Wilsons

The story

Wilsons Bristol: A Seasonal British Kitchen with Its Own Market Garden

The garden and the kitchen

Wilsons in Bristol offers seasonal British cooking rooted in a two-acre market garden twenty minutes away in Barrow Gurney. Founders Mary Wilson and Jan Ostle launched this low-key, twenty-four cover restaurant in 2016 to center their menus on what they grow and preserve. Mary Wilson trained in biodynamic agriculture and grew up helping at her family's former West London restaurant, bringing that heritage to the soil. Jan Ostle honed his technique in elite kitchens including The Square and Restaurant Gordon Ramsay before applying his skills to Wilsons. The team writes a new menu each week based almost entirely on the weekly harvest and earlier preserves.

Produce and recognition

Home-grown vegetables form the base while a tight network of suppliers provides proteins like beef from Three Pools, venison from Grove Game Larder, poultry from Woolley Park Farm, and pork from the Belmont Estate. This dedication to British cuisine keeps prices remarkably low given the effort behind every plate. The restaurant offers a six-course tasting menu alongside a value-driven menu du jour that includes a glass of wine. Recognition follows naturally, with the kitchen securing a Michelin Green Star in 2022, a Michelin star for 2025, and a place in the National Restaurant Awards top hundred.

Neighbourhood and bakery

Located in Redland, the space feels intimate with its small twenty-four cover capacity and fixed set menu structure. The founders expanded their footprint in 2022 by opening Wilson's Bread Shop two doors down from the restaurant. This adjacent bakery serves home-baked breads and patisseries while distributing surplus fruit and vegetables from the market garden to local residents.