Michelin Guide UK 2021: Thomas Carr 1873 got an unannounced Michelin star
Thomas Carr 1873 received a star in the Michelin Guide for Great Britain and Ireland 2021, but the accolade went unannounced in Monday's ceremony.
The Ilfracombe restaurant, to which chef and team relocated after closing The Olive due to the pandemic, was omitted from the new stars revealed in what is understood to have been some level of confusion - because it was reopened as another iteration of The Olive in the same town.
The chef shared the news on his Instagram page, where he said that although it was "a massive risk" to leave the old premises behind, making for "an extraordinarily stressful couple of weeks" in the run up to the awards, that he and his team were "utterly overwhelmed and delighted" to be featured in the guide.
The Olive first received a star in the 2017 guide, and held onto it ever since. It has, however, been a year of great upheaval for restaurants, and Restaurant Nathan Outlaw graduate Thomas Carr's was no exception: when other restaurants reopened after the first lockdown on July 4th, it stayed closed, and days later the chef announced that they had given up the 56 Fore Street site for good.
Thomas Carr 1873 launched on September 1st and closed again when the country locked down in November.
A different year
The Michelin Guide had its work cut out this year trying to put together a credible list of restaurants performing at the top of their game despite having been closed for the best part of the year.
Most deletions were down to the restaurant in question being closed permanently, while some were awarded different accolades for having changed the concept of the restaurant completely.
Nonetheless, the guide managed to pull together a list including two new 3-star restaurants, three new 2-stars and 17 new single stars. Additionally, 23 locations were awarded a 'Green Star', the guide's latest accreditation to celebrate sustainable businesses.
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