Moor Hall Restaurant with Rooms, located in Aughton, West Lancashire, opened in 2017. Chef Patron, Mark Birchall, and investors Andy and Tracey Bell took over the Thirteenth Century, Grade II listed property in 2015 and, following a two-year restoration and rebuild project, created a contemporary restaurant with seven luxurious guest bedrooms.
The two Michelin-starred Restaurant at Moor Hall serves delicate, produce-driven menus that celebrate ingredients picked from the restaurant’s kitchen garden or produced within the venue’s five-acre estate.
In October 2017, Mark Birchall also opened a more casual dining concept, The Barn, which seats up to 65 and is ideal for those looking for a more relaxed but refined gastronomic experience.
MARK BIRCHALL
Mark was born in Chorley, Lancashire and trained at Runshaw College. Prior to Moor Hall, he spent over two decades working at various established country hotels and restaurants in England, including The Walnut Tree Inn in Wales, Northcote Manor and Haighton Manor (both in Lancashire).
Mark then joined Simon Rogan’s Michelin-starred L’Enclume in Cumbria, in 2006, where he spent eight years as Head Chef and an additional year as Group Executive Chef for Rogan’s northern operations. Internationally, Mark has also worked at El Celler de Can Roca, Girona, a three Michelin-starred Restaurant owned by the Roca Brothers, which was twice voted the world’s best restaurant.
THE RESTAURANT AT MOOR HALL
The Restaurant at Moor Hall showcases Mark’s culinary pedigree and creativity, with every dish from the four and eight-course tasting menus celebrating ingredients picked from the restaurant’s kitchen garden or from a trusted network of the region’s best growers and producers.
The restaurant’s self-sufficiency extends beyond the garden, with butter, yoghurt, honey and charcuterie also made on the grounds. Guests can witness the expertise and precision of Mark and his team from their tables as the open kitchen reveals the level of care and detail that goes into every dish. Guests looking for a more intimate experience can book the elegant private dining space, seating up to 14 guests.
MENU
TYPICAL DISHES ● Smoked eel, potato, fermented garlic and flowers ● Baked carrots, Doddington, chrysanthemum and sea buckthorn ● Turnip, crab, anise hyssop and sunflower seeds ● Isle of Mull scallop, fermented green tomato, cauliflower and grains ● Althorp fallow deer, kale, beetroot and elderberry; ragout and whey; liver and truffled honey ● Scarisbrick blackberries, woodruff, almond, sorrel and muscovado ● Garden apples, rhubarb, woodruff and birch sap.
DRINKS LIST
Mirroring the prominence of homegrown ingredients in Mark’s food, a concise cocktail list follows a “garden to glass” philosophy, with home ferments dressing up more recognisable drinks, like the Aged Nettle Negroni.
The Restaurant at Moor Hall offers a 600-bin wine list, curated by sommelier, Ben Robinson, encompassing English and international, New and Old-World selections. The bar also serves local craft beers, spirits, and traditional cocktails. In The Barn, there is a 50-bin international wine list and a strong range of craft beer as well as both classic and seasonal cocktails.
THE BARN AT MOOR HALL
The 65-cover restaurant sits adjacent to Moor Hall’s main restaurant and offers a varied menu, from Head Chef Nathan Cornwell, of seasonal dishes as well as a hearty Sunday lunch. The Barn offers spectacular views of Moor Hall and the grounds’ lake and houses a small dairy and meat-aging and curing room.
The restaurant is highly seasonal and hyper-local, with many of the ingredients used either grown or produced on the Moor Hall grounds and offers an insight into world-renowned ethos and culinary skill that pervades at Moor Hall. It holds a Michelin Plate accreditation and 3 AA Rosettes.
In June 2021, The Guardian food critic, Grace Dent, visited The Barn at Moor Hall, giving the restaurant significant praise and commenting; ‘I’d been here for all of five minutes before I was already planning a return.’
SUSTAINABILITY ETHOS
Moor Hall grows and produces as many ingredients as possible within the five-acre estate. The kitchens are completely self-sufficient when it comes to herbs, baby vegetables, edible flowers and anything that can’t be grown in the gardens is sourced locally from West Lancashire to keep food miles low.
All of the meat used is grass fed and reared in the Northwest and all fish is sourced from British day boats. Moor Hall also cures meat for the charcuterie, and has an on-site dairy, which produces butter and yogurt using raw milk from a small, local herd of Holstein Friesian.
Mark and his team are proud to only work with suppliers that have full traceability and has instructed them to move to recyclable or reusable packaging where possible to adhere to a zero tolerance on single-use plastic for food storage in the kitchen. Moor Hall takes great care not to waste any food on-site, and anything that can’t be repurposed is funnelled back into compost, either in the garden or on a national scale.
As part of Moor Hall’s organic farming methods, the team worked closely with a local beekeeper to introduce beehives within the gardens and produce honey for the kitchens as well as supporting necessary pollination. Additionally, Moor Hall has introduced charging points for electric vehicles and is one of the first venues in Lancashire to do so.
AWARDS
The restaurant at Moor Hall was awarded a first Michelin star within six months of opening, and a second star the following year, as well as five AA Rosettes. In 2021, Moor Hall was named the UK’s Best Restaurant consecutively at The Estrella Damm National Restaurant Awards, having been first crowned ‘Restaurant of the Year’ in June 2019.
The restaurant also ranked #5 in the 2020 Waitrose Good Food Guide’s Top 50 list, with a cooking score of 9/10. It has maintained five Rosettes in the AA Restaurant Guide 2020 and ranked #5 in Harden’s Best UK Restaurants 2020.
Other achievements include Best Breakthrough in the GQ Food and Drink Awards 2018, and Lancashire Life Restaurant of the Year 2017. Lancashire Life awarded Moor Hall the Special Achievement of the Year at their Food & Drink Awards in October 2019, a year after The Barn was named Best Newcomer of the Year, and Mark Birchall won Chef of the Year.
ACCOMMODATION
Moor Hall has seven bedrooms, all unique and with stunning views of the lake or gardens, five of which are located within the main building, and a further two in the gatehouse by the lake. Prices range from £250-£500 per night and include breakfast in The Barn.
SANDFIELD PARK SCHOOL
Moor Hall supports Sandy Park Café, a local not-for-profit social enterprise helping young students with special needs and disabilities (SEND) from Sandfield Park School in Liverpool to gain valuable work experience.
Sandy Park Café is run by Student Futures, a Charitable Trust registered with the charity commission, charity number 1180845.
Moor Hall will host students on educational visits throughout the year, offering first-hand experience in the kitchen. Mark will also create regular dishes for the Café and will support with menu development.
Moor Hall has added a discretionary £1 donation to all guests’ bills and will continue to make regular contributions.
PRICES
Restaurant at Moor Hall: Lunch: £95 for four courses or £195 for eight courses Dinner: £195 for eight courses.
The Barn at Moor Hall: Starters: £12-£18, Mains: £18-£36, Desserts: £9-£14 Set lunch: £28.50 for three courses.
OPENING HOURS
Restaurant at Moor Hall: Monday & Tuesday: Closed Wednesday & Thursday: Dinner (6.30pm-8.30pm) Friday- Sunday: Lunch (12pm-1.45pm) & Dinner (6.30pm-8.30pm)
The Barn at Moor Hall: Monday & Tuesday: Closed Wednesday: Dinner (6pm-9pm) Thursday -Saturday: Lunch (12pm-2pm)& Dinner (6pm-9pm) Sunday: 12pm-6.30pm
SOCIAL MEDIA
