Seven restaurants in the Midlands have won a place on a new national top 100 list.
Birmingham is one of the few British cities outside London to feature more than once in this weekend’s Sunday Times 100 Top Restaurants.
Compiled with Harden’s restaurant guide using 70,000 reviews from more than 6,000 diners, Michelin-starred Purnell’s restaurant and Loves, near Brindleyplace, both appear.
But owner Glynn Purnell isn’t letting the news go to his head.
He said: “There are lots of top 100 lists and top 10s, and lots of guides coming out and while it’s fantastic to have two restaurants in Birmingham mentioned there possibly should be more.
“These lists are subjective and they can either rub people up the wrong way or give you a pat on the back, but I’ve been doing this a long time and I take it all in my stride.
“The important thing is that every restaurant continues to support Birmingham in the public eye because whether we’ve got two, five or zero restaurants on the list we know we’ve got a fantastic food culture here.
“You can only judge how good you are by the amount of people sitting in your restaurant. If Adam’s, Simpsons, Turners and Carters are full what does a top 100 matter?”
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Of the seven Midlands restaurants in the list, three appear in the top 10: Mr Underhill’s in Ludlow, Restaurant Sat Bains in Nottingham and Harry’s Place in Great Gonerby. Hambleton Hall in Rutland and Fishers at Derbyshire’s Baslow Hall complete the Midlands entries.
Karen Robinson, editor of the list, said: “It is very exciting to see the evolution of the list since The Sunday Times first published it in 2010.
“This year has seen a marked increase in the number of restaurants outside London, a sign that we are becoming an increasingly sophisticated culinary nation.”
- The seven Midlands restaurants are: Fischers at Baslow Hall, Derbyshire; Hambleton Hall, Rutland; Harry’s Place, Great Gonerby; Loves, Birmingham; Mr Underhill’s, Ludlow; Purnell’s, Birmingham; Restaurant Sat Bains, Nottingham.