Copyright cambridge-news
A restaurant in a town close to Cambridgeshire has recently been added to the Michelin Guide. Linda Keenan, the owner of Bellota in Bury St Edmunds, said the team were "ecstatic" to hear the restaurant had been included in the prestigious guide. Mrs Keenan added: "It certainly helps with business to have that endorsement. The reviews that we've been getting from our guests are absolutely fabulous but it's also very nice to have that recognition from somebody professional. "They are recognising the quality of Ruben and his team to produce super top quality food and a wonderful dining experience. We were very happy that we got that recognition and from my standpoint, it was well deserved." The restaurant can only seat 20 people but everyone is sat around the open kitchen to watch the food being prepared. All of the tasting dishes are served by the chefs, who will chat to the diners about the meal to create a more "social experience". The "theatrical" aspect of being able to watch the food being prepared is one of the reasons why Mrs Keenan believes Bellota was added to the guide. She added: "The food is really tasty too. It's quite inventive but not challenging. "It's at a level that is not so common not only in Suffolk but even in London. I think the level of the cuisine would stand up well against any sort of competition. It's a combination of both the experience and the food itself." The food at Bellota is described as "modern British" cuisine with Spanish influences from head chef Ruben Aguilar Bel. The restaurant focuses on using locally sourced ingredients such as meat supplied from a local butcher and the vegetables coming from Mrs Keenan's own garden. When asked what dishes she liked the best from the restaurant, Mrs Keenan said she "liked everything". She added: "It seems our customers like the raviolo the best, which is stuffed with roasted vegetables and comes with a Manchego cheese foam. That's really a hit with everybody. "The desserts are made by Ruben's wife, Gabi, and she's incredible with her desserts. They're always quite unique. The flavours are unusual and they're not super sweet. They're quite a nice mix of sweet and tart. I always like to have her desserts. But I can recommended every single thing and I notice when I'm there, there's never any food left on the plate. So I think every dish is a winner." Mrs Keenan mentioned how Bellota receives a lot of positive feedback from all of its guests. She said: "They talk about how welcoming and genuine the team is. They say it's a nice place to go if you want to have a social experience, as people get the opportunity to sit down and meet other people. For the future, we want to just keep doing what we're doing and get better and better." Bellota can be found at 43 Churchgate Street in Bury St Edmunds, which is around a 50 minute drive away from Cambridge via the A14. The restaurant is open from 5:30pm to 10pm on Wednesdays to Saturdays.
