Best In-House Caterer Award in Bridebook’s Wedding Industry People Awards 2023

We are very pleased to share that our head chef Iain has won Best In-House Caterer Award in Bridebook’s Wedding Industry People Awards 2023. This award recognizes Iain’s hard work and dedication in creating a magical experience for our couples, day in, and day out.

We are so proud of Iain for winning this award. Not only does he produce the most amazing food and provide a caring service for our couples and their guests, but he is so lovely to have around and a real attribute to the Hilltop team.

If you’re interested in finding out just how Iain is an award-winning chef or looking for some inspiration for your wedding breakfast menu, you’re in the right place.

Once you have chosen your wedding venue, all of the other important aspects of your special day just fall into place, including what you’d like to eat and drink. Here, at Hilltop, we pride ourselves in being a ‘one-stop shop’. We provide as many services as we can in-house, just to make the planning process that little bit easier.

As head chef, Iain devotes his time to our couples, ensuring that they have a menu perfect for themselves and their guests. He is your first point of call for all things food related and will spend one-on-one time with you on your personalized tasting to discuss your menu in depth.

Hilltop’s Wedding Menu

 But first, CANAPES!

Every fabulous wedding reception starts with a glass of something tasty and canapes too good to resist. We have a variety of hot and cold canapes, such as mini Yorkshire puddings with roast beef and horseradish crème fraiche and tomato, red onion and basil bruschetta to keep you and your guests tied over until the wedding breakfast.

 

The Wedding Breakfast

Our wedding menus are inspired by local produce, Hilltop’s herb garden and good, quality food your guests will love. We are all about supporting local businesses. Our meat comes from JJJ Heathcote Butchers; our potatoes are Cheshire potatoes, and herbs and seasoning are sourced from our own herb garden. Not to mention our orchard, which supplies us with fresh apples and pears pruned by The Random Apple Company. The menus are named after flowers in Hilltop’s garden and represent the beautiful Cheshire countryside that surrounds us. Here at Hilltop, we not only have flowers for all seasons, but we also have a menu to suit all weddings in any season. You can have anything from BBQ foods and sharing platters to a traditional 3-course meal or even an afternoon tea if you’d prefer!

 

Ultimately, the menus are designed for couples to make their own. Within this, they are completely interchangeable, and we cater for all dietary requirements and preferences accordingly.

Food to end the evening

To keep guests’ energy levels up as they dance the night away, it is only right to choose evening food from our fabulous street-style menu. Options include chicken and chorizo paella cooked in a large paella dish for all your guests to see and wood-fired pizza from our very own pizza oven in the outdoor bar.

 

A few words from the Chef…

From Hilltop’s menu, which meal would you choose to have on your wedding day?

To start, I would go for our warm red onion, and goat’s cheese tart served with baby leaf salad and balsamic reduction. Without a doubt, for the main course, I’d have Butley Town herb-crusted rack of lamb, potato dauphinoise, green beans and a red wine jus. For dessert, it would have to be our gluten-free sticky toffee pudding with hot toffee sauce and ice cream.

Which wedding breakfast has been the one you have most enjoyed catering for?

Every now and again, we get asked to go off-piste. I have been particularly enjoying couples’ take on sharing platters and eastern European and Persian-style dishes. Specifically, dishes such as Mechouia-style lamb leg with cumin Dipping Salt and Chicken preserved lemon and olive tagine.

What is your favourite part of being Hilltop’s chef?

The personal touch. Just being able to sit down with the couple during their tasting to discuss exactly what they’d like to eat on their big day. The one on one time, where I can really get to know them and build that important relationship and bond, which I can then relate to the cooking and their bespoke menu.