The Aiden Byrne Blog

We are serving the Great British Menu Monday to Saturday (excluding Bank Holidays) in all it’s finery. Although we have decided to change the dessert (even Aiden agrees with the judges on that one!) Why not come and sample it yourselves and see what you think.

Don’t forget that £2.50 from every menu goes directly to Comic Relief.

You can book online or call one of the team on 01925 752 068

Watch out for Aiden!

Watch out for Aiden on BBC TWO’s popular series Great British Menu. He is competing in the North West regional heat which transmits from Monday to Friday starting from the 11th of February at 7.30pm on BBC TWO.

This year the theme for the series is Comic Relief. Britain’s best chefs from across the country are vying for a place in the final. The chefs’ challenge: to create a dazzling performance on a plate, food that is both gastronomic and witty and will put a smile on everyone’s face. This year Great British Menu Does Comic Relief celebrates 25 years of the charity’s Red Nose Day. The charity has raised more than 800 million pounds through the power of entertainment and this year Britain’s premiere chefs are challenged to marry serious cooking with humour to celebrate the charity’s achievements.

As well as cooking their hearts out in the kitchen all the chefs are taking part in the first ever Menu Relief, where people can dine out at top restaurants around the country and at the same time raise money for Comic Relief.

The Church Green British Grill will be taking part in Menu Relief from 11th February until 15th March 2013.

If Aiden makes it through to the final he is in with a chance of getting one of his dishes to a special banquet at The Royal Albert Hall. Guests will include the unsung heroes of charity work, as well as those who have benefitted from Comic Relief, and some of the celebrities from the world of entertainment who have inspired us to do something funny for money. But first Aiden must get past Phil Howard (chef/judge mentor). Only two chefs from the North West region will get to face the Great British Menu judges, Prue Leith, Matthew Fort and Oliver Peyton in the regional final.

All through January we are holding our January Sale.

Simply click the January Sale icon to print off a voucher for 30% off your food bill Monday - Thursday right up until 31st January.

Remember to let us know you've got this voucher by quoting AB30 when you book.

Looking forward to seeing you soon!

The Church Green British Grill Named AA Restaurant Of The Year For England 2012-2013

The Church Green British Grill received national recognition last night when it was named AA Restaurant of the Year for England 2012-13 at the AA Hospitality Awards. Some four years ago Aiden Byrne purchased an old Cheshire pub located on the side of the Lymm Dam. He opened it as Aiden Byrne at The Church Green and earned three AA Rosettes. After assessing the local market and listening to his customers he decided to change direction slightly and relaunched the operation as The Church Green British Grill with two AA Rosesttes. As well as Aiden’s classical signature dishes and an exciting tasting menu, diners can enjoy amazing steaks sourced from small Cheshire farms. There are also some posh, upmarket twists on gastro pub classics such as fish and chips and beer battered Fleetwood scampi. The medium sized wine list offers some great quality and value for money wines, with a good selection of wines by the glass. Staff are friendly and attentive and they attract a lot of repeat diners. This is a popular winner of this sought after award.

Speaking of his win Aiden Byrne said, ‘We are over the moon with the recognition. The British Grill concept has gone from strength to strength and this award confirms to us that we made the correct decision to make the change.’

The AA Hospitality Awards, hosted this year by Kate Silverton, saw the great and good of the country’s Hospitality Industry come together to celebrate not only the amazing achievements of the individuals and establishments receiving recognition for outstanding excellence in their field but also 20 years of the iconic AA Restaurant Guide.

The evening opened with a tribute to the AA Restaurant Guide by Heston Blumenthal and Raymond Blanc before the superb gourmet meal created by chef Jason Atherton and the team at the London Hilton Park Lane and entertainment from glamorous string quartet Siren.

The award event also sees the launch of the 2013 AA guides to UK hotels, restaurants, pubs and B&Bs which contain details of all the winning establishments.

The full list of winners at the AA Hospitality Awards 2012-13 is:

• AA Hotel of the Year England – Lime Wood, Lyndhurst, Hampshire
• AA Hotel of the Year Scotland - The Torridon, Torridon, Highlands
• AA Hotel of the Year Wales - Bodysgallen Hall and Spa, Llandudno
• AA Hotel of the Year London (sponsored by AA Business Insurance) - Four Seasons Hotel, Park Lane, London W1
• AA Restaurant of the Year England - The Church Green British Grill, Lymm, Cheshire
• AA Restaurant of the Year Scotland - Rogano, Glasgow
• AA Restaurant of the Year Wales - Sosban, Llanelli
• AA Restaurant of the Year London (Sponsored by Food and Travel) – Dinner by Heston Blumenthal, London SW1
• AA Wine Award England & Overall Winner (sponsored by T&W Wines) - L’Etranger, London
• AA Wine Award Scotland (sponsored by T&W Wines) – Castle Terrace Restaurant, Edinburgh
• AA Wine Award Wales (sponsored by T&W Wines) - The Felin Fach Griffin, Brecon, Wales
• AA Pub of the Year England – The Black Swan, Ravenstonedale
• AA Pub of the Year Scotland - West Brewery, Glasgow
• AA Pub of the Year Wales - The Inn at Penallt, Monmouth
• AA Small Hotel Group of the Year (sponsored by beacon) - Cotswold Inns and Hotels
• AA Hotel Group of the Year (sponsored by D-ENERGi) - Hand Picked Hotels
• AA Eco Hotel of the Year (sponsored by British Gas Business) - The Green House, Bournemouth
• AA Eco Hotel Group of the Year (sponsored by British Gas Business) - Macdonald Hotels and Resorts
• AA Chefs’ Chef (sponsored by Caterer.com) – Pierre Koffmann
• AA Lifetime Achievement - Antonio Carluccio OBE

We are having another of our sell-out wine nights on Tuesday 18th September.

We have been trying to organise a night with Col McBryde of Some Young Punks winery to showcase some of his brilliant wines at The Church Green for a while.

Some Young Punks are a very different winery. Epitomising the best of New Australia and carving their own niche in the market. Influenced by the best of the Old World and the New their ethos is simple. To make charismatic wines that are true to what they believe wine should be about.

Aiden will be creating an equally charismatic menu to match with the wines.

All this for only £80. We have already taken some bookings, so give one of the team a call on 01925 752 068 or book online now to guarantee your table.

Aiden hosts Great 8 event in Lymm

On September 26th 2011, eight of the country’s most skilful chefs forged an alliance collectively known as the ‘Great 8’ and began a 16 month tour of the UK to help raise vital funds for Hospitality Action, a unique and highly effective benevolent fund for the UK hospitality industry.

Every two months the 8 award winning chefs team up at venues around the UK to deliver a scintillating and delicious eight course tasting menu, including wines, to people who love dining out on fresh seasonal British produce cooked with flair and skill.

And this time around the Great 8 will be embarking upon The Church Green British Grill, on Monday 21st May 2012 from 6:30pm, to showcase their unique menu.

The menu is made up of the following courses delivered by the following top chefs:

Chef: Aiden Byrne

Course: Foie Gras and Beetroot Terrine

Chef: Mark Poynton 

Course: Crab and Pink Grapefruit Cannelloni, Brown Crab Mayo, Spring Onion and Cucumber

Chef: Roger Hickman

Course: Asparagus, Morels and Crispy Egg

Chef: Charles Lakin

Course: Pressed Pigs Head, Truffle, Shetland Black Potatoes, Wild Lettuce, Garden Peas

Chef: Mark Walker

Course: Elderflower Delice, Poached Rhubarb, Elderflower Sorbet, Honey Crisps

Chef: Derek Donaldson

Course: Free Range Quail, Broad Beans, Wild Mushrooms and Sorrel

Chef: Steve Smith

Course: Scallop, Mint, Cucumber and Horseradish

Chef: Phil Cubin

Course: Orange, Chocolate and Buckthorn

Apart from supporting Hospitality Action, these events uniquely allow top chefs to network and collaborate together by pushing the boundaries of gastronomic excellence.

Tickets are limited and priced at £125 per person, including wine tasting and coffee, and are available to purchase online at www.visionarydining.com/thegreat8.

For a limited period only, the Church Green are giving customers the opportunity to get up to 20% discount on their food bill. To be eligable for this discount you need to click on the link, complete the form and bring it wth you on the day. Booking is essential with this offer. Get discount voucher here. http://www.aidenbyrne.co.uk/docs/discount_voucher_web.pdf

With the seventh series of Great British Menu about to hit our screens on BBC Two, will it be third time lucky for Aiden?

Being the Olympic year, the show has taken a sporting theme with the aim of creating a four-course meal fit for Olympians. The final meal will be served to five-time Olympic gold medallist Sir Steve Redgrave, silver medallist Amir Khan, former world record holding javelin thrower Steve Backley and other sports stars at the Old Royal Naval College, Greenwich.

The programme will see a total of 24 chefs, including Aiden, compete in eight regional heats before the final. 

Aiden faces tough competition from 2 other chefs from the North West, Johnnie Mountain, Aiden’s previous competitor, and Simon Rogan, Good Food Guide’s second best restaurant in the country. Their dishes will be judged by one of the industry’s best, Marcus Wareing. Prue Leith, Oliver Peyton and Matthew Fort will be leading the group of judges.

The series will also see chefs meet Olympians to share tips on cooking and how to win.

Aiden comments, “I was delighted to be asked to return to the programme for a third time and this year the heat has risen in the kitchen in more ways than one! The brief is much harder allowing the chefs to really showcase their own talents. I am so proud to be representing the region that I’m from and an area that I have firmly planted my business and family roots in.”  

Great British Menu: The Olympic Feast will start to be broadcast in the spring. 

In February Aiden delivered a cookery demonstration as part of the Lymm Festival Winter Warmer series of events.

Held at the Lymm village hall, the audience were treated to a step-by-step guide to cooking a beef hotpot and lime cheese cake with roasted pineapple and chilli, and were able to sample the finished dishes. 

Throughout the evening Aiden shared plenty of top cookery tips, produce sourcing ideas, ingredient advice and answered plenty of questions from the audience. He talked about the new concept being introduced at The Church Green – the Aiden Byrne British Grill.

Aiden and Sarah ran a raffle with prizes including Aiden’s cookery book, Made in Great Britain, and the Cherry Tree School cookbook, The Big Red Juicy Cookbook, which Aiden has written a foreword for.

Aiden says, “It’s great to have the opportunity to stand up in front of people who are interested in cooking and share my skills and knowledge with them. I hope the audience went away with a bit of inspiration and are now cooking these dishes in their own homes. I would urge others to get involved with the Lymm Festival in some way shape or form, the events that are run are great and have a fantastic community feel about them.”

To receive a copy of the recipes, please email abteam@thechurchgreen.co.uk marking the subject as ‘Lymm Festival Cookery Demo’.

It has been a bit of a hectic week at The Church Green. There has been some very early mornings, long days and late nights, and the whole team have really worked hard.

We have had a little change around, a lick or two of paint and even a new sign outside!

The changes haven't just been cosmetic, we've had a brand new Inka Grill installed and changed the menu too!!

Take a look at all our menus here.

Please come and see the changes for yourself, enjoy your new Church Green and try some of the wonderful tastes from the new grill.