Emberwoods first birthday

Last week, we marked a quiet milestone, one year since opening our doors in Bath.

It wasn't a night of excess. No fanfare, no grand gestures. Just a week of welcoming guests the way we always do: with warmth, care, and the kind of attention that doesn't need to announce itself.

What began as a new British brasserie has, over twelve months, settled into something we're rather proud of. A dining room shaped by fire, defined by restraint, and built on the idea that hospitality doesn't need to shout to be felt.

Vesper No.9

The martini trolley, Vesper No.9, made its rounds through the dining room not as theatre for its own sake, but as a studied gesture. A cocktail made properly, with intention, and nothing unnecessary left behind. That's the idea at the heart of Emberwood: craft expressed through simplicity, fire as control rather than drama.

The Dessert

At the centre of the week was a dessert created by Executive Head Chef David and Chef Pâtissier Dom, a plate that distilled a year's worth of cooking into its most essential form.

Charred pear brought gentle smokiness, shaped by heat rather than masked by it. Sunflower frangipane offered quiet richness, nutty, grounding, a base note rather than a crescendo. Vanilla and coal-infused ice cream completed it: familiar and comforting, with just enough edge to remind you of the fire it came from.

It was a dessert built on contrast but resolved in simplicity. Nothing loud. Nothing unnecessary.

We served it throughout the week as a gesture of thanks to the guests who've been part of our first year, those who've filled the room once, or returned often enough for the rhythm of the place to feel familiar.

What We've Built

The week felt less like a celebration and more like a pause. A moment to acknowledge what's been built quietly, service by service, plate by plate, conversation by conversation.

In a city like Bath, where time moves with its own composure, Emberwood has begun to find its place, not as a statement, but as a room people return to.

Here's to the year that shaped it. And to the guests who made it matter.

Thank you for being part of our story.