Liverpool chef 'made up' with two rosettes but aims to be 'even better'

Great British Menu winning chef Dan McGeorge opened Vetch on Liverpool's Hope Street back in spring. Now, the restaurant has earned national recognition, having been awarded two AA rosettes for culinary excellence. Despite this, Dan says he "is not content" with two and wants to be "even better".

Twenty-six-seat fine-dining restaurant Vetch offers a variety of seasonally inspired menus which showcase modern British cooking with a mix of Nordic and Asian flavours. Each dish is created using ingredients from small-scale artisan producers in the North West.

The AA Rosette scheme, first introduced in 1956, is a nationwide programme that assesses the quality of food served in restaurants and hotels. Its aim is to celebrate successful cooking at different levels across the UK, championing culinary excellence and rewarding commitment to high-quality customer experience.

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Every year, the AA's inspectors travel around the UK tasting food before confirming their Rosette recommendations which are usually announced twice a year in January and September. Since the Rosette scheme was established, it has celebrated successful cooking at different levels across the UK. Only about 10% of restaurants nationwide meet the standard required to receive one Rosette or more.

The prestigious Double Rosette award is exclusively given by the AA's inspectors to restaurants that showcase outstanding excellence, with a strong emphasis on using premium ingredients and consistently delivering precise culinary techniques. It's unusual for new restaurants to gain more than two rosettes following its first inspection, with more potentially to follow if the location shows consistency on the next AA visit.

A restaurant can receive up to five rosettes and Dan says the next step is earning a third. Speaking to the ECHO, he said: "Since opening, it’s been alright but it’s been slower than I wanted it to be. That’s not unexpected though, because of the time of year - in summertime people don’t tend to want to go into restaurants as much, they want to be in a beer garden.

"However, in the last two months it’s really started to take off and we’ve started to get recognised for what we do and pretty much everyone loves the food that we do. When I found out about the rosettes, I was made up because it means that there’s something to show for all the hard work that everyone has put in. It’s not the be all and end all of what we do but it helps, and a little bit of recognition is really good sometimes - it means that you’re going in the right direction."

While Dan is pleased with being awarded two rosettes, he says his team will now push for more, adding: "I’m not content with two rosettes. I’ve had three before, in the past, and I know that I can get three - without sounding cocky or big-headed. I had three rosettes for four years so to get three is not unattainable and it’s something we are aiming to do within the next six months to a year, depending on what happens.

"The AA can’t give you three rosettes on your first inspection and the awards were literally a week after we had our inspection, so we couldn’t have got three anyway, which is a bit disappointing but there has to be a process which I understand. To get two on your first visit is pretty good anyway and it puts us in the company of some of the best restaurants in Liverpool, but we want to be even better."

There are several "rosetted" restaurants in Merseyside but only two have three rosettes, '8' by Andrew Sheridan in Liverpool and The Dining Room and Cellar in Hillbark, Wirral. Just outside of Merseyside, Aughton's The Barn at Moor Hall has three rosettes while Moor Hall Restaurant with Rooms has five. Both have one and two Michelin stars, respectively.