Llechryd, Ceredigion

No.5 Social, London W1

Paschoe House, Crediton, Devon

Siren, London SW1

The Ollerod, Beaminster, Dorset

The Pass Restaurant, Lower Beeding, West Sussex

The Yorke Arms, Pateley Bridge, North Yorkshire

Tony Parkin at the Tudor Room, Egham, Surrey

Wild Honey St James, London SW1