Mark Birchall wins Chefs’ Chef and John Williams MBE gets Lifetime Achievement Award in the AA Restaurant Guide 2022

Mark Birchall wins Chefs’ Chef and John Williams MBE gets Lifetime Achievement Award in the AA Restaurant Guide 2022!

• Which restaurants won AA Awards and Rosettes last year?

Mark Birchall Chef Patron of the two Michelin-starred Moor Hall takes the crown this year and joins an all-star list of chefs who have been awarded the accolade over the years including Jason Atherton, Tom Kerridge, Nathan Outlaw and Daniel Clifford.  

On winning such huge acknowledgement from his peers, Mark Birchall commented: “Thank you so much. It means a lot. It’s lovely to be among so many people. I’m very lucky I’ve got a great team around me.”

John Williams MBE, Executive Chef of The Ritz London, who picked up of the Lifetime Achievement Award said: “It is truly the greatest honour to have been recognized by the AA, the leading authority in the hospitality industry, thank you! I’m over the moon. I’ve been the Executive Chef at The Ritz since 2004 with my main objective to run the best hotel restaurant and offer the finest hospitality in Great Britain"

He added: "I’m very lucky to have a brilliant brigade of Chefs working with me, whose passion is to deliver the very best experience to every guest who comes into The Ritz Restaurant, every day. It’s been a challenging couple of years, but I really believe the entire experience that we are offering in The Restaurant is the best it has ever been.”

Commenting on this year's awards, Managing Director of AA Media Simon Numphud, said: "This year, the AA has seen firsthand just how hard teams are working to deliver great hospitality and service to the guests. Our inspection teams were once again impressed with the quality of service demonstrated by many establishments, and their hard working staff, from hotels to spas, restauranteurs to managers, housekeepers to chefs."

He added: "Let's take a moment and applaud the millions of dedicated hospitality professionals in the UK and beyond and celebrate their exemplary commitment and focus have always been cast."

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Restaurant, Saundersfoot, Pembrokeshire
The Dipping Lugger, Ullapool, Highland
The Dower House Restaurant at the Royal Crescent Hotel, Bath, Somerset
The Flitch of Bacon, Little Dunmow, Essex
The Great House, Lavenham, Suffolk
HAAR, St Andrews, Fife
Hammer & Pincers, Wymeswold, Leicestershire
The Jackdaw, Conwy
Langshott Manor, Horley, Surrey
The Loch & the Tyne by Adam Handling, Old Windsor, Berkshire
New Yard Restaurant, Helston, Cornwall
Opheem, Birmingham, West Midlands 
Rafters Restaurant, Sheffield, South Yorkshire
Restaurant 22, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire
Restaurant 8, Birmingham, West Midlands 
Restaurant Folium, Birmingham, West Midlands 
The Seacliff Restaurant, Sandy Cove Hotel, Ilfracombe, Devon
The Sir Charles Napier, Chinnor, Oxfordshire
The Victoria Oxshott, Leatherhead, Surrey
White Swan at Fence, Burnley, Lancashire

See the full list of winners:  

The winners of the AA Hospitality Awards 2022 are:

Chefs’ Chef
• Mark Birchall, Chef Patron of Moor Hall, Aughton, Lancashire

Restaurant of the Year
• England – Socius, Burnham Market, Norfolk
• London – Chez Bruce, London SW17
• Wales – Gem 42, Newport
• Scotland – The Cellar, Anstruther, Fife

Hotel of the Year
• England – Grantley Hall, Ripon, North Yorkshire
• London – Pan Pacific London, London EC3
• Wales – Llanerch Vineyard, Hensol, South Wales
• Scotland – The Balmoral, Edinburgh
• Northern Ireland – The Rabbit Hotel & Retreat, Templepatrick, County Antrim

Restaurant with Rooms
• England – The Angel at Hetton, North Yorkshire
• Wales – Crug Glâs Country House, Solva, Pembrokeshire
• Scotland – The Bonnie Badger, Gullane, East Lothian Spa

Hotel of the Year
• Lime Wood, Lyndhurst, Hampshire

Hotel Group of the Year
• The Pig Group

SmallHotel Group of the Year
• Iconic Luxury Hotels

Accessible Award
• Rudding Park, Harrogate, North Yorkshire

Sustainable Award
• Swinton Estate, Masham, North Yorkshire

Food Service Award
• Hélène Darroze at The Connaught, London W1

 Wine Award
• England – The Vineyard, Newbury, Berkshire
• Wales – The Grove, Narberth, Pembrokeshire
• Scotland – UNALOME by Graeme Cheevers, Glasgow

College Restaurant of the Year
• Senara Restaurant, Truro & Penwith College

Lifetime Achievement Award
• John Williams MBE

Outstanding Contribution Award
• Northcote: Obsession, Langho, Lancashire

Housekeeper of the Year
• Diane Payne from Rockliffe Hall in Darlington, County Durham