The Penny Bun Ilkley: Inside the unique farm-to-table restaurant at stunning 2,500 acre estate near Leeds

Yorkshire Evening Post

Hidden within the breathtaking countryside near Ilkley is The Penny Bun - but it’s no ordinary country pub. Since opening last year, it has become a shining example of sustainable farm-to-table dining, with each dish a reflection of the land it comes from. Purchased by Denton Reserve in 2022, the team wanted to champion hyper-local ingredients sourced directly from the 2,500 acre estate that surrounds the venue in Askwith. And under the expert guidance of head chef Tim Kitchen, it has become a must-visit destination for foodies seeking honest cooking with a deep connection to nature.

Transcript

00:00My name is Tim Kitchen. I'm the estate head chef of Denton Reserve.

00:03So the Penny Barn is a restaurant with rooms just in between Otley and Ilkley.

00:08We're part of a bigger estate called Denton Reserve which is just down the road.

00:12We're trying to do things that are good for the planet.

00:14That's from having our own livestock, our own little garden with our own produce,

00:19to planting trees on the estate and doing things in a really sustainable way.

00:22Focusing on local products, products that we can get from the estate

00:26and everything that's around us.

00:27Sustainability is the word.

00:29Regenerative is the word with the farming that we're doing.

00:32We've got White Park Beef which is a heritage breed which is super ancient.

00:36We've got Tamworth Pigs and some amazing Wiltshire Horn sheep.

00:41And all of those animals have been designed for both their flavour

00:44and also what they're doing for the estate and how they treat the land.

00:49The dish I made earlier was one of our Tamworth Pig dishes.

00:52So it was a slow braised pig head that we've cooked down really slowly.

00:56Really focusing on nose to tail eating.

00:58That's been braised in cider with some mustard and some herbs from the estate

01:02and then pressed and fried off to be really nice and crispy.

01:06And then we've got some nice local black pudding from Dorings.

01:09And then some really kind of delicate leaves and herbs

01:12that have been foraged or grown on the estate to create a salad.

01:16And then rather than using croutons in the salad,

01:18we've taken the pig skin to make really amazing crackling.

01:22So that's through the salads.

01:24And then probably the biggest kind of foraged item on there,

01:26we've preserved a load of crab apple and different berries in jelly.

01:31So that gives a really nice sweetness to the dish.

01:34Yeah, it's just a real celebration of what we can get from the estate.

01:38It's really seasonal.

01:39It kind of just celebrates everything that we're about.

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