No jacket required at award-winning restaurants

The increase in top restaurants offering informal, moderately priced dining means that this year’s new-look Good Food Guide 2008 has ditched all mention of dress codes and handed out a raft of awards* to restaurants that have a distinctly relaxed style.

In previous years the Guide – which reviews the best 1,200 restaurants in the UK – indicated which restaurants required ‘jacket and tie’, but this year the references have been dropped as so few restaurants impose a code.

Gastropubs and restaurants such as Arbutus and Canteen have set a trend for great quality, informal dining at modest prices. Children are now generally welcomed in restaurants, even at the most famous establishments; for example, Le Manoir aux Quat’ Saisons now offers an £18 menu for children.

Elizabeth Carter, editor, The Good Food Guide, says:

“There’s no need to dress up for dinner any more. People want fresh, seasonal food served in a relaxed setting, and The Good Food Guide has recognised the best of this new breed of restaurant in this year’s awards.

“Up-and-coming restaurants like Restaurant Nathan Outlaw in Fowey, The Felin Fach Griffin in Wales and The Bildeston Crown in Suffolk achieve a relaxed style without any compromise on excellence.”

* Award winners in The Good Food Guide 2008

Restaurant newcomer of the year – Restaurant Nathan Outlaw, Cornwall“The arrival of Nathan Outlaw has transformed the Marina Villa Hotel. Often succinct and always vibrant, the cooking uses elegantly matched ingredients to achieve wonderful flavours.”

Pub newcomer of the year – Highwayman, Lancashire
“The quality of food and terrific value for money more than merit a journey by those who live further afield. Prominence given to provenance can make the menu read a little like a family tree, but the kitchen knows how to get the best out of its scrupulously sourced ingredients.”

Wine list of the year – The Square, London
“Wine is the passionate hobby of owner Nigel Platts-Martin, a man with a nose for the finest burgundy and champagne from the best growers. Christopher Delalonde, The Square’s outstanding sommelier, also deserves real credit for what is an exceptional list. Alsace has a whole page, Germany gets two, with the splendid Egon Müller Scharzhofberger Kabinett 1998 at £45, a good buy.”

Best chef – Jason Atherton, Maze, London
“The focus of Jason Atherton’s menu is tapas-sized portions. Just about everything on the menu sounds fascinating, the combinations are unusual but sensible and the kitchen delivers some exquisite treats.”

Up-and-coming chef/s (joint award)

1. Peter and Jonray Sanchez Iglesias at Casamia, Bristol
“Peter and Jonray Sanchez-Iglesias recently returned home to cook at their parents’ Italian restaurant. The menu reveals daring variations on classics and wholly contemporary Italian dishes. Produce is sourced from the surrounding area and Milan market, with herbs and exotic fruit grown in the courtyard.”

2. Chris Lee, The Bildeston Crown, Suffolk
“Chris Lee is an ambitious, self-taught chef. His ‘intricate cuisine gastronomique’ is definitely showy, but backed up by sound technique. Subtle flavours, complementary textures and dish combinations are analytically thought out.

Most improved restaurant – West Stoke House, West Sussex
“Darren Brown cooks bang up-to-date modern British dishes with a few French influences thrown in for excellent measure. One reporter felt a dish of English asparagus with hen’s egg and hollandaise reached new highs, thanks to well-sourced ingredients handled with style and simplicity.”

Best fish restaurant – Cellar, Anstruther, Scotland
“Little seems to have changed during the 26 years that Peter Jukes has been serving up fresh fish at his stone-built restaurant by the harbour. Seafood has its seasons and this gives a sound structure to the menus. Combinations are well-considered and perfectly balanced.”

Best value for money – Ottolenghi, London
“Queues often stretch out of this inventive café/deli at weekends, but this isn’t a chore – it’s an opportunity to eye up the fresh salads, breads and cakes on display in the shop (takeaway if you don’t fancy the wait). Big, bold, fresh flavours prevail.”

Best family restaurant – The Felin Fach Griffin, Wales
“The Felin Fach Griffin does relaxed, modern-rustic style to devastatingly good effect and welcomes children of all ages. It is pub enough to have excellent, well-kept ales on tap, but restaurant enough to deliver excellent service and cooking that is hearty but reliably exact.”

Best use of local produce – Sutherland House, Suffolk
“Chef Alan Paton’s food is indulgent, forward-thinking and generally restrained. Food miles are listed by each dish and if the boats can’t leave the harbour, don’t expect fresh fish for supper. An obsessive focus on doorstep produce means a foodie trail around Suffolk on the appetising menu.”