Liverpudlian chef and winner of Great British Menu 2021, Dan McGeorge, opened his debut restaurant earlier this year transforming the Grade II Listed 29A Hope Street into a fine-dining eatery.
A 26-cover restaurant, Vetch serves up dishes made with locally-sourced ingredients and the menu features a five-course lunch and a seven-course dinner. Dishes change seasonally and showcase modern British cooking, influenced by Nordic and Asian flavours.
McGeorge said it had always been his ‘dream’ to open a restaurant in his own city and, despite launching just five months ago, his Hope Street eatery has already bagged itself two prestigious AA rosettes.
”Accolades like this are about the entire team and we now want to go to the next level and push for a third rosette, all the while ensuring that constituency and quality flow through everything that we do, whether that’s our seasonally inspired menus or our drinks offer,” McGeorge added.
The long-established AA Rosettes scheme celebrates successful cooking at different levels. Each year the AA’s inspectors hit the road tasting their way around the UK before announcing their rosette recommendations, ordinarily announced twice annually in January and September.
Rosette awards range from one to five, but receiving any number of rosettes is considered a significant achievement in the food industry. Restaurants that achieve one rosette have ‘standards that stand out in their local area’ with around 50% of rosette holders achieving one.
Two rosettes are presented to restaurants that are achieving exceptionally high standards, with a particular focus on the selection of quality ingredients, whilst demonstrating consistency and precision in their cookery. At the other end of the scale, restaurants that are awarded five rosettes, feature cooking that is ‘on par with the best in the world.’
Across Merseyside, more than a dozen local eateries have earned themselves AA rosettes. Below are all the restaurants in and around Merseyside to receive AA Rosette Awards for Culinary Excellence for 2024, listed in alphabetical order.
1. 8 by Andrew Sheridan, Cook Street, Liverpool 🏵️🏵️🏵️
8 by Andrew Sheridan is an immersive fine dining restaurant, that has quickly become Liverpool’s must-visit eatery. An AA inspector said: “Guests arriving at 8 By Andrew Sheridan are led downstairs to a dark vaulted space where the set up is two kitchen benches with slate tops, tall stools and eight seats each. Diners are served by the chefs which makes for a chatty and informal atmosphere. The 8-course menu is rooted in British and global flavours and might begin with deeply flavourful beef, truffle, nori and crumpet. Perfectly cooked stone bass with tikka sauce and cashew might precede scallop, Isle of Wight tomatoes, and smoked cod’s roe, then hogget, pine nut and aubergine. Finish the inspiring journey with Driftwood goats’ cheese, blueberry, walnut and thyme." 📍 Cook St, Liverpool L2 9RF | PR
2. The Art School Restaurant, Sugnall Street, Liverpool 🏵️🏵️
The Art School Restaurant is a popular fine dining restaurant, in the heart of the city. An AA inspector said: “Close to Liverpool’s main attractions, The Art School Restaurant is accessed through a discreet side entrance and the stylish dining area sits in a glass-roofed courtyard with a window into the kitchen allowing diners to see the chefs at close quarters. The assured cooking is rooted in French classics.” 📍 Sugnall Street, Liverpool, L7 7EB. | Trip Advisor
3. The Barn at Moor Hall, Preston Road, Aughton 🏵️🏵️🏵️
The Barn at Moor Hall offers a delicious and varied menu, showcasing the best of seasonal produce. An AA inspector said: “A rustic setting packed with character and with fabulous countryside views, The Barn is sister to Moor Hall, but don’t be fooled by the little sibling’s ability to impress. As you approach there’s a patio area with some seating which overlooks the lake, which can also be seen from the first-floor restaurant. Once inside The Barn, pass several small rooms before walking up the grand wooden stairs where you’ll be met with a blend of original beams, new wood bar and open red brick work, elevated by slate-blue leather seating. To the far end is a state-of-the-art open kitchen with busy chefs in action. A regularly changing menu offers contemporary cooking and features plenty of produce from Moor Hall’s five-acre grounds and home-made ingredients.” 📍 Prescot Rd, Aughton, Ormskirk L39 6R | The Barn at Moor Hall
4. Burnt Truffle, Telegraph Road, Heswall 🏵️🏵️
Burnt Truffle is located in Heswall and is by the team behind Wreckfish. The eatery has great food and a beautiful outdoor terrace. An AA inspector said: “Gary Usher, owner of the six-restaurant Elite Bistros group, opened his Wirral bridgehead in 2015, following a crowdfunding campaign; its name was decided by the Twitterati. Walls are decorated with food and wine pictures, old London restaurant menus and names of crowdfunding donors. Monthly changing menus offer bistro-style takes on modern British and international dishes. Outside is a heated terrace.” 📍 Telegraph Rd, Heswall, Wirral CH60 0AQ | Burnt Truffle