Pignut restaurant, Helmsley: Yorkshire fine dining restaurant focused on sustainability awarded three AA Rosettes and praised for its ‘ambitious cooking’

The sustainably-focused restaurant, Pignut, situated in the heart of Helmsley serves classic British cuisine and has been awarded the prestigious accolade.

The rosettes were announced as part of the annual event, which took place at JW Marriott Grosvenor House in London on Monday, September 23, 2024.

AA praised Pignut for its ‘ambitious cooking’ in the no-frills village restaurant and described it as ‘unpretentious’ with a ‘minimalist Scandi style’ which is ‘very relaxed’. They also commended the sustainable ethos noting the ‘inventive modern British cooking is driven by a zero-waste philosophy’.

The Yorkshire Post food reviewer Elaine Lemm described the restaurant as ‘out of this world’ and described herself as ‘immensely impressed’ by the sustainability ethos and goal when she visited for a review in August 2023.

Before Pignut opened, the couple were no strangers to the food and hospitality industry as they were previously head chef and manager at the restaurant Rattle Owl, based in York.

Tom Heywood said: “We’ve been aiming for Three Rosettes since we opened last year and we’re very proud that we’ve achieved this ourselves, in our own restaurant.

“It sets us apart from other restaurants in the area and shows people the level we are at in terms of food and service – we aim to build on this, keep progressing and hopefully continue to achieve more accolades.

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Since the restaurant opened in June 2023, sustainability has been crucial to the two owners and their ethos flows through every aspect of the business.

Each ingredient is sourced locally, and Mr Heywood wants to keep his ingredients as close to the restaurant as possible. He personally collects ingredients from the local organic farm shop which is stocked with top quality produce straight from the ground. The pair also forage and Laurissa has been known to find foraging spots while out on her horse.

The menu reflects this passion for British ingredients and uncompromising standards, it is ambitious and focused on delivering sustainable and high-quality dishes to guests including ‘Wastage’ - a course designed around all the waste from the other courses on the menu.

Pignut has previously been awarded two AA Rosettes and was shortlisted for the Craft Guild of Chefs Sustainable Restaurant Award 2024. It has also featured in the Good Food Guide and is recommended in the Michelin Guide.

Ms Cook has also received an Acorn Award this year, with Mr Heywood making it to the semi-finals of National Chef of the Year 2024 and most recently they were awarded the carbon-neutral status by Carbon Neutral Britain.