Shropshire Star

Two Shropshire chefs among the best in the country

Two Shropshire chefs dominate one of the UK's most prestigious food awards after being named among the crème de la crème.

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Claude Bosi, who founded Hibiscus, in Ludlow, before relocating to London, has been named the fifth best chef in the UK with a hard-to-beat score of 9/10.

His restaurant is ahead of Heston Blumenthal's The Fat Duck and Gordon Ramsay's eponymous Chelsea restaurant in the Good Food Guide.

Nathan Eades, who used to cook at Fishmore Hall, near Ludlow, has been named the best cook in the West Midlands.

Mr Eades now cooks at Simpsons, in Edgbaston, and has been ranked at 35, ahead of any other restaurant in Shropshire or Birmingham. Both men said they were delighted with the nomination and vowed to push on during the next year to move even higher up. Also among the list was Ynyshir, near Machynlleth, and Llangoed Hall, near Brecon. Mr Bosi has plans to bring his Midas touch back to Ludlow where he won his first Michelin star.

He has just bought a town centre pub with his wife, Lucy, and brother and sister-in-law, Cedric and Amy Bosi.

He said: "This is great news and I am looking forward to spending more time in Ludlow soon now that we have bought the Church Inn.

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Food review: Fishmore Hall, Ludlow, Shropshire

"I want to be in Ludlow twice a month. Ludlow was important to my career and I'm looking forward to helping to run a great town centre pub with my wife, brother and sister-in-law."

Mr Eades, at Simpsons, said he was thrilled to be named the best in the West Midlands. His restaurant, owned by Andreas Antona, has undergone a £1 million refit during the past year and has been feted by critics and customers alike.

"This is absolutely massive," he said. "It's all down to the team. We've got a really hard-working group of people here and we're pushing to get up to the next level.

"The competition in Birmingham is fierce with five Michelin star restaurants, so to be named the best of those by a guide as prestigious as the Good Food Guide is incredible.

"There's been a complete transformation at Simpsons during the past year and we've got more to do. We've changed the face of dining in Birmingham and this is just the start."

Cumbrian restaurant L'Enclume was named the best in the UK for the fourth year running.

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