Restaurant of the Year: Great Food Club Awards 2021/22
Winner
Chosen by our judges:
The Factory Kitchen, Ilkeston, Derbyshire
Shortlist
The top public vote-winners:
The Factory Kitchen, Ilkeston, Derbyshire
The Red Lion, West Deeping, Lincolnshire
Tap & Run, Upper Broughton, Nottinghamshire
Paddy’s Marten Inn, Leicester
The winner is The Factory Kitchen – a cafe-by-day and restaurant-by-night set in an old factory in the former coal-mining town of Ilkeston. Under head chef Jacob Robinson, the food is creative, seasonal and unique.
Our judges were impressed by the entire dining experience, from the interior’s memorable industrial design touches – a nod to the building’s past – to the warmth of the welcome, the quality of the cooking and the creativity of the flavour combinations.
In the kitchen, young chef Jacob – who worked under Marcus Wareing and Richard Corrigan in London before returning to his home town of Ilkeston – is capable of delivering dishes of the highest quality, and is surely a star in the making. The evening a la carte menu offers spectacular dishes such as Devon crab tart with avocado, fermented tomato and Marie Rose sauce; lamb loin and belly with labneh, charred radicchio, fregola sarda, pomegranate and cumin sauce; and Gariguette strawberry choux bun with elderflower and basil.
The small team that Factory Kitchen owners Kevin and Jane Pierrepont has put together has the feel of a happy family. That, combined with the food offering, makes The Factory Kitchen a truly special place.
Congratulations to all four of our shortlisted businesses.
