Vale restaurant narrowly misses out on top award
A small restaurant in the Vale of Belvoir narrowly missed out on one of the industry’s most prestigious awards last night (Monday).
Restaurant Jericho, based at Orchard Farm in Plungar, was shortlisted for Restaurant of the Year in The Good Food Guide Awards 2025.
It was a remarkable achievement for the eaterie, which was opened in 2022 by Richard and Grace Stevens, who offer a high quality taster menu with wine pairings.
An indication of how impressive it was to be shortlisted is that one of the other four restaurants nominated was The Ritz in London, a world-renowned dining venue since the early 1900s.
The award went to Merlin Labron-Johnson’s Osip, which is based at an historic country inn at Bruton in Somerset.
A presentation ceremony was held at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane in central London with TV and radio presenter Richard Bacon hosting.
Chloë Hamilton, co-editor of The Good Food Guide, said the judges’ decision on restaurant of the year went ‘down to the wire’.
Restaurant Jericho has a unique feel to it with customers all arriving at the same time, at 7pm – food comes from the farm’s kitchen garden and meat from local farms.
There is a 20-course menu on Friday and Saturday evenings costing £120 per person with a paired wines for an extra £80.
It also has a 12-course tasting menu on the Kitchen Bench for £140.
The restaurant does not offer dishes for pescatarians, vegetarians or vegans.
The other shortlisted restaurants were London’s St John (Smithfield) and Opheem, in Birmingham.