CELEBRITY chef Nigel Hawarth is planning to expand his pub empire.

The Northcote Manor boss appeared on BBC's Saturday Kitchen and told host James Martin about his plans.

He said: "We're looking at a pub in Cheshire at the minute.

"We're looking to take the pub group from four to about 10 in the next few years."

Mr Hawarth spoke as he cooked up wheat-fed Goosnargh guinea fowl with brioche crumbs, gooseberries, asparagus, St George mushrooms and wild sorrel.

And he desbribed how Michelin-starred Northcote, named Hotel of the Year 2013 by Pride of Britain Hotels, was undergoing a major face-lift.

He said: "We're putting on another 14 bedrooms and refurbishing all the kitchen.

"It's going to be a year's work but we're doing it in stages so we're still open most of the time."

He said the Three Fishes in Mitton was also being refurbished.