Village pub's staff celebrate special Michelin honour

Licensees and their staff at a village pub are celebrating a special honour in the latest edition of the Michelin Guide.
Neil and Louise Hitchen celebrate with staff at the Berkeley Arms after being awarded a coveted Bib Gourmand in the 2016 Michelin Guide EMN-161210-172211001Neil and Louise Hitchen celebrate with staff at the Berkeley Arms after being awarded a coveted Bib Gourmand in the 2016 Michelin Guide EMN-161210-172211001
Neil and Louise Hitchen celebrate with staff at the Berkeley Arms after being awarded a coveted Bib Gourmand in the 2016 Michelin Guide EMN-161210-172211001

The Berkeley Arms at Wymondham was the only pub in Leicestershire and Rutland to be awarded the coveted Bib Gourmand, which honours quality and value of food where three courses are served for under £28.

It is actually the sixth time the business has been given the award but a handful of others in the area did not retain theirs.

Landlady Louise Hitchen, who took over running the premises with husband Neil in January 2010, said: “It is wonderful for us to be recognised in this way.

“It’s particularly nice for Neil and his kitchen team.

“Any recognition you get in the Michelin Guide is fab and we are honoured to be the only Leicestershire and Rutland pub with a Bib Gourmand.”

The Berkeley Arms employs 18 people. Neil has two full-time chefs working with him in the kitchen and Louise has another full-timer operating front-of-house with her.

The rest of the staff are part-time.

Louise added: “Our game food will be very popular in the coming weeks as we are just coming into the season.”

She added: “It’s good for the area to have a pub with this award and hopefully even more people will visit us.”

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