Awards and the great outdoors

The Falcon Inn, at Fotheringhay, has a dozen large benches in its garden – with a great view of the local church – and for some years has delighted customers with its outdoor pizza oven and barbecue.

And from April 12, Zak and partner Madison Keys will be looking to fullfil its potential with a menu to suit.

The couple, who had only been at the helm for three months when the first lockdown came in last March, will be hoping to use recent morale boosts as a springboard to a successful summer when the latest raft of restrictions hopefully come to an end.

The venue landed the coveted Good Pub Guide Northamptonshire Dining Pub of the Year award for 2021 recently, and last month the Northamptonshire Food Awards saw Zak take the runner-up slot in the Chef of the Year category after a live cook-off, which took place before Christmas.

“They are good morale boosts and recognition for us and what we are doing here and something to use to help keep improving, ” said Zak.

“We will be back on April 12, seven days a week for the first week, then five days a week, but we still plan to keep the shop (a product of lockdown) and takeaway going.”

Tables will be available from noon until 8pm and the menu will feature more tapas style offerings until indoor dining is allowed from May 17.

Expect the pizza oven and barbecue to feature too.

“The garden has a lot of potential to be a real benefit to use until we can open indoors in May,” added Zak who has been keeping the business ticking over during the pandemic with takeaways and a local produce shop.