Top Welsh gastropub Felin Fach Griffin hires new head chef
The Felin Fach Griffin, near Brecon, has taken on Max Wilson, who joins from the two AA Rosette New Yard restaurant near Falmouth in Cornwall.
Owned by EatDrinkSleep, the Griffin – which has seven rooms and its own kitchen garden – was ranked 37th in the Top 50 Gastropub Awards 2014, organised by the Publican’s Morning Advertiser.
Managed by Julie Bell, it is the only pub in Wales to have a Bib Gourmand and it has been in the Good Food Guide, Hardens and the Good Hotel Guide for over a decade.
The Griffin is also a five-time winner, and the current holder of, the Good Pub Guide’s Dining Pub of the Year in Wales, and was recently one of three Hotels of the Year in the new Alasdair Sawday’s British Hotels & Inns guide.
Previous roles
Prior to New Yard, Wilson was head chef at the St Martins Hotel in the Scilly Isles, and before that worked in senior roles at County Durham’s Seaham Hall, and Hartwell House, in Buckinghamshire.
He said: "For me, the food that I serve should always reflect the area around me, sourcing the best ingredients from local suppliers.
"In working for EatDrinkSleep, I’ve found an organisation that genuinely shares this view, and has been championing the cause since long before it was the thing to do."
Inkin brothers
EatDrinkSleep was set up by Charles and Edmund Inkin in 2000 to bring to life the newly refurbished Griffin.
The Inkin brothers also own the Gurnard’s Head, near St Ives, and the Old Coastguard, a seaside hotel in nearby Mousehole.
Edmund Inkin said: "We ran an exhaustive process to find the right person to take on the legacy of some fine chefs who have worked with us at the Griffin.
"Max stood head-and-shoulders above the rest and we are delighted he has agreed to work with us.
"Working with someone from outside the company is a good challenge for us, and gives us a real opportunity to make some subtle improvements to what we do for our guests."
