La Barbarie triumphs in Guernsey gourmet trials
La Barbarie hotel has scooped the board at this year's Gourmet Islands of Guernsey Restaurant Competition. As well as winning awards for the most inventive starter, the best service, and the best menu in the £22.50 category, the 23-bedroom hotel and its 70-seat restaurant was also named the overall winner, winning the accolade of the Guernsey Eating Experience.
La Barbarie's latest triumph follows success in the competition over the past two years when the hotel won individual categories such as the best lunch award in 1999 and the best menu in the £22.50 menu section in 2000.
"More than anything, our latest success confirms our consistency in what we do," said a delighted general manager, Andrew Coleman. "We've always had a very strong business, but winning so many awards this year has jogged the memories of many past customers who are now returning to us."
The winning menu, prepared by head chef David Hayden and his team of four, was served at La Barbarie in St Martin throughout the month of April. The five-course menu offered a small choice of dishes including collops of monkfish, seared scallops and crispy won ton pastry served with a spiced belly pork salad; prawn, bean sprout and winkle soup; herb-crusted saddle of lamb, lyonnaise potato and nutmeg spring greens; Guernsey blue, mizuna and celery purse with a port raspberry sauce; and rhubarb and ginger cheesecake with pistachio cream.
Other winners from the 64 restaurants that took part in the 2001 competition included L'Atlantique restaurant (best £27.50 menu), Simply Ireland (best £17.50 menu), Village Pavilion at Oatlands (best £10 menu, most original sweet, and best service), the Geisha Room (best use of local seafood), Cobo Bay hotel (most innovative starter), La Grande Mare hotel (best service), and the Auberge at Jerbourg (best service).
The restaurants were judged throughout April by a panel of visiting chefs from the mainland, chaired by Brian Turner of Turner's restaurant, London.
Also taking place at the same time was the Guernsey Salon Culinaire. Main winners included the Craft Guild of Chefs, who won a gold medal in the Junior Grand Prix; Compass - gold in the Senior Grand Prix; Paddington Tembo of the Jersey Chefs' Circle - gold in Cuisine for the New Millennium; Justin Neill of the Jersey Chefs' Circle - gold and winner of the Channel Islands Junior Chef of the Year 2001; Paul Brown of Hotel Petit Champ - silver in Channel Islands Chef of the Year; La Perla Restaurant - bronze in Cook and Serve; David Inwood and Justin Neild of the Jersey Chefs' Circle - gold in Inter Island Muratti; and Craft Guild of Chefs - gold and best in class in La Parade des Chefs.
