Top North Yorkshire chef's Michelin star boost

Two local champions of the Harrogate district's food and drink sector are making national headlines in the run-up to their respective appearances in a major event in the town.
Michelin star chef and patron Frances Atkins of the Yorke Arms.Michelin star chef and patron Frances Atkins of the Yorke Arms.
Michelin star chef and patron Frances Atkins of the Yorke Arms.

Frances Atkins, the chef patron at The Yorke Arms in Ramsgill, will be opening the second annual Nidderdale Food and Drink Festival fresh from the announcement that the restaurant has retained its coveted Michelin star.

It’s yet another accolade for the food legend whose original twist on the classic dishes of Yorkshire had made her one of only six female Michelin-starred chefs in the entire UK.

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Meanwhile, Paul Kendall of Kendall’s Farm butchers on the High Street in Pateley Bridge will be hosting another of the festival’s key events after receiving the good news that ths shop has made the final three in Best Butchers Shop in the North of England Butcher’s Shops Awards 2018.

The timing of this double tonic for the Dales’ food and farming sector could not have been any better for the festival organisers.

So successful was this free event’s debut last year, that this year’s has been expanded to include a healthy new strand.

Taking place on Saturday, October 27, the event, which raises funds for Dementia Forward a registered charity based in Ripon, has now been rechristened the Nidderdale Food, Drink and Wellbeing Festival.

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The new intitiative means, as well as showcasing the fantastic range of local produce the Dales has to offer, the event will also feature 11 exhibitors offering advice, treatments and herbal remedies.

With a wide variety of local venues and schools involved and a host of local shops, traders and producers, Patelety Bridge will for one day from 9am to 5.30pm become the food capital of the north.

Paul Kendall’s appearance will come in the afternoon when he will be demonstrating how to prepare cuts of lamb.

On the Saturday evening there will be a Indian buffet meal prepared by TV celebrity chef Waqar Mughall with entertainment by professional classical Indian musician Vijay Venkat.

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As well as browsing a packed high street, the public will be able to explore the stalls in the Memorial Hall where they will meet a host of local producers and sample their produce.

After officially opening the festival at the Memorial Hall, Frances Atkins will carry out a demonstration of how to make sourdough bread.

The Yorke Arms Hotel reopened its doors recently after a refurbishment aimed at giving a fresh look to its 18th century restaurant and bed rooms.

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