BMW Square Meal Award

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BMW Square Meal Award: The Walnut Tree

Each summer the BMW Square Meal Award is given to the best restaurant outside London. It’s a hard enough task to choose the best in the capital, but when we’re looking at the entire country, the decision is even more challenging. This year our team of regional inspectors, as well as you, our readers, have been particularly impressed by Restaurant Nathan Outlaw in Cornwall, Sharrow Bay in the Lake District, celebrating its 60th birthday, and Scotland’s Restaurant Andrew Fairlie. But there was one restaurant that had the edge: The Walnut Tree.

Having been taken over by Shaun Hill last year, the restaurant has been returned to its glory days. The simple, flavour-led cooking chimes with current trends – not least in its value-for-money, which extends to the wine list. And it’s refreshing to find a restaurant in the middle of the countryside that is neither a gastropub nor a fine-dining hotel. What’s more, for an award sponsored by BMW, you couldn’t find a prettier corner of the UK to take a car for a spin.

We are thankful to BMW for its ongoing sponsorship of the award, not least because the BMW brand shares a lot in common with the winning restaurant – quality, value for money and reliable service. In a nutshell, both deliver something special, which is why we offer our heartiest congratulations to Shaun Hill and his team for a well-deserved win.