Colin McGurran was born in Zambia before returning to the UK as a young boy. After training at Bournemouth College, he started working at the prestige 2-Michelin-starred Domaines Haut de Loire in France. He later moved to Abu Dhabi, accepting a post as banqueting manager for the UAE royal family.
Baked bream
In 2001, Colin took over the Woolpack Country Inn in Whitley with his sister.
Then4 years later he bought the luxurious restaurant Winteringham Fields in North Lincolnshire.
Colin had dined at Winteringham Fields some years before when it was still owned by Germain and Annie Schwab, and held great respect for the venue and their fine dining. Therestaurant has gone on to win accolades including five AA stars and three AA rosettes.
Colin is a popular face on television including Saturday Kitchen, Ramsay’s Best Restaurant and Great British Menu. He won in 2012 with his quail in the wood's starter – created from over 50 ingredients – and again in 2014 for his nostalgic Dickin medal dessert.
Winteringham Fields
Colin expanded the business, developing much of the property’s eight acres into a fully functioning farm and nursery. He encourages staff to take an active part in the cultivation and harvesting of their produce. Sheep, pigs and chicken are kept to supply meat and dairy, while the majority of herbs and vegetables are grown in the grounds of Winteringham. All ingredients are sourced as locally as possible, a philosophy Colin refers to as their ‘One-Mile Menu’. With the restaurant being 85% self-sustaining, Colin is aiming towards making it 100%.
The restaurant is a converted barn-house with scenic views of the pastoral landscape. Diners then have the choice to stay the night in the Lord Fitz Hugh suite, which is decorated in reds, creams and golds, and furnished with a king size bed and antique furniture
Sous vide pigeon
Due to Colin’s ability to imbue the cuisine with his ‘personality’, Rebecca Burr, director of the Michelin Guide Great Britain and Ireland awarded Winteringham Fields their first Michelin star.
Colin explains: “Although we’ve always been confident that our food was some of the finest in the region, it was so exciting to have confirmation that it’s also some of the finest in the country. We’re looking forward to getting back in the kitchen and to keep pushing for higher standards.”
Menu
The ‘surprise menus’ reflect Colin’semphasis on nature, using seasonal ingredients. Examples include: chicken with wild garlic and asparagus in spring, pigeon with textures of beetroot come autumn and tomato gazpacho being one of the restaurant’s signature dishes. BehindWinteringham’s tasting menu, is six to eight courses priced between £65 and £89 with each dish based around a single ingredient.
With no menu in the evening time, it makes it a unique dining experience. There is also a 7-glass wine collection to pair with the courses, which can range from a Sagrantino di Montefalco to a fruity Côtes du Rhône.
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