Hywel Griffith

Game with Hywel Griffith

Beach House

Welsh born chef Hywel Griffith is the perfect expression of a game loving chef. He hunts and shoots and trained in kitchens that take game seriously - The Chester Grosvenor, Ynyshir & The Freemasons at Wiswell. Now he has a Michelin star at Beach House in Oxwich on the Welsh coast.

We caught up with him to get his thoughts on game and game cookery.

“Game to me is a fantastic, diverse and sustainable British product from partridge, rabbits, grouse all the way up to the largest wild mammal we have in the UK, the red deer. To me as a chef it’s important to follow seasons as that’s when produce is at its best (I mean why would you cook an ingredient when it’s at its poorest condition?).

I am myself a hunter. I stalk deer and wild boar and take a few mallards and geese. Game meat is brilliant for cooking. It’s healthy and it has a low carbon footprint. It’s rich in iron, vitamins, high in protein and very low in fat - aside from wild boar.

However, when it comes to hanging game, I believe this is where game meat gets a bad rep. I have witnessed all sorts of methods, some have been good, some less so. For me, small game and birds should be hung a week give or take a few days.

Muntjac and roe need 7-10 days. Fallow, sika and reds 10-14 days all hung in fur/feather before they are prepared.

Don’t forget that game is wild and anomalies can happen, be prepared for a change in the menu at short notice, if something isn’t available!”

Restaurant 1861 | Restaurant

South Wales Abergavenny

Chef Simon King started his kitchen journey at The Waterside Inn, the celebrated 3 Michelin star restaurant run by the late Michel Roux OBE. That classical background takes pride of place on the menus at 1861 which Simon runs with his wife Kate. Vegetables come from a nursery run by Kate’s father in Nantyderry - “ensuring that the time between actually digging up the vegetables or picking them and getting them to the plate is truly kept at a minimum.” Game is integral to the menu at Restaurant 1861 and is given the respect it deserves. Cross Ash Nr Abergavenny NP7 8PB T: 0845 388 1861 E: simonandkate@ restaurant1861.co.uk

18-61.co.uk

Signatures | Restaurant

North Wales Conwy

Owned and run by chef Jimmy Williams and his wife Louise, Signatures in Conwy has a wide reputation. Situated in the grounds of the Aberconwy Resort and Spa, the restaurant, not far from Llandudno, is open to non-residents and worth a detour.

The open kitchen serves game, as well as plenty of other prime Welsh ingredients, and the dining room is bright and buzzy. Signatures was on the nominees list of Wales best Restaurant in 2020 at the World Culinary Awards. Aberconwy Resort & Spa Aberconwy Park Conwy LL32 8GA T: 01492 583513

Sosban & The Old Butchers

North Wales Anglesey

Over the Menai Bridge on the Isle of Anglesey and set in an old butcher’s shop you’ll find this unique modern restaurant on the High Street. There are only two staff and they’re the owners - Stephen and Bethan Steven.

Stephen used to be a plumber but fell in love with cooking. It’s an incredible story that has resulted in a Michelin star in the 2022 guide. Both Stephen and Bethan describe the restaurant as: “a dining experience a little different to most. We create a series of dishes using the best locally sourced produce available to us on the day providing a unique culinary journey not found anywhere else.”

Stephen Steven

Chef Patron Trinity House 1 High Street Menai Bridge LL59 5EE T: 01248 208131 E: eat@sosbanand theoldbutchers.com

sosbanandtheoldbutchers.com

SY23 | Restaurant

Mid Wales Aberystwyth

Chef owner Nathan Davies scored a perfect 10 on Great British Menu 2022 and a Michelin star for SY23 in Aberystwyth. Davies turned down more financial opportunities to take a position at Ynyshir under chef Gareth Ward and the experience is evident in this modern classic.

As the chef himself says: “SY23 is about the best local produce, cooked simply over a fire. That means foraging the abundance of fantastic local ingredients, from the sea shore to the forests and the rolling mountains.”

SY23 celebrates the best of what Wales has to offer and that includes Welsh game and you can expect it to be full of character like the man himself. 2 Pier Street Aberystwyth SY23 2LJ T: 01970 615 935 E: sy23cwtsh@gmail.com

Tyddyn Llan | Restaurant with Rooms

North Wales Denbighshire

Considered to be one of the best restaurants in Wales, Tyddyn Llan is in the north of the country not far from the foothills of Snowdonia. The restaurant is the feature but there are also rooms. Bryan and Susan Webb are both in the kitchen and the restaurant is committed to fine seasonal produce, arriving daily - like local meat and game from their vigilant butcher.

Fish comes straight from the coast. Welsh produce tops the bill as much as possible, but the menu still demands more - be it diver-caught scallops from Scotland, Somerset smoked eel and Buffalo Mozzarella from Naples.

Llandrillo, nr Corwen Denbighshire North Wales LL21 0ST T: 01490 440264 E: mail@tyddynllan.co.uk

tyddynllan.co.uk