THE four star Crown at Whitebrook near Monmouth has appointed Michael OBray as its new general manager.

Nestled among the trees in the breathtaking Wye Valley, The Crown at Whitebrook is a long-established restaurant renowned for its fine cuisine and impressive wine collection. It also offers sumptuous accommodation with eight individually-styled luxury double bedrooms.

Among recent accolades, the Crown has been awarded four stars by the Wales Tourist Board and a gold star in Dining Out in Wales 2005. It has been voted one of the top 100 restaurants in the UK by BBC's Olive magazine and the wine list has also received a similar recognition by The Cond Nast Johansens Awards for Excellence as being one of the top 100 restaurant wine lists in the UK.

Cambridgeshire-born Michael joins The Crown from the Newbridge hotel and restaurant at Tredunnock, near Usk where he was general manager for nearly four years. While there, Michael set out to create a venue of quality and comfort and was responsible for the opening of six luxury bedrooms and saw the Newbridge win AA Welsh Restaurant of the Year and two Rosettes.

Michael has worked in managerial positions in London in prestigious establishments such as The Baltic Exchange, where he was site operations manager on behalf of Directors' Table and at the Tate Gallery, where he undertook prestigious catering commissions and was involved in the opening of the Tate Modern in 2000. Before this he spent several years at the five-star Wild Coast Sun in South Africa, which is where he grew up. He said: "I am looking forward to continuing the business' success and introducing many more customers to The Crown at Whitebrook experience."