The story
Forest Side began as a statement of Victorian ambition. Built in 1853 for Manchester solicitor Stephen Heelis on the site of an earlier farm above Grasmere, the Lakeland stone mansion sheltered beneath steeply sloping woodland on the road to Keswick. It welcomed guests for more than a century before falling quiet. Today it has been carefully reawakened — its Gothic character preserved, its purpose renewed as one of the Lake District's most considered places to stay and dine.
The house sits on its own fellside, home to Roe deer and red squirrels, and the grounds carry traces of their Victorian past: a restored fernery fed by a mountain stream, a limestone folly in the form of a stone circle, and gardens that once overflowed with rare Rhododendrons brought back from China and the Himalayas by Victorian plant hunters. By 2014, those Rhododendrons had grown to the height of trees, darkening the grounds entirely. The garden team removed every one, letting light back in and protecting the native habitat that surrounds the hotel today.
The restaurant is a light, airy space designed to let the outside in — a calm backdrop for the food to take centre stage. Head Chef Paul Leonard leads a kitchen whose modern British cooking reflects the landscape, the seasons, and a deep respect for ingredients. Menus evolve with what's growing at its best, guided by produce from the hotel's own kitchen garden and long-standing relationships with local Cumbrian producers. The result is seasonal, ingredient-led British cooking that is clear and thoughtful rather than showy — recognition that earned Forest Side a Michelin star.
Overseeing the kitchen garden is Head Gardener Charles Munro, who brings over two decades of horticultural experience, including time as a head grower working with many of the UK's top chefs. His specialist knowledge feeds directly into what appears on the plate.
The wine programme is equally rooted in a coherent philosophy. Head Sommelier Guillaume Limoux, who joined Forest Side ahead of its Michelin star and has led the cellar since 2018, selects artisan producers working on a small scale — often as few as two or three thousand bottles a year. The list leans heavily toward organic and biodynamic wines, produced without artificial fertilisers or pesticides, fermented with wild yeast, and shaped by the same respect for natural process that defines the kitchen. That commitment to quality earned Forest Side a Wine Spectator Award of Excellence in 2023.
The interiors were designed in collaboration with James Mackie, using materials chosen to connect guests with the landscape outside. Herdwick sheep's wool carpets — made by Cumbrian maker Wools of Cumbria — run through the hotel, a nod to the fell farmers whose flocks have shaped this place since the Vikings. Beds are made to the hotel's own specification by Yorkshire maker Harrison Spinks. Twenty bedrooms range from compact and warm to spacious master rooms with unrivalled views.
Forest Side is a place that feels settled and quietly confident — a Victorian house restored with care, where modern British fine dining and a serious wine list sit entirely at home.
Recognition
Ambience
Details
History
5 Rosette Award for Culinary Excellence
High quality cooking
From the outside, Forest Side imposes, stamping no-nonsense Victorian authority onto a steep fellside near Grasmere. Step inside, however, and you’re fast-forwarded to the present day. There are respectful memories of history in the shape of lofty ceilings, preserved architectural details and tweed-waistcoated waiters, but the setting is fresh and contemporary. Rough-hewn tables are simply decorated, so too the white walls and vast windows. Seats are comfortable, and floors classily bare, but chintz-free style comes at the expense of sound-absorbing softness so it can be a little noisy. Perhaps that is all the better to focus on Paul Leonard’s fine cooking, which delivers an experience that for one recent diner was ‘breathtaking’, for another ‘truly A-class’. Portions are restrained, presentation is precise, the value for money of a four-course lunch (plus extras) undeniable. Warm brioche, thyme-flecked and oomphed with a Marmite glaze, is irresistible, while the standout of the three snacks is toasted brioche with truffled cream cheese and smoked eel. Vigour continues. Whipped raw-milk Cumbrian goat's cheese – Ingot, from Holker Farm Dairy– comes with confit and crisp Jerusalem artichoke, fresh apple and toasted yeast crumb; it’s followed by a savoury little rockpool of lightly aerated buttermilk/mussel sauce from which peep mussels, ribbons of pickled cuttlefish and smoked roe. This being the game season, a small but tenderly roasted breast of local partridge makes a distinguished main course. Its juices are the base for a glorious sauce, its leg is a mini-meatball, and the flavours are amplified by hen of the woods flecked with crisp onions, as well as the belting umami of cep purée. A pretty dessert is all about the cherry – puréed, frozen into a sorbet, set into a glistening crimson gel, its sweetness balanced by a mild cheese panna cotta and salted granola. A sugar-doused doughnut – cherry-filled, of course – provides the playful accompaniment. The forward-thinking wine list champions natural and biodynamic bottles from less familiar vineyards, so the sommelier's excellent advice might steer you towards a rounded but fresh Grüner Veltliner from Austrian makers Martin and Anna Arndorfer, or the earthy welly of a Thracian Mavrud that works a treat with the partridge. Both are offered by the glass on a line-up that packs interest into 125ml pours from £9.
Location
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