16-04-2025
Wiltshire restaurant picks up prestigious regional award
A restaurant attached to a Wiltshire manor that is home to one of the nation's best gardens has scooped a prestigious regional award.
Iford Manor Kitchen, near Bradford on Avon, picked up 'Best Newcomer' at the Trencherman Awards 2025 in Bath, on Monday, March 24.
The kitchen won the award, sponsored by Harvey & Brockless, at one of the South West's most prestigious hospitality awards were unveiled at a glamorous ceremony and multi-course dinner at the delightfully eclectic Homewood, near Bath.
Iford was also a finalist in the 'Best Front of House' category.
Owner Managers William and Marianne Cartwright-Hignett attended the ceremony, along with executive chef Matthew Briddon and his wife Klaudia.
On collecting the award, Marianne said: 'Wow! When William and I created Iford Manor Kitchen and Café, we wanted to provide visitors to our famous gardens with an improved food experience.
'However, we never expected to be where we are now and working alongside such a phenomenal team, every one of whom deserves this award.
'We are truly grateful for the support of our lovely customers, who nominated and voted for us. Thank you!'
The grand finale of the evening saw Paul Ainsworth honoured for his services to the region's hospitality sector with the Trencherman's Award for Special Contribution.
Other winners of the sought-after accolades were Ayesha Kalaji (Best Trencherman's Chef) for her modern Middle Eastern cooking at Queen of Cups in Glastonbury and OSIP (Award for Innovation and Creativity) in Bruton. Barnaby's in Padstow took home Best Trencherman's Restaurant.
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Trencherman's Guide editor Abi Manning hosted the awards evening, which is known for being the region's hottest event in the culinary calendar.
A multi-course dinner was cooked by previous award winners, three of whom are Great British Menu and/or MasterChef: The Professionals alumni, with the nine prizes presented between courses.
The event was attended by the movers and shakers of the South West food scene including leading chefs, restaurateurs, hoteliers, and food and drinks businesses.
Speaking with the Wiltshire Times in January, William said that the team was 'thrilled even to be nominate for the award they have just picked up.
He said: 'This best newcomer is great, because they're very selective about who goes in for the Trencherman awards, and to be nominated is very exciting.
'It's a very personal project to us and it's lovely to be involved and nominated and hopefully we can take it further.'
In addition to its culinary victory at the Trencherman Awards, Iford Manor's stunning Grade I-listed garden is also up for a national award.
The gardens are a finalist in the Historic House, which will has seen just eight gardens compete to be named 2025 Garden of the Year.
Iford's garden was most famously tended by architect Harold Peto, who took a Georgian terraced garden and developed it further, building on Mediterranean as well as Japanese influences, with statues, colonnades, rills and ponds gracing the terraces.
The gardens are open from 11am to 4pm (last entry 3pm) and have recently been shortlisted for the Historic Houses Garden of the Year 2025 award.
The Iford Manor hospitality offering will soon be expanding further as William and Marianne Cartwright-Hignett acquired the freehold to The Cross Guns at Avoncliff at the start of April and are currently readying it for opening this summer.
They will also be taking on the freehold of The Inn at Freshford later this year. Each of these historic pubs are unique, with very different characteristics.
The Iford team says it is looking forward to bringing quality food and drink, with a warm welcome to each whilst celebrating their unique characters.
