Restaurant in Hampton in Arden, United Kingdom
Fire-cooked tasting menu, Michelin star, book ahead.
Grace & Savour holds a Michelin Star (2024) and a place in OAD's Top 700 European restaurants. Chef David Taylor's Nordic-inflected tasting menu — fourteen courses at dinner, eight at Saturday lunch — is served in a Victorian Walled Garden within Hampton Manor. The food has matured notably since opening; returning visitors and first-timers both find the ££££ price point well-supported by the kitchen's technical precision and the setting's quiet focus.
If you have been to Grace & Savour once, the question on a return visit is whether David Taylor's kitchen has kept moving. The answer, based on sourced critical consensus through 2025, is yes: reviewers who have followed the restaurant across its three years note the cooking has matured and tightened, with the fourteen-course tasting menu now operating at a level of coherence that justifies the ££££ price point. This is the right restaurant to book if you want serious modern British cooking in a genuinely distinctive setting within reach of Birmingham. If you want something more casual or easier to secure a table at, look elsewhere.
David Taylor came through Purnell's in Birmingham and Maaemo in Oslo, and both influences are legible in the food: the Nordic minimalism of Maaemo shows in the stripped-back plating and the frequency of preservation techniques, while a grounding in British produce keeps the cooking from feeling imported. Carrot nectar, apple kombucha, and pickled magnolia are the kinds of ingredients that signal intent. The tasting menu format — fourteen courses at dinner, eight at Saturday lunch — gives Taylor the space to develop a single coherent argument across a meal rather than offering crowd-pleasing variety. Long-term visitors note that the food now feels more assured than it did at opening, which is worth knowing if your first visit was in the early months.
The cooking prioritises essence over elaboration. Dishes that have been described in detail by critics demonstrate the method: a single scallop with its dried roe and a roasted mussel broth; tomato consommé built around a cherry tomato at peak ripeness, with smoked lamb's heart teasing out the tomato's flavour rather than competing with it. Bread from Hampton Manor's own bakery gets its own course. The approach is technically demanding but presented without ceremony, and the written menu is supplied with the bill rather than in advance, which keeps the focus on eating rather than reading. For diners comparing this to other tasting-menu destinations in the Midlands and beyond, the closest point of reference in register is Moor Hall in Aughton , similarly produce-led, similarly serious, though Grace & Savour has a quieter atmosphere. L'Enclume in Cartmel is the benchmark for this style nationally, and Grace & Savour sits a tier below it in terms of recognition, though the gap in experience is narrower than the gap in profile.
The restaurant is housed in a modern building within the Victorian Walled Garden of Hampton Manor, set apart from the hotel itself. Cream walls, dark wooden furniture, and bare rafters give it a calm, undecorated quality. Large picture windows look out onto the restored kitchen garden, and the open kitchen is visible from the dining room. The atmosphere is described consistently as casual yet focused: diners at Saturday lunch are dressed down, staff are engaged rather than formal, and folk harmonies provide the background. This is not a room designed to impress through grandeur; it impresses through restraint. If you are considering staying overnight, Hampton Manor offers rooms on-site, which is the practical way to handle a fifteen-course dinner that ends at midnight.
Grace & Savour holds a Michelin One Star (2024) and is ranked #616 in Opinionated About Dining's Leading Restaurants in Europe for 2025. The Google rating sits at 4.8 from 167 reviews. For a restaurant that is only three years old, the critical reception has been consistent: reviewers note the food has reached a point of maturity, and the setting is described as a genuine draw rather than a convenience. The Michelin Star is the key trust signal here , it puts Grace & Savour in a defined competitive tier and makes the ££££ price point defensible. For comparison, Opheem in Birmingham is the other Michelin-starred option within easy reach, with a different cuisine and a more urban setting.
Grace & Savour works leading for two people who want a full tasting-menu evening in a setting that is neither urban nor conventionally grand. It is a strong choice for a significant occasion , anniversary, milestone birthday , where the combination of the Michelin credential, the walled garden setting, and the option to stay overnight adds up to something that feels considered rather than just expensive. Solo diners and groups larger than four may find the format less flexible; the tasting menu structure does not reward partial commitment. If you are based in Birmingham and want to compare options before booking, see our full Hampton in Arden restaurants guide and the broader Kynd (British Contemporary) listing for a lower-cost alternative in the same area.
If you are building a trip around a destination restaurant, the broader British tasting-menu circuit includes Midsummer House in Cambridge, Hand and Flowers in Marlow, Gidleigh Park in Chagford, and hide and fox in Saltwood. For the Nordic-influenced fine dining style Taylor has developed, international comparisons include Frantzén in Stockholm and Maison Lameloise in Chagny. Closer to home, Waterside Inn in Bray and Ynyshir Hall in Machynlleth represent the same tier of commitment and price, with very different cooking philosophies. Restaurant Gordon Ramsay in London is the London benchmark for three-star ambition if you want to calibrate where Grace & Savour sits in the national hierarchy.
| Venue | Cuisine | Awards | Booking Difficulty | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grace & Savour | Modern Cuisine | “All round a great experience” with “great attention to detail” – this brave three year old “continues to deserve its excellent reputation” and to justify the pivot made at this Warwickshire hotel to locating its main dining experience in the very walls of the “lovely” Victorian Walled Garden, complete with cooking over fire and the use of ingredients like carrot nectar, apple kombucha, and pickled magnolia. One long-term fan feels that “David Taylor’s food now seems to have reached the point he was aiming for with each of the fourteen dishes of the Tasting Menu sophisticated, original, clever and delicious (more mature in approach than when it first opened which is not surprising)” : “well crafted with many high points” .; Its idyllic setting is one of Grace & Savour's many draws. Housed in a relatively new building within the Hampton Manor estate, it's a simply beautiful restaurant where the historic meets the contemporary and diners can look out onto the restored Victorian kitchen garden. Some dishes are eye-catching and elaborate in their make-up, while others are defined by their simplicity, and a modern Nordic touch means you can expect plenty of preserved elements complementing the outstanding British produce – like succulent Cornish lobster. Make it an occasion by booking a bedroom.; Forget the puff on Hampton Manor’s website: there’s not an ounce of flounce in David Taylor’s cooking. He strips down food to its essentials, its essences. The results are deceptively simple – and sensational. Taylor, still in his 30s, has worked in some big-name kitchens, from Purnell's in Birmingham to Maaemo in Oslo, and a Nordic influence is apparent in the minimalist stylings of the restaurant – a modern, airy addition set apart from the hotel itself, with cream walls, dark wooden furniture and bare rafters. Focal points are the walled garden, displayed through large picture windows, and the open kitchen where the final touches are given to dishes before serving. Watch Taylor and his young team: studies in quiet concentration. The atmosphere is casual yet focused, serene yet serious. Diners for Saturday lunchtime's eight-course tasting menu (there’s also a 15-course dinner) are dressed-down, as are the engaging on-the-ball staff; relaxing folk harmonies provide the background soundtrack. Dishes are described at table, sometimes by Taylor himself, and a written menu is supplied with the bill. Lunch might commence with tomato consommé surrounding a solitary cherry tomato, at peak ripeness. Supporting ingredients (smoked lamb’s heart in the broth; sweet cicely garnish) serve to tease out the tomato’s true flavour. Likewise, the following dish: a creamy buttermilk emulsion covering little chunks of leek, with a topping of powdered leek (there’s much freeze-drying here) to pique the palate. Bread from Hampton Manor’s bakery gets its own course, and even diners with modest appetites can relish the two thick slices of irresistible sourdough since carbs are a rarity later on. Next, a highlight: a single, exquisitely tender scallop, its sweetness accentuated by imperceptible honey, topped with strands of its dried roe, plus a broth of roasted mussels to provide some seaside punch. Two little courses of fowl might follow: a juicy slice of wood pigeon matched with an autumnal girolle purée in a sublime sticky pigeon and redcurrant sauce followed by succulent duck breast contrasted with a small liver-rich faggot coated in tangy gooseberry gel. Provenance is important here: much produce hails from the walled garden, suppliers are name-checked and soil-health is a deciding factor in choosing the wines (an enticing list ordered into evocatively named sections and administered by a quietly passionate sommelier). Of the three sweet dishes on offer, mouth-wateringly zesty local blueberries best epitomised Taylor’s approach: served under a luxuriously creamy buttermilk mousse but rooted to the earth by a topping of grassy sorrel powder. Only the finale offered unalloyed indulgence: two brown-butter madeleines with a pot of rich crème diplomat, a blob of rum syrup at its centre. Coherence, innovation, artistry: qualities on which the very top restaurants should be judged. Grace & Savour excels at all three.; Opinionated About Dining Top Restaurants in Europe Ranked #616 (2025); Its idyllic setting is one of Grace & Savour's many draws. Housed in a relatively new building within the Hampton Manor estate, it's a simply beautiful restaurant where the historic meets the contemporary and diners can look out onto the restored Victorian kitchen garden. Some dishes are eye-catching and elaborate in their make-up, while others are defined by their simplicity, and a modern Nordic touch means you can expect plenty of preserved elements complementing the outstanding British produce – like succulent Cornish lobster. Make it an occasion by booking a bedroom.; Michelin 1 Star (2024) | Hard | — |
| Restaurant Gordon Ramsay | Contemporary European, French | Michelin 3 Star, World's 50 Best | Unknown | — |
| CORE by Clare Smyth | Modern British | Michelin 3 Star, World's 50 Best | Unknown | — |
| The Ledbury | Modern European, Modern Cuisine | Michelin 3 Star, World's 50 Best | Unknown | — |
| Sketch, The Lecture Room and Library | Modern French | Michelin 3 Star, World's 50 Best | Unknown | — |
| Dinner by Heston Blumenthal | Modern British, Traditional British | Michelin 2 Star, World's 50 Best | Unknown | — |
Comparing your options in Hampton in Arden for this tier.
This is a tasting-menu-only restaurant, so come expecting a structured multi-course format rather than a la carte choice. David Taylor's cooking draws on Nordic minimalism — think preserved elements, restrained plating, and produce from the Victorian Walled Garden on the Hampton Manor estate. The restaurant holds a Michelin One Star (2024) and opens only Wednesday through Saturday evenings, plus Saturday lunch, so plan your visit around that schedule and book well in advance.
The tasting-menu format and open kitchen make solo dining workable here — watching Taylor's team at the pass is part of the experience. That said, the venue is geared toward couples and small groups marking an occasion, and the remote Warwickshire setting makes a solo trip more deliberate than spontaneous. If solo tasting-menu dining in an urban setting is the priority, CORE by Clare Smyth or The Ledbury in London offer a counter or bar option that may suit better.
The venue database does not confirm a bar-dining option at Grace & Savour. The format is a structured tasting menu in the main dining room, with the open kitchen as a focal point rather than a counter you can seat yourself at. Contact Hampton Manor directly to confirm any bar or informal seating availability before assuming it exists.
Yes, and it is well set up for it. The Victorian Walled Garden setting is genuinely distinctive, the tasting menu runs to fourteen or fifteen courses with tableside descriptions sometimes from Taylor himself, and Hampton Manor offers rooms so you can stay the night. For a milestone dinner within two hours of Birmingham or Coventry, it is one of the stronger options in the region at this price point.
There are no direct tasting-menu competitors in Hampton in Arden itself. The closest comparable in the region is Purnell's in Birmingham, where David Taylor trained, which offers a different chef's perspective in an urban setting. For a similar destination-restaurant experience further afield, Midsummer House in Cambridge and Hand and Flowers in Marlow are both Michelin-starred and worth comparing if you are building a trip around the meal.
At ££££ and a Michelin One Star, the price is in line with comparable UK tasting-menu restaurants, and the setting adds value that a city-centre room cannot replicate. Reviewers tracked over three years note that Taylor's cooking has matured and that the fourteen-course menu now delivers consistent sophistication. If the format suits you and you can get to Solihull, the combination of OAD #616 in Europe (2025) and the Michelin recognition suggests the price is justified.
For diners who engage with tasting-menu structure, yes. Taylor's approach strips dishes to their essences rather than building elaborate constructions for their own sake, and long-term visitors note the menu has reached a point of maturity and coherence. The Saturday lunch eight-course format is a lower-commitment entry point than the fifteen-course dinner, which may suit first-timers or those uncertain about the full format.
Keep this venue in your Pearl passport, rate it after you visit, and track it alongside every other place you collect.
