Eating at Westonbirt, The National Arboretum in Gloucestershire has become a whole new experience for visitors now that Calcot Kitchens – Calcot Hotels’ outside catering arm – has relaunched the arboretum’s restaurant and café.
The Forestry Commission – which manages the historic, Victorian landscape and internationally important tree and shrub collection at Westonbirt – has appointed Calcot Kitchens (formerly Williams Kitchen at Calcot) to run its public restaurant and café facilities following a rigorous tender process.
The Restaurant re-opening will reveal a totally new front-of-house design, branding and catering concept drawing strongly on its arboreal setting and rarefied environment, and will bring Calcot’s vision and quality experience to a nationally – and internationally – acclaimed British visitor attraction.
Geared towards the family experience, the Westonbirt Restaurant and Café will feed all ages well and imaginatively, thanks to stimulating local, healthy eating choices with regional produce from within a 30 mile radius predominantly, and the Cotswolds particularly.
Lunch, snacks and refreshments are served throughout the day in the 100 seat Westonbirt Restaurant, which has a further 200 places outside that enjoy the arboreal scenery. Planting at Westonbirt dates back to the 1850s and today the national arboretum boasts 16,000 trees – embracing 2,500 different species – originating from Britain, China, North America, Japan, Chile and other temperate climates. Known worldwide particularly for its spectacular spring rhododendron, azalea and magnolia displays in addition to its autumn colours and offering 17 miles of accessible paths, Westonbirt attracts over 350,000 visits annually.
Design harmonising with the Westonbirt panorama
In harmonising the restaurant’s look with the plantings across the outdoor landscape, interior designers Sims Hilditch (who are also behind the recent relaunch of The Conservatory restaurant at Calcot Manor – just three miles down the road and also near Tetbury) have created a rustic woodland feel within and around the Westonbirt Restaurant. Resonating against the unbeatable backdrop of the arboretum, a mix of soft tonal colours and natural materials – such as oak, granite and slate – has been adopted while elegant sharing tables and simple hanging lanterns, for instance, add further to the effect in a contemporary fashion. Bench seating in certain areas, lofty arched wooden ceilings and full length windows conspire with the Westonbirt panorama too.
The hub
A barista section will form part of the hub where home made snacks, cakes, pastries and biscuits are on sale, with appealingly presented food displays and information provided alongside. Main courses are to be chosen and ordered here too as a numbered wooden marker is handed out, ahead of the main course being freshly prepared in the kitchen and then served at your table.
A glance at the Sandwiches, Baguettes, Soups and Panini selections alone will provide a flavour of what’s in store. While the Hot-Smoked Bibury Trout sandwich is cold, the Vegetarian Club – a Grilled Flatbread with Windrush Feta, Heirloom Beetroot, Tomato and Watercress – is warm. Soups will be accompanied by Calcot/Shipton Mill organic bread and local butter served on a wooden board.
Spinning out the fun and enjoyment of eating at Westonbirt further still, the Restaurant is supplemented by a mini food court area within the terrace and patio just outside. Here a wood-fired barbecue and clay oven are featured serving up their own special treats while the Westonbirt Café (situated towards Westonbirt’s Great Oak Hall) offers other takeaway selections for those on the move.
Bringing Calcot Manor’s quality and service to Westonbirt
“Our outside catering arm’s success in delivering Calcot Manor’s blend of restaurant quality meals and service to private events and venues beyond the hotel itself has secured a superb following,” says Richard Ball, Chairman of Calcot Hotels. “We are extremely thrilled now to be relaunching the Forestry Commission’s restaurant and café at Westonbirt and to have an even greater opportunity to serve a far wider audience with our particular blend of food and hospitality in the context of a very special day out at one of Britain’s leading rural attractions. We are confident that championing local produce in a sustainable and environmentally-friendly way, in keeping with the Westonbirt ethos, will add greatly to the visitor experience. Certainly, everyone eating at Westonbirt can count upon delicious food and refreshments alongside a fun time.”
Calcot Hotels and Kitchens
Calcot Hotels launched its restaurant quality outside catering arm in response to local demand. Over the years, this wing of Calcot’s activity has grown significantly as the hotel’s restaurant level menus, chefs and waiting staff, professional event planning and bespoke attention to detail has been brought to cocktail parties, buffet lunches, dinner parties, christenings and weddings, within a radius of up to 70 miles from Calcot Manor.
Gloucestershire-based Calcot Hotels dates back to 1984 when Calcot Manor opened as a seven bedroom hotel just three mile outside Tetbury. Today the hotel offers a total of 35 bedrooms, family rooms and suites alongside two restaurants, a luxury spa and Playzone with The Barn for private events. All are clustered as a hamlet within a 220 acre estate.
In 2009, the 18 bedroom Barnsley House and its companion, The Village Pub near Cirencester were acquired by Calcot Hotels.
This autumn sees the hotel collection welcoming its fourth property with The Lord Crewe Arms (dating back to 1721) in the medieval village of Blanchland, on the Northumberland-Durham border being relaunched as a top-quality 21 bedroom country hotel enquiries@lordcrewearms.co.uk.
Westonbirt, The National Arboretum
Is managed by the Forestry Commission and is renowned worldwide for its tree and shrub collection. Home to five national collections, the arboretum covers 243 hectares (600 acres) and contains 16,000 labelled specimens. Visitor numbers are 350,000 a year, with a membership of over 28,000. Westonbirt Arboretum was established in the 1850s by wealthy landowner Robert Holford and later developed by his son George Holford. Unlike many arboretums, Westonbirt is laid out according to aesthetic appeal rather than scientific or geographical criteria.
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