A WHITCHURCH restaurant has received one of the top commendations in the industry after being awarded a Michelin award.

Wild Shropshire Restaurant, in Green End, has been awarded a Michelin 'Plate Award' listing in the Michelin Guide for Great Britain and Ireland 2021 for the first time.

Described as 'creative, sophisticated and full of depth' by the Guide, the terroir-led, micro-seasonal restaurant, – which launched and opened for the first time in April 2020 – has been operational for only three months since opening, because of the global pandemic.

The Michelin Plate is the symbol of the sign of very good food at moderate prices.

Many restaurants who start off by receiving the plate then move up to get a Michelin star in following years.

Some of the factors that may contribute to moving up from a Plate to a star include having talent in the kitchen, ambition and resources.

Commenting on the accolade, founder, owner and chef at Wild Shropshire, James Sherwin, said he was 'amazed' to receive the award.

"We were preparing to open Wild Shropshire at our new venue 12 months ago and since then, we have only been able to open for just under three months," said James.

"Therefore we were amazed to find out we've been awarded a 'Plate Award' in the Michelin Guide 2021 and extremely happy.

"We would like to thank our guests and suppliers for all their support over the last year since opening and can't wait to be able to open up again as soon as possible.''

Wild Shropshire Restaurant joins Dockett 33, also in Whitchurch; and Sebastian's, in Oswestry, as 1 of 3 Michelin Plate Restaurants now located in north Shropshire.

The restaurant is located at 25 Green End in Whitchurch and uses produce which is either grown by the restaurant owner or supplied by local artisan producers.

Wild Shropshire also won 'Fine Dining Restaurant of the Year' and 'Outstanding Restaurant of the Year' in the inaugural Restaurant Awards 2019 Midlands Edition.

They were also chosen as one of the most eco-friendly and sustainable top 30 restaurants in the BMW i Sustainable Dining Guide.

Also they won 'Best Artisanal Seasonal Cuisine in Shropshire' in the Welsh enterprise awards and 'Restaurant of the Year – Shropshire' in a competition run by Lux Life magazine.

James has also made appearances in BBC Radio 4 Farming Today programme and BBC Countryfile.