A LUXURY restaurant is to open in Birkenshaw shortly - breathing new life into one of the village’s most prominent but run-down buildings.

Husband-and-wife team Bernd and Sharon Wolf are opening the Grand Cru restaurant after transforming the former Co-op supermarket building into a spacious restaurant.

The pair, who have years of experience in the high-end hospitality industry, are hoping to offer a grand dining experience and the very best in local cuisine.

Bernd, who is originally from Bavaria, is classically trained and has worked in Michelin-starred and award-winning restaurants across Europe.

Sharon has also worked front of house for a number of award-winning restaurants.

Before making the move to West Yorkshire, the couple achieved a long-standing ambition to open their own restaurant, the Orange Tree in Torquay.

In owning and running their first restaurant for more than 11 years, they also secured the Les Routiers’ Restaurant of the Year award and Gold status at the Fine Dining Restaurant of South Devon Hospitality Awards.

The couple have worked with local architects, designers and craftsmen to transform the former Co-op building into a luxury eaterie.

The new restaurant will offer, according to its new website, “innovatively and skilfully-cooked food” and will feature “the very best locally-sourced produce”.

They will offer a seasonal menu “based on Yorkshire’s very finest ingredients”, “combining both modern and classic cooking techniques” to provide “imaginative cuisine, featuring honest food”.

Menus will generally include:

starters featuring a range of ingredients, including shellfish, meat, seasonal vegetables and other delicacies;

locally-reared main dishes, including lamb, poultry, game and beef options;

imaginative vegetarian choices;

locally-caught fresh fish;

“taster menus” featuring a cross-section of the most popular dishes;

and as the website puts it “puddings and desserts to die for”.

The restaurant will also offer a wine list featuring classics and New World wines as well as a cocktail menu.

An exact opening date has not yet been set and the couple are currently recruiting for kitchen and waiting staff.

To find out more, visit the website at grandcrurestaurant.co.uk or at facebook.com/grandcrubirkenshaw.

The building was originally constructed in 1887 for the Birkenshaw Industrial Society and bears an inscription in the stonework.