Hillbrush, the UK’s largest and longest established manufacturer of brushes and specialist cleaning tools has secured a prestigious Taste of the West Hospitality and Retail Award for Visit Hillbrush, the company’s restaurant and brush museum at Mere, Wiltshire. Visit Hillbrush was awarded Gold — the top accolade — for its commitment to local sourcing and communication to customers about local sourcing, following an incognito visit by Taste of the West judges in May.
Established in 2017, Visit Hillbrush is located alongside the company’s manufacturing site and is a unique combination of restaurants serving breakfasts, lunches and drinks alongside a brush museum and shop. The comfortable and stylishly decorated Visit Hillbrush restaurant is run by a team of professionals, who are all trained in local produce knowledge. The kitchen is led by Head Chef James Bird who has previously cooked for Jamie Oliver and Paloma Faith. Bird is committed to sourcing the finest local ingredients and cooks from fresh sources every day.
Located inside the restaurant, the Hillbrush museum covers everything from the fibers the company uses from around the world to some of the first automated brush-making machines and photographs through the decades, including when Hillbrush welcomed HM The Queen in 1952. The Hillbrush shop sells Royal Warrant holder products, local gifts and produce, as well as its own brand products, also Royal Warrant approved, manufactured in the factory next door.
Charlie Coward, Managing Director at Hillbrush, says, “As a company with its roots firmly in Mere and the surrounding locality, it is important for Visit Hillbrush to also support the county of Wiltshire. We’re proud to support quality local food brands by serving them in the restaurant so we’re delighted to have received this Gold Award from Taste of the West in recognition of this.”
Taste of the West is the largest independent regional food group in the UK developed to promote and support fantastic local food and drink from the region covering Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Gloucestershire, Somerset and Wiltshire. Taste of the West’s aim is to champion food and drink producers in the West Country, as well as the places that serve and sell them.
Learn more about Visit Hillbrush at www.visit.hillbrush.com
