Forest Side

The story

Crafted with passion, served with love

A House Built for Escape

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 Kitchen and the Landscape

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 and the Interiors

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.