Reviews & Accolades
Michelin Star
Michelin Guide 1994 to date
The French-owned ‘gourmet’s bible’ first awarded Baslow Hall a Michelin Star in 1994 which has been retained with great pride in subsequent years.
4 Red Rosettes – AA Restaurant Guide 2011
Fischer’s Baslow Hall is in the 2010 AA Restaurant Guide with Four Red Rosettes. This is one of the most prestigious accolades with only the top 10% of their restaurants achieving three or more Rosettes.
“This is serious cooking; precision, high skill, accuracy, clear flavours and the very best of local produce…..” AA Restaurant Guide
“Max has developed a strong team in the Kitchen – led by head Chef Rupert Rowley – and he seeks out the best produce – if it isn’t grown in the grounds – and together they apply their undoubted technical skills to provide outstanding food on the plate.” AA Restaurant Guide
“The peripheral elements from wonderful bread to amuse-bouche and pre-dessert are all part of the experience, perfectly judged, and devoured with gusto” AA Restaurant Guide 2009
“Max has developed a strong team in the kitchen – led by head chef Rupert Rowley – and he seeks out the best produce – if it isn’t grown in their grounds – and together they apply their undoubted technical skills to provide outstanding food on the plate. The style is modern European, but underpinned by classical French technique, and results are precise and sophisticated.” AA Restaurant Guide 2009
3 Red Stars-AA Hotel Guide 2012
AA Inspectors’ Choice
“Located at the end of a chestnut tree-lined drive on the edge of the Chatsworth Estate, in marvelous gardens, this beautiful Derbyshire manor house offers sumptuous accommodation and facilities…Staff provide very friendly and personally attentive sevice…The cuisine is outstanding and will prove the highlight of any stay”
Which? Good Food Guide 2012
The Good Food Guide’s Top 50 listing is now firmly established; a placing within it is greatly coveted by all chefs and restaurateurs serious about their business. Fischer’s are delighted to be ranked 27th in the Which? Good Food Guide’s Top 50 Restaurants in the UK with a score of 7 out of 10 for Rupert’s cooking. Fischer’s is described as “sensational food in a stellar retreat”.
Rupert Rowley was commended with fantastic comments such as “impeccable sourcing, stunning technique, invention and an abundance of rich, deep flavours” and “real show stopper” while the “the top-drawer wine list oozes class on every page”.
The Sunday Times Food List 2011
Fischer’s was named 33rd out of 100 in The Sunday Times Food List on Sunday 30th October 2011. The guide lists Britain’s Top 100 Restaurants ranked by the opinions of Sunday Times readers. We scored 9.33 out of 10 for our food which is excellent! For those who didn’t see it, our comments were as follows:
Max Fischer opened his splendid country-house hotel 23 years ago. The kitchen is now in the expert hands of Rupert Rowley, who has worked under Raymond Blanc and Gordon Ramsay. Technically sharp while remaining a “big fan of the classics”, Rowley brings a sense of humour to the task: the bloody-Mary jelly he served with crab is seasoned with Henderson’s relish rather than Worcestershire sauce, in honour of his native Sheffield.
Diners’ Verdict: “A real class act”; this lovely Peak District restaurant with rooms has gone from strength to strength in recent times, thanks not least to Rowley’s “locally sourced food with a modern twist”, which is often “outstanding”.
Taste Derbyshire Accreditation 2010 – 2011
“All aspects of quality food and drink – from prime produce sourced in and around the area to customer service – are key ingredients for everything from a satisfying holiday to a night out for local people in the Peak District & Derbyshire, and Taste Derbyshire recognises the important role it plays” David James, Chief Executive of official tourist board Visit Peak District & Derbyshire.
Derbyshire Restaurant of the Year 2008 & 2009
Two years running Fischer’s at Baslow Hall have taken the title at a ceremony held at Thornbridge Hall in Ashford in the Water.
“The awards celebrate Derbyshire’s reputation as a producer of excellent quality food and drink and a county which boasts many high quality establishments” Derbyshire County Councillor Geoff Carlile.
Max Fischer named Local Food Hero of the Year 2009
Owner Max Fischer won Local Food Hero of the Year at the Derbyshire Food and Drink Awards on 15th October 2009. This award recognises the restaurant’s use of locally-sourced ingredients.
Held the Peak District Environmental Quality Mark Award since 2009
It’s a certification mark that can only be achieved by businesses that actively support good environmental practices in the Peak District National Park. When you buy a product or service that has been awarded the Mark you can be confident that your purchase directly supports the high quality management of the special environment of the Peak District National Park.
The Peak District Environmental Quality Mark is the first environmental award of its kind in England. The award scheme is growing as more businesses demonstrate their commitment to the National Park. Click here for more information.
The Good Hotel Guide
“Max and Susan Fischer’s restaurant-with-rooms near the Chatsworth estate is ‘highly recommended’ again this year…Food, accommodation and efficiency of the staff are truly exceptional…Breakfast has freshly squeezed juice, a wide range of teas and good fruit salad” The Good Hotel Guide 2009
‘The first-class cooking bowled us over; the service is efficient, the bedrooms are splendidly appointed. A memorable meal; every course was brilliantly executed; the ingredients were of the best quality. Service was perfectly paced. Our garden room was big enough to hold a party, with a settee and armchairs; quality books, magazines; we liked the turn-down service. Breakfast is impeccable; generous portions of smoked salmon and fluffy eggs; a comprehensive basket of bread.’ The Good Hotel Guide 2012
Egon Ronay’s Top 25 UK Restaurant 2005
“Max’s quest for the best ingredients and his culinary craftsmanship, now allied to Rowley’s dazzling technique, combine to produce what can only be described as gastronomic fireworks” Egon Ronay
Most Excellent U.K. Restaurant 2001
Johansen Hotel Guide
“Max is not a dedicated follower of fashion – he just has a sheer love of creating the most excellent dishes” Johansen Hotel Guide
Heart of England Tourism Awards 1998
Hotel of the Year
“An obsessive attention to detail in all aspects of the business from the sourcing of organic bacon to the quality of the Egyptian cotton bedding in the rooms”
Restaurant-with-Rooms-of-the-Year 1998
“Max and Susan delight gourmets with excellent food both in their restaurant and their Cafe, amid some of Derbyshire’s loveliest scenery, and overnight guests are equally cosseted” The Good Hotel Guide
U.K. Restaurant of the Year 1995
“When the Fischer’s previous Bakewell restaurant first appeared in our guide several years ago, we described Max as having “exceptional culinary skills, his cooking and presentation showing great attention to detail with fine flavour combinations and beautifully made sauces.” Nothing we said then has changed….Max and Susan have persevered through thick and thin and their smashing restaurant deserves to be highlighted to the widest possible audience” Egon Ronay Cellnet Guide
County Restaurant of the Year 1991
“Max Fischer’s repertoire is wide. He is aware of modern trends without compromising his own classical inclinations….visitors have been uniformly impressed by the accuracy and finesse of the cooking…” The Good Food Guide
The Guardian
“From the cheery, chatty welcome in the woodsmoke-scented bar, in fact, to the lavish petits fours served with coffee in the pretty dining room (floral-patterned wallpaper, lashings of fresh flowers, nice charcoal portraits), this was a difficult meal to fault” Matthew Norman 2007 The Guardian
“A friend rang asking if I knew of anywhere in the Peak District for a romantic weekend. Baslow Hall, I said instantly. Great restaurant, lovely house, picturesque grounds” Matthew Norman 2007 The Guardian
The Sunday Telegraph
“The crayfish was punchy, the reduction was deep and rich, the squash was as good as it comes and the neat, chubby slices of rabbit were expertly cooked and delivered” Zoe Williams 2006 The Sunday Telegraph
Karen Brown’s Exceptional Places to Stay & Itineraries 2009
“Fischer’s at Baslow hall is a dream place for a relaxed getaway, with splendid cooking, especially friendly service and the nearby delights of the Peak District National Park” Karen Brown’s Exceptional Places to Stay & Itineraries 2009
Alastair Sawday’s Special Places to Stay 2009
“Ambrosial food and country-house elegance combine in spades to make Fischer’s a must for those in search of a welcoming bolthole in the Peak District…Best of all is the Michelin-starred food. Rupert Rowley heads the kitchen alongside Max, a partnership that coaxes incredible flavours from their ingredients…Fabulous” Alastair Sawday’s Special Places to Stay 2009
