A Nottingham restaurant which proved a winner on Come Dine with Me: The Professionals has been awarded a coveted AA rosette. Tree-lined Paris, inspired by the courtyards of the French capital, has won the accolade for culinary excellence.
The restaurant, in High Pavement, serves French-influenced food such as roasted langoustine bisque, venison loin with fondant potato, and white chocolate bavarois with pistachio sponge. Rosettes are awarded by AA restaurant inspectors.
One rosette means "prepared with care, understanding and skill, using good quality ingredients." The AA says: "These restaurants will be achieving standards that stand out in their local area."
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Executive chef James Crossman, who also oversees Petit Paris in Kings Walk, said: "We are massively proud of it." Paying tribute to head chef Russ Crisostomo, he added: "He's had a massive involvement and thoroughly deserves the recognition."
Mr Crossman, who trained under celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay, said the news came as a boost as, like hospitality generally, it has been a tough time ever since the lockdowns imposed during the pandemic, starting in March 2020.
"We opened a beautiful restaurant and seven months later we had to close the doors. We were full when we first opened and it felt we had been dealt a really tough hand.
"When we were allowed to reopen fuel prices rose and product prices increased and we can't pass that on to customers - we can't charge our customers £35 for a main course. We are stuck between a rock and a hard place. The margins are increasingly small."
Winning the Channel 4 competition Come Dine with Me: The Professionals in July was a welcome shot in the arm. The restaurant beat rural pubs, The Plough in Normanton-on-the-Wolds, and the Red Lion in Thurgarton, to scoop the crown and a £1,000 prize. Chefs reproduced the winning menu for diners leading to three sell-out nights.
"It was great to be on mainstream television. A little bit of celebrity status doesn't do anyone any harm," said Mr Crossman.
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