Craig Bancroft

Craig’s career began as a kitchen porter in London’s Kensington Close Hotel before undergoing training with the Trusthouse Forte International Management programme. After working as a chef at Hotel Plaza Athénée, Paris, which held two Michelin stars at the time, Craig’s career led him to prestigious properties including Browns Hotel, The Westbury and Grosvenor House, alongside some more commercial experience at The Strand Palace, Regent Palace and The Cumberland. He then arrived at Northcote where he and his team began transforming it into the prestigious boutique hotel it is today.

Craig enjoys developing young careers within Northcote, finding great satisfaction in cultivating and encouraging employees’ skills. He says that, “The current focus for us all within the industry is to get people into hospitality. It’s an amazing business with a bright future, which needs talented young and more mature people alike to maintain its continued growth.” In line with these principles, Northcote is involved with charities Springboard and Princes Trust, which nurture young people into sustainable employment. Northcote also work with Hospitality Action, who provide support and assistance to struggling members of the hospitality industry.

Craig has always had passion for food and wine, which he has developed over the years and saw him enter The Academy of Food and Wine Hall of Fame in 2010. Matching wine with food is an integral part of the experience Craig creates for his guests. With his team of five sommeliers, he takes great pride in curating a wine list to complement Executive Head Chef Lisa Goodwin-Allen’s menu. Craig meets with the Northcote wine team monthly to revise the wine list and ensure its constant improvement. The broad list currently includes 52 Champagnes and Sparkling Wines and 500 Bins of still wines from 20 different countries, ranging from £26 through to £800. In 2016 and 2017, their hard work was recognised when Northcote won the Best of Award of Excellence in the 2016 Wine Spectator’s Restaurant Awards for an outstanding wine list. This extremely prestigious award is only granted to 11 English restaurants.

Craig was awarded the Outstanding Achievement Award by the Hotel Cateys in 2023, and has recently celebrated 40 years of being the transformative force and the beating heart of Northcote.

Outside of work, Craig loves game shooting during the season, he is a BBQ enthusiast, keen cook and enjoys good food and wine with family and friends.