Great West Way Travel Magazine | Issue 07

“The <strong>Great</strong> <strong>West</strong> <strong>Way</strong> is proud to have three restaurants with Michelin Green Star status – an award designed to recognise restaurants offering dining experiences combining culinary excellence with outstanding eco-friendly commitments.” Eco-friendly hotels and restaurants Many hotels along the <strong>Great</strong> <strong>West</strong> <strong>Way</strong> route are now ecocertified, achieved by performing zero food waste, using biodegradable packaging, and focusing on local produce. There are too many to mention them all, but in Bath they include the DoubleTree by Hilton, Apex City of Bath Hotel, and The Royal Crescent Hotel and Spa. There are at least five in Bristol to include The Bristol Hotel, Radisson Blu Hotel, Hilton Garden Inn, DoubleTree by Hilton, and Hampton by Hilton in Bristol. There's also the DoubleTree by Hilton in Swindon, Homestay Reading and many more. Pioneering in the sustainability is Whatley Manor in Malmesbury. They have recently been awarded a Silver accreditation by EarthCheck and were amongst the first 23 UK properties to be awarded a Green Michelin Star recognising sustainable gastronomy. These awards have not been without hard work from the dedicated team, whose best practices include sourcing organic beef from their farmer next door; coffee ground logs for their indoor fires; building a Bird Hide from upcycled materials sited by the river; employing a zero-use policy of single-use plastics in guest rooms; having a paperless account office, and reducing their fresh flower points replacing them with rooted plants. Danesfield House Hotel & Spa have employed a ‘green team’ to help the business move towards sustainability, climate change measures and efforts to save the planet. Measures include LED lighting and only running their garden water features at the weekends. And small changes are making a significant difference at Wiltshire Inn’s, The Swan Hotel, Bradford on Avon and The Old Bell, Warminster. As well as recycling with no waste going to landfill they have invested in their own water bottling system for still and sparkling water in reusable glass bottles in the bedrooms. They recycle coffee beans into coffee logs to be used on log fires, have ‘one cup kettles’ to produce instant hot water on demand and encourage their guests to explore the local attractions by bicycle or on foot by providing information on walks, cycle routes and cycle hire at reception. We all know that in catering there can be a huge amount of waste, but many of the restaurants on the <strong>Great</strong> <strong>West</strong> <strong>Way</strong> are achieving zero food waste going into landfill. Vaughan’s Kitchen in Devises is one example. They even use ‘vegware’ packaging made from plants – a system saves around a tonne of waste which would otherwise be going to landfill each month. The <strong>Great</strong> <strong>West</strong> <strong>Way</strong> is proud to have three restaurants with Michelin Green Star status – an award designed to recognise restaurants offering dining experiences combining culinary excellence with outstanding eco-friendly commitments: Oak Restaurant, Bath; The Dining Room at 22 <strong>Great</strong><strong>West</strong><strong>Way</strong>.co.uk

Whatley Manor, Malmesbury; and Wilsons, Bristol. There are just 31 restaurants across England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland awarded a new Green Star award in total. Just a short detour from the route: Heckfield Place, Hampshire; Belmond Le Manoir aux Quat Saisons, <strong>Great</strong> Milton; and Petersham Nurseries Café, Richmond, have also made it onto the Green Star list. There are many other eco-certified restaurants along the route, perhaps on their way to the prestigious Green Star award, some of our favourites include: Wilding, Salisbury; Pythouse Kitchen Garden, Tisbury; Honest Burgers in Windsor, Reading and Bristol; and The Elder Restaurant, Bath. Pictured left to right: The Dining Room at Whatley Manor; Festive treats; Kitchen Garden at Whatley Manor Hotel Click here to find out more about sustainable tourism and eco-friendly holidays on the <strong>Great</strong> <strong>West</strong> <strong>Way</strong> <strong>Great</strong><strong>West</strong><strong>Way</strong>.co.uk 23