Hand Picked Hotels, the UK’s leading privately-owned country house hotel and coastal resorts collection, has gained further recognition.


Rookery Hall Hotel & Spa, a Georgian mansion in Cheshire dating back to 1816, has been awarded the sought after 3 AA Rosettes at last night’s prestigious AA Hospitality Awards for its modern British cuisine at their fine dining venue; The Restaurant.

Rookery Hall is the first in the luxury hotel group to gain 3 AA Rosette status.  This additional rosette now recognises Hand Picked Hotels as the most awarded independent UK hotel group by the AA, with 12 hotels having earned AA Red Star status awards - including 11 Inspector’s Choice - and 16 hotels with either 2 or 4 AA Rosettes.

The Restaurant at Rookery Hall combines freshly sourced, high quality local produce with fine dining, to deliver innovative gastronomic experiences for guests. The award recognises their uncompromising high standards and service excellence, carefully crafted by Executive Head Chef Dion-Wyn Jones and his skilled team. Jones has earned an enviable reputation as one of the region’s best chefs. 

Set in the walls of the historic Rookery Hall, The Restaurant has become renowned for simple, elegant and imaginative menus of contemporary vibrant British food. The team champions the finest fresh local produce to curate seasonal fare, delivering flavourful dishes and unique wine pairings from their impressive cellar.  

The judges praised the teams’ focus on locally sourced ingredients, provenance, a thoughtfully crafted menu and impeccable service. Further recognition was given to the wine collection which includes best in class wines from Hand Picked Hotels' family-owned Tuscan vineyard, Villa Saletta, alongside exceptional vintage fine wines from the Group’s owners Julia and Guy Hands’ personal private wine collection.

The AA awards cover 15 categories and are considered one of the industry’s most highly anticipated events, celebrating the UK’s top hotels, restaurants, and pubs and the people behind them.  Rookery Hall was also recently named one of the Top 25 Best Hotels in the UK and The Channel Islands by Tripadvisor’s Travellers’ Choice Best of the Best Awards. 

Executive Head Chef Dion-Wyn Jones: “The team and I are thrilled to have been recognised by AA with this prestigious award. Our passion is to create imaginative, delicious fresh food to the highest standards.  Our focus is on working to source fresh local produce and design mouthwatering dishes for our guests.”

CEO of Hand Picked Hotels Ignace Bauwens comments: “Going above and beyond the expected is core to our culture at Hand Picked Hotels. The entire team are committed to creating unique and magical experiences and our food and wine offering is at the heart of this. Awards like this encourage 
the team to strive for excellence.”

Discover award-winning dining at Rookery Hall with our Triple Rosette Retreat