Curse of the Goose?

For the third time, the Goose at Britwell Salome in Oxfordshire has won a Michelin star, only for the staff to walk out.

In 2005, Mike North won a Michelin star for the Goose, which was then a gastropub. A year later he left and took over The Walnut Tree in Murcottt, also in Oxfordshire, where he won a Michelin star for himself. The owner of the freehold, property developer Paul Castle, then sold the lease to the Brackenbury Group, which appointed Matthew Tomkinson, who turned the pub into a restaurant and won back the Michelin star in 2008. Six months later he left to run the Montagu Arms in Beaulieu, Hampshire citing "alarm bells ringing about the financial side of the business". He was replaced by Ryan Simpson who took over only to discover later that the owning company was in receivership. Paul Castle took the restaurant back into his personal ownership and Ryan Simpson and his sous-chef, Liam Trotman, went to work to regain the star, but there were still financial doubts about the company. Ryan Simpson: "there was no budget or financial information for us to work with, although we were assured that everything was all right. Our kitchen brigade was only three - we didn't even have a KP - and we lost our third person just before Christmas 2009. We were promised a replacement, but he/she never materialised. In desperation we tried to buy, lease or rent the Goose, but the costs asked for were way beyond our means, even for a 50/50 deal."

The final straw came after the winning of the Michelin star, when owner Paul Castle told Ryan Simpson that the restaurant was losing money, the food was "too poncy" and there was a need to get back to the basics of pub grub. Ryan Simpson and his staff decided that they had had enough, due to the ongoing change of the identity of the restaurant and the methods used by the owner to run the operation, they walked out after service on Friday, 05-Feb-10.

YES CHEF! Magazine tried to contact Paul Castle at the Restaurant but the telephone was on answering-machine simply saying that due to 'unforeseen circumstances the team has left the premises...' We left a message asking him to return our call. No such call has been received so far.

John Radford 07.02.10

Update: On Thursday 11-Feb-10 this round-robin e-mail was received from Paul Castle:

Dear Customers of the Goose,

I am sure that you have been reading the recent daily press and realize that unfortunately the restaurant has had to close due to a misunderstanding between myself and all the staff at the Goose. I want to assure you that we will be re-opening in the beginning of March and will be serving food of a high standard as usual. I am sorry for the inconvenience caused to all my good customers but I assure you of my best intention come the beginning of March. Thanking you for your patience and I look forward to welcoming you at the Goose in the near future.

Thanking you for your custom to date and I look forward to continued support.

Kind regards

Paul Castle

Owner of The Goose

Michelin results leaked, just in time for the weekend papers

The details of the 2010 Michelin Guide for Great Britain and Ireland have come out early, revealing a new three star inclusion for Alain Ducasse at the Dorchester.

The results were leaked after a chef was mistakenly sent the 2010 guide before the Tuesday embargo.

Paul Kitching of 21212 in Edinburgh was pleasantly surprised by the arrival of the guide at his home and restaurant this morning, revealing the news that he has been awarded a Michelin star.


He told Yes Chef: "Katie ordered it off Amazon and saw when she was tracking her purchase that it was in Edinburgh. 'Don't worry,' she said, 'it's probably 2009's guide.' Turns out it wasn't. We're relieved because it means we're back to where we were a year and a half ago at Juniper."

After finding out about the cock-up Michelin promptly published the full results on its website, conveniently just in time for the weekend papers. The note-worthy developments include Alain Ducasse being awarded three stars for his restaurant in the Dorchester and Gordon Ramsay losing his one star at Claridges. The Capital Hotel, and The Vineyard at Stockcross, which have both seen a change of chefs over the past year, both lost their two stars.

London restaurant Galvin at Windows picked up a one star accolade, with general manager Fred Sirieix telling us, "London restaurant Galvin at Windows picked up a one star accolade, with general manager Fred Sirieix telling us, "We are ecstatic, but it's not about the star itself. We've been working so hard and pushing the quality further and further, so it's good to get recognised. We're only going to keep on pushing now." Other new additions included London gastro pub the Harwood Arms in Fulham, whose chef Brett Graham also received two stars at the Ledbury, and Sienna restaurant in Dorset.

Heston Blumenthal's Fat Duck maintained its three-star status despite the fallout from a food-poisoning bout last year, and Ramsay kept his three at Hospital Road. The Waterside Inn in Bray kept its three stars for the 25th year.

Click here to view the full results

13 Restaurants Announced as AA Rosette Winners

The new additions to the AA's restaurant guide have been announced, with 13 restaurants receiving new rosette accolades.

Just one restaurant, the The Burlington Restaurant, Devonshire Arms, Bolton Abbey was awarded four AA rosettes, while 12 restaurants across the country gained three.

The four AA rosette winner The Devonshire Arms (which started life as a 17th-century coaching inn) has received the recognition through the cooking of head chef Steve Smith, who joined the property in the spring of 2008 from Seaham Hall.

AA Hotel Services' group area manager, Giovanna Grossi said, "I am delighted to welcome a dozen more restaurants into the higher Rosette awards; with additional praise going to The Burlington Restaurant at The Devonshire Arms Country House Hotel & Spa for its immense achievement of four AA Rosettes."

The restaurants to receive three AA rosettes include Steve Love's recently opened eponymous restaurant in Birmingham, Paul Kitching's Edinburgh venture 21212, Aubergine in London and former-Aubergine chef William Drabble's Seven Park Place restaurant at the St James's Hotel, also in London.

Drabble, who joined the St James's Hotel along with former Capital GM Henrik Muehle in September last year, said of the award: "Joining St James's Hotel and Club back in September represented a huge challenge for me after spending 10 years at Aubergine and I am delighted that all the hard work is paying off. Henrik's vision for enhancing guest experience at the hotel has also been key to ensuring that everything runs so smoothly and successfully."

Full list of three rosette winning restaurants and their chefs:

Colette's at the Grove, Rickmansworth, Hertfordshire. Chef: Russell Bateman

Restaurant Alimentum, Cambridge. Chef: Mark Poynton (formerly at Midsummer House)

21212, Edinburgh. Chef: Paul Kitching (previously at Juniper in Manchester)

Aubergine, London. Chef: Christophe Renou

Waldo's at Cliveden. Chef: Chris Horridge

Launceston Place, London. Chef: Tristan Welch

The Green Inn, Ballater, Aberdeenshire. Chef: Chris O'Halloran

Hell Bay Hotel, Bryher, Scilly Isles. Chef: Glenn Gatland

The Alderley Restaurant, Alderley Edge, Cheshire. Chef: Chris Holland

Seven Park Place, St James's Hotel, London. Chef: William Drabble

1901, Andaz Hotel, London. Chef: Dominic Teague

Loves Restaurant, Birmingham. Chef: Steve Love