Game Season: Britain’s Most Refined Restaurants Go Wild
Autumn in Britain means game season — the time when menus across the country turn rich, earthy, and unmistakably British. Pigeon, venison, mallard, pheasant — the flavours of the fields, moors, and forests reappear in fine dining form. For chefs, it’s the most creative time of the year; for diners, it’s a rare chance to taste a fleeting moment of the countryside. This year, some of the UK’s most refined restaurants are giving game the attention it deserves, each with their own interpretation of the season’s spoils.
Inside Blue Mountain School in Shoreditch, Michelin-starred Cycene continues to redefine British fine dining. Chef Taz Sarhane’s approach to game is precise but poetic — a locally sourced wood pigeon, roasted until the skin is perfectly crisp, topped with a cherry and vanilla sauce that cuts through the richness of the meat. Cycene has always been about subtlety and layers of flavour; this dish is a quiet triumph of both restraint and craft.
The Connaught Grill x Purdey, Mayfair
In Mayfair, two British institutions meet — The Connaught Grill and Purdey, the heritage gunsmith and country outfitter. Together they’ve launched a special game menu, running through the season until January 2026. Expect something rare: a dining experience that celebrates the journey from field to table, with all the refinement that both brands are known for.
The standout? The Purdey Game Pie — a suet pastry filled with squab, venison, and rabbit, a nod to James Purdey himself. The Bacon-wrapped venison loin, carved tableside with a Purdey knife, adds theatre to the ritual. Staff are dressed in tweed accessories, cocktails arrive in shotgun-shell flasks — details that strike a balance between heritage and modern indulgence.
At Grace & Savour, David and Anette Taylor continue to blur the line between farm and table. The couple’s West Midlands restaurant sits within Hampton Manor’s walled gardens, where the story of each dish begins. Their East Lothian Wood Pigeon — paired with local plums and a sauce split with cobnut butter and damson vinegar — captures everything about the season in one precise, elegant bite. It’s the kind of plate that shows how rural simplicity can coexist with Michelin-level sophistication.
In Bristol, Wilson’s brings game season closer to nature than most. The Michelin-starred bistro from Jan Ostle serves Local Mallard balanced with fermented blackcurrants, shiso leaf, and beetroots grown in the restaurant’s own market garden. The dish embodies the restaurant’s ethos — deeply seasonal, endlessly thoughtful, and rooted in sustainability. Everything on the menu is either grown, hunted, or gathered by the team, creating a closed-loop approach that defines modern fine dining.
Game season isn’t about nostalgia — it’s about connection. To land, to craftsmanship, to the fleeting window when nature gives us its richest ingredients. Across Britain, from the countryside estates to the heart of the city, the country’s best chefs are giving this tradition new life.