The North East dining scene is celebrating this Tuesday following news of its huge Michelin star success which sees Newcastle's Kenny Atkinson 'ecstatic' at earning a first star for his second city restaurant Solstice and the region's previous winners all holding on to their own stars - no mean feat given the consistent standards this requires.
At a grand Michelin Awards ceremony attended by Atkinson on Monday night, it was announced that Solstice, the fine dining venue he opened on the Side last summer with his wife Abbie, has been awarded a Michelin star and, in a double win for the chef-restaurateur, his debut restaurant House of Tides, just along the road from Solstice, retains its own star which it first won in 2015.
It brings the region's tally of star-holder resturants to five for the first time as, in further good news for the region, fellow previous winners Hjem and Pine in Northumberland also retain their Michelin stars and Raby Hunt in County Durham keeps its two, making it one of just 20 restaurants in the UK to achieve two stars.
