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Breaking news
https://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/lifestyle/food-and-drink/raby-hunt-michelin-starred-restaurant-named-one-of-the-best-in-the-north-to-close-after-15-years-4468186
Harden's survey result
Summary
Since its debut in 2009, James Close has put this Grade-II-listed former pub firmly on the UK’s foodie map, despite its out-of-the-way location in the County Durham countryside, not far from Darlington. Once a real ale boozer, in its converted state it has maintained two Michelin stars since 2016 and is one of the culinary flag-bearers for the Northeast with its extensive tasting menu – £195 per person for over 10 courses (or you can eat at the chef’s table for £300 per person). Compared with some other places of gastronomic pilgrimage, it didn’t attract a huge volume of feedback in our annual diners’ poll this year. But there were none of last year’s critiques, and all acclaimed “an excellent dining experience” that’s “outstanding all-round”, so we’ve maintained its ratings.
Summary
“An absolute ‘tour de force’” – all reports acclaim James Close’s luxurious and supremely accomplished cuisine at this converted Grade-II-listed old pub (with rooms), remotely located in the wilds of County Durham, and holder of two of the Tyre Men’s gongs. Other aspects of the experience are a little more divisive. A minimalist interior that is, for fans, “all the things one would wish for: spacious, sophisticated, calming…” is to its critics “a little cold”. And then there’s the final bill, which can seem plain “exorbitant” and contributes to an overall impression that can appear “overcomplicated and too self conscious”. The strongest overall sentiment, though? “Wow, wow and wow is all I can say!”.
Summary
James Close’s cuisine “could scarcely be more indulgent” at his Grade-II-listed old pub (with rooms) in the boonies of County Durham, which achieves a large volume of feedback for somewhere that’s relatively remote. “Luxury ingredients are treasured and celebrated throughout with exceptional imagination and intensity” in his multi-course tasting menus that are “a tour de force of technique and style”. Reporters’ main reservation is the “minimalist grey, white decor that seems rather sterile” (although the approach also can seem “just a bit too much: literally, and metaphorically… too formal… and with an intensity of labour put into the food that maybe justifiably underwrote the cost, but was just altogether a little overwhelming”). Overall, though, the most common view is that “the stunning food just makes everything else irrelevant!”
Summary
James Closes’s “global-quality cuisine” – “enjoyed as part of a 15-course tasting menu” – and “stunning wines” (“make friends with the sommelier and you will drink a more interesting selection”) have won foodie fame for this converted old pub with three rooms, out in the sticks of County Durham: the only restaurant in the north east with two Michelin stars. Even fans concede that it is “expensive”, however, and critics feel that “there’s too much hype and fuss” surrounding cooking that “at the eye watering prices, is good, but not that good”.
For 33 years we've been curating reviews of the UK's most notable restaurant. In a typical year, diners submit over 50,000 reviews to create the most authoritative restaurant guide in the UK. Each year, the guide is re-written from scratch based on this survey (although for the 2021 edition, reviews are little changed from 2020 as no survey could run for that year).
Have you eaten at Raby Hunt?
Summerhouse, DL2 3UD
Restaurant details
Prices
 Drinks |
|
|---|---|
| Wine per bottle | £25.00 |
| Filter Coffee | £4.00 |
 Extras |
|
|---|---|
| Service | 10.00% |
Summerhouse, DL2 3UD
Opening hours
| Monday | CLOSED |
| Tuesday | CLOSED |
| Wednesday | 6 pm‑8 pm |
| Thursday | 6 pm‑8 pm |
| Friday | 6 pm‑8 pm |
| Saturday | 6 pm‑8 pm |
| Sunday | CLOSED |
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