The Unruly Pig has been named winner of the Taste of East of England Award, sponsored by Adnams, at the East of England Tourism Awards 2022-2023. 

Opened in 2015 by Brendan Padfield, The Unruly Pig is an award-winning gastropub located in the village of Bromeswell, near Woodbridge, Suffolk. 

The pub serves ‘Britalian’ food – fresh, seasonal British food with an Italian influence – and prides itself on offering fine dining but in a relaxed and fun setting.

It attracts staycation tourists and second-home owners, as well as customers who travel just to eat there.

In 2022, The Unruly Pig was named ‘Winner’ and Number One in the Estrella Damm UK Top 50 Gastropub Awards. It was also awarded ‘Best Food’ at the Great British Pub Awards 2021 and named Dining Pub of the Year 2021 by The Good Pub Guide. 

The judges praised The Unruly Pig as a “superb gastropub with innovative cooking”. 

They were also impressed by the wine list and its variety, with the majority of wines coming from Europe. In particular, they commended the fact that any of the wines on the menu could be bought by the glass. 

They said they would recommend the pub for its “warmth of welcome, quality of the food, team spirit and general ambience”. 

Brendan Padfield, owner of The Unruly Pig, said: "It’s a privilege and honour to receive such an award. 

"These are uneasy times for the hospitality sector, so this award is a timely shot in the arm for our wonderfully dedicated and hard-working team.

"One of our key values as a business is to continuously improve," he added. 

"We will therefore do just that and build upon the success of winning this lovely award to enhance The Unruly Pig’s reputation, regionally and increasingly nationally, for delivering high-end quality food in a relaxed and fun setting." 

About the sponsor

Adnams is a fiercely independent brewer and has been since it first put down its roots in Southwold, Suffolk in 1872. It is also a distinctive distiller, wine merchant, retailer, publican and hotelier.

The company makes award-winning premium beers, spirits and wines, while its stores, hotels, pubs and inns reflect its distinctiveness and the personality of its people.

Adnams is proud of its achievements, heritage and values – and its customers are at the heart of everything it does.

It constantly looks to the future to find inspiration and proudly supports communities and causes that make a positive difference. 


The finalists

Silver - River Green Restaurant

Situated in the Norfolk village of Trowse near Norwich, River Green is a vegan restaurant specialising in local, seasonal produce.

Head chef Chris Avey creates a daily-changing menu of plant-based dishes featuring ingredients from as close to home as possible. River Green went fully vegan in 2020, which saw it revisit its recipes and prioritise British-grown over imported goods.

The judges said the restaurant delivered the best vegan food experience they’d ever had, praising the “outstanding” food and the “thought, time and care” that had been taken to create the dishes.

Bronze - Tuffon Hall Vineyard

Tuffon Hall is located near Halstead in Essex. Owned by the Crowther family for over 100 years, it offers public tours and tastings in its recently converted 400-year-old barn, which also acts as a beautiful wedding venue.

The vineyard has a total of 15,000 vines, all of which are worked by hand and include classic Champagne varieties: Chardonnay, Pinot Meunier, Pinot Noir and Bacchus.

The judges said the vineyard tour was “very interesting”, adding that great thought had been put into the food and flavours that accompany the wine tastings.