Michelin star restaurant Pine in Northumberland wins triple success as it's named among best in Europe

The Michelin star Restaurant Pine in Northumberland is dining out on a triple measure of success this June, as it is named among the top European restaurants to visit - as well as one of the UK's best eateries - and its wine expert is ranked among the top sommeliers around.

Pine, which is run at Vallum Farm in east Wallhouses by chef-patron Cal Byerley and his restaurant manager wife Siân, is enjoying quite a month - on the back of previous successes - with its new European ranking coming after soon after making number 12 in the National Restaurant Awards' list of Britain's top 100 eateries. And, in a follow-up boost for the Northumberland restaurant, its head sommelier Vanessa Stoltz was listed at number 45 in the second edition of the UK Top 100 Sommeliers guide - which also highlighted her as one of just five rising stars to watch.

The triple hit coincides with the success of a June fund-raiser called Bite Back, arranged by Pine and involving other Michelin chefs in a cooking challenge at Wylam Brewery in Newcastle, which raised a remarkable £82,000 for Cancer Research UK. So, in all, the Pine team, which includes head chef Ian Waller, are delighted.

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Cal and Siân said: "2024 is turning out to be a good year!" as the latest good news came this week with Pine being named by the Opinionated About Dining guide as one of the top European restaurants. It is listed number 195 out of 555 restaurants across Europe.

That follows their success in the National Restaurant Awards event which is out to reward the country's best chefs, front-of-house staff and restaurants - with its influential list offering top suggestions for places to dine in 2024 - and Pine also made the shortlist for the Estrella Damm Sustainability Award. The list of best restaurants is drawn up following votes by 200 industry experts including chefs, restaurateurs, critics and food writers.

Other local top dining spots to make the rankings were fellow Michelin star winners Solstice - Kenny Atkinson's Newcastle restaurant - at number 26 and Hjem, also in Northumberland, at 39.

Pine's owners Cal and Sian said of its high ranking: ''Being recognised by some of the world’s most discerning foodies is huge for us, especially featuring in two significant restaurant industry lists. We’re proud of all that we’ve achieved over the last few years and that’s down to the hard work and dedication of absolutely everyone on the team we both want to say a big thank you to everyone we work with for helping to make the restaurant what it is.’’

Sian has also told how proud they are of what Vanessa has achieved, saying that hard work and dedication have paid off for her. The annual Top 100 Sommelier Awards celebrate excellence in wine and nominations for them are made by fellow sommeliers and industry experts as well as diners.

Judges then make their pick based upon the likes of experience, achievements, responsibilities and competition performance before a precise set of criteria is then used to allocate scores and rankings. Vanessa, who has passed her introductory and certified sommelier exams, says an in-depth knowledge and being up-to-date with new trends are key to providing customers with the best experience.

She said: "In my view, a successful sommelier requires passion, dedication and hard work - which is something that is all too often underestimated and overlooked." And Sian added that Vanessa's recognition by industry peers "is huge and acknowledges her real passion for wine and her expertise".

Angeline Bayly, co-founder of Top 100 Sommeliers, said the interviews they conducted for this year's event had revealed " an impressive array of highly-qualified individuals, some with extraordinary backgrounds".

She added: "Overall, the professionalism, high-level drinks knowledge and dedication to hospitality were very evident. Being a top sommelier today is a highly-qualified, skilled career and we have the results to prove it.’’

The recent Bite Back event in Newcastle - the brainchild of Sian - saw 15 chefs from top UK restaurants, 19 Michelin stars among them, serve up individual creations for customers to buy and, along with a silent auction, the fund-raising tally at the end smashed the original £60,000 target.