Our favourite restaurants with rooms for an autumnal escape Published 08 October 2024
With the nights drawn in, our thoughts have turned to a trip away. And what better premise than a trip based around good food? We’ve picked out cosy countryside pubs, bothies, shepherd huts and townhouses where your stay is as much of a destination as your dinner.
There’s a general air of warm-heartedness and good humour at Lee Coad's and Charlotte Forsdike's sought-after restaurant. It comes across as a genuine local, refreshingly free of affectation and resolutely faithful to its se… Read more
There’s a general air of warm-heartedness and good humour at Lee Coad's and Charlotte Forsdike's sought-after restaurant. It comes across as a genuine local, refreshingly free of affectation and resolutely faithful to its seaside location, with ethically sourced fish as the main event. Seemingly thrown-together, the tiny, unassuming dining room a few steps from Margate beach squeezes in small tables (expanding with pavement seating in fine weather) and offers a daily changing blackboard menu with five choices per course. In culinary terms, chef Rob Cooper’s cooking points to Mediterranean Europe with simple preparations predominating, perhaps grilled mackerel with tomato and bread salad or sea bass with tomatoes, anchovies and capers. It may seem homely but everything is judged to the finest detail with seductive flavours – and the results are, quite simply, delicious. We shared sweet, smoked shell-on prawns with a good blob of aïoli (too popular to take off the menu), before perfectly cooked turbot atop white beans and a vivid green sauce. As a counterpoint, skate was served with outstanding ‘chorizo’ nuggets and sauce (made with paprika and garlic but with fish replacing the pork) and a tangle of green beans. On the side, beautifully flavoured grilled potatoes. We finished with a gloriously light almond and brown butter cake with poached apricots and a spirited, fruity sorbet (made with mulberries from a local tree). And to drink? The list is short and sweet but packed with interest, offering classic fish-friendly and low-intervention wines from England and coastal Europe. People travel for miles to visit Angela's and it gets booked up way ahead; if you're out of luck, however, its simpler, seafront sibling, Dory's, is just a stroll away – and it keeps back seats for walk-ins.
Working farm, rural retreat and country restaurant rolled into one
* From 3 April 2025, the restaurant will be moving to a four-course evening menu priced at £65 pp. Sunday lunch will remain a three-course menu at £50 pp. The owners are also planning to close for the winter months fro… Read more
* From 3 April 2025, the restaurant will be moving to a four-course evening menu priced at £65 pp. Sunday lunch will remain a three-course menu at £50 pp. The owners are also planning to close for the winter months from October 2025.*
Coombeshead is a working, developing farm with owner Tom Adams making new decisions all the time about what livestock to keep, what to grow that will best suit the soils, and how to present the bounty of the land to its best advantage. The accommodation aspect of the business is its principal attraction (not least for the excellent breakfasts) but a three-course menu at £50 for lunch or dinner is well worth a detour.
Proceedings open with the famously good bread served with sunny-yellow farmhouse butter before a starter of mangalitza pork terrine or a simple preparation of just-picked vegetables. Main courses could be a hefty leg of guinea fowl, served with stewed tomato and string beans, plus dressed salad leaves. Our inspector's dessert – a perfectly rendered frangipane tart of haskap berries with clotted cream – felt like the best kind of farmhouse cooking.
As for wine, it's a matter of browsing the cellars for yourself and picking out something suitable. If you've arrived hot-foot from far away, take a long, meandering wander around the fields. Smell the wild garlic. Look at the chickens and the piglets. Relax.
* Chef Sam Lomas has announced that he is leaving to open his own restaurant (called Briar) in what was the old Osip premises in Bruton. Watch for more details.*
Devon is hardly short of idyllic locations, but each one makes an e… Read more
* Chef Sam Lomas has announced that he is leaving to open his own restaurant (called Briar) in what was the old Osip premises in Bruton. Watch for more details.*
Devon is hardly short of idyllic locations, but each one makes an eloquent case for itself. Here in the eastern reaches, amid the gentle rolling of the Coly valley, not far from Honiton, Glebe House enjoys a truly favoured spot. Occupying a sleek white building overseeing a 15-acre farmstead, the kitchen naturally draws on its own produce for much of the menu, but without making too much of a fanfare about it: 'it just happens,' a reporter comments, 'as it should in places like Devon, where there's space.' Hugo Guest and Sam Lomas have devised a style of cooking that deftly balances country-house seduction with the more vernacular tendency of domestic British cooking, all overlaid with a slight Italian accent, resulting in 'antipasti' that might encompass smoked ox heart with puntarelle and mustard and oaty 'porridge bread' with cultured butter. The fondness for Italian foodways mandates an intermediate pasta course at dinner (perhaps tagliarini with monkfish ragù) before the main business, which on our visit was an exemplary chicken and mushroom pie of hefty dimensions, its comfortingly rich filling encased in the kind of crunchy pastry that only a big country oven can achieve. Accompaniments were distinctly more metropolitan (confit potatoes, charred hispi) in a context that seems to have us yearning for simple greens. To finish, there could be Amalfi lemon tart with crème fraîche, or a sweetly beguiling rhubarb and cream choux bun with toffee sauce. Drinkers have Devon cider and organic lager as well as a short, zesty list of Old World wines.
Sublime culinary odyssey with Scandinavian overtones
* The owners have announced that Hjem will be closing on 31 December 2025, with attention focusing on the completion of a new purpose-built restaurant with rooms called Freya on the Close House Estate in nearby Wylam.*
To m… Read more
* The owners have announced that Hjem will be closing on 31 December 2025, with attention focusing on the completion of a new purpose-built restaurant with rooms called Freya on the Close House Estate in nearby Wylam.*
To misquote Judy Garland, 'there’s no place like Hjem'. Meaning ‘home or place of belonging’ in both Northumbrian and Swedish, this restaurant's cooking, ingredients and style are confidently rooted across these two complementary cultures. It’s the Scandi-Northumberland dreamchild of couple Alex Nietosvuori and Alexandra Thompson – reflecting his personality and technical pedigree in the kitchen, and hers in the comfort and warmth front of house. A simple and cosy bar leads through to an airy, light-filled dining space with an additional garden room beyond. Views over the potager underscore their commitment to localism. Clean lines, pale woods and neutral colours are punctuated by the unabashed joy of seasonal hedgerow flowers.
This understated environment offers a calm canvas for the visual and taste sensations emerging from the open kitchen: ‘arguably one of the best restaurants I have eaten at – well thought-through, interesting, delightful and, in some cases, truly sublime,’ enthused one reader.
The tasting menu sets the scene with around six opening mouthfuls, each a mini masterpiece delivered in turn by one of the chefs – perhaps a rich lobster claw beignet with compressed chicken skin or a sliver of smoked eel with sharp Doddington cheese and pearlescent local lardo. Larger plates follow; two fish courses, two meat and then a seeming deluge of desserts. Humble mackerel is anointed with a flavour-laden crystalline tomato water and wafers of salted radish, while a tender but sumo-sized scallop is served simply in a vin jaune sauce cut with walnut oil. The kitchen hums. Huge steamers come out for a delicate chawanmushi (savoury Japanese custard) served with emerald baby broad beans and confit lamb belly, while a firebox provides the open flames to dramatically finish prime cuts from the gleaming meat safe. This is not a place to pop in for a quick bite and you certainly won’t leave hungry.
Desserts stick with local ingredients: a striking horseradish sorbet brings freshness to a rich apple caramel and oat tuile, while a combo of soft rose ice cream, elderflower custard, strawberries and petalled meringue is like Eton mess in a cottage garden. Coffee and fika opens up a whole new seam of creativity. The sheer range of flavours and presentations could feel overwhelming but dishes and portion sizes are well-judged. The commitment to showcasing what lives and grows within reach of the picture-perfect village of Wall ensures a grounding in authenticity and resists the lure of unnecessary adornments.
To accompany this culinary odyssey, sommelier Anna Frost has curated an extensive wine list reflecting personal passions, oenophile oddities and atypical producers at reasonable prices for a restaurant of this calibre. An unusually creative and extensive non-alcoholic range, including a matched tasting flight, recognises diverse needs and preferences. So click your ruby slippers and even if you don’t find the 'yellow brick road', you can rest assured that Hadrian left a very large edifice nearby.
You might think you’ve drifted into some idyllic Highland dreamscape as you catch sight of this reconfigured 18th-century ferryman’s cottage by Loch Fyne, with its adjoining boatshed, ospreys swirling around and ancien… Read more
You might think you’ve drifted into some idyllic Highland dreamscape as you catch sight of this reconfigured 18th-century ferryman’s cottage by Loch Fyne, with its adjoining boatshed, ospreys swirling around and ancient castle ruins looming in the distance. Inver can have that effect on people – and no wonder, given the sheer tranquillity of the spot and the owners' dedication to the craft of gastronomy. Pam Brunton (chef) and Rob Latimer have conjured something truly harmonious, attuned to the locality and utilising its seasonal bounty in wondrous ways. Buzzwords such ‘sustainability’ and ‘zero waste’ really do mean something here – just consider Pam’s ‘bread and butter broth’ (leftover sourdough ends soaked in an umami-laden brew with home-churned brown butter and yeast). Many ingredients are from the local terrain, the waters beyond Inver’s door and from a helpful band of artisan producers – including a horticulturally inventive, green-fingered neighbour known only as Kate. You can sample some of these delights from the lunchtime carte (a procession of seafood and game dishes) but dinner is the main event – a tasting menu of (nominally) six courses plus four opening salvos served on a tray in the lounge (a plump oyster anointed with sea buckthorn oil or a zingy ceviche-style pairing of razor clams and rhubarb, for example). Bigger dishes positively explode with local flavours – from a pairing of Loch Fyne scallops and langoustine with purple sprouting broccoli, tiny crispy potatoes and a sea-herb emulsion finished with blackcurrant-leaf oil to a four-part serving of organic pork (loin, collar, belly, sausage) with a pile of shaved celery and some pickled alexanders. Desserts are generally untroubled by fancy patisserie – slices of poached pear with a walnut and ginger ice cream, for example. It sounds like perfection, although feedback suggests that this highly personal set-up works best when the owners are in residence, overseeing every detail and bringing their ‘pared-back passion’ to proceedings. Even so, this is still a compelling venture with the bonus of an enlightened kids’ menu, ‘fancy’ homemade cordials and a compact but resourceful wine list. Accommodation is in comfortably appointed bothies and shepherds' huts, with breakfast goodies on the doorstep come morning.
Yes, it’s in the middle of nowhere but ‘there are lovely quiet walks to be had and all sorts of secret places to visit’ if you’re taking a break at this utterly idyllic spot in the Shropshire hinterland. Th… Read more
Yes, it’s in the middle of nowhere but ‘there are lovely quiet walks to be had and all sorts of secret places to visit’ if you’re taking a break at this utterly idyllic spot in the Shropshire hinterland. The sense of peace and tranquillity when you arrive is worth the journey. First stop is the bar, housed in an ancient timbered milking barn, where there’s a strong emphasis on local ingredients and suppliers – Ludlow and Herefordshire gins feature on the drinks list and there’s Hereford wine by the glass.
Lunch is for pre-booked parties of eight or more, while dinner is built around a short carte and a six-course taster featuring similar dishes, all served in the grand old dining hall (formerly a grain store). The kitchen sets out its ambitious stall with beguiling canapés of, say, beetroot mini meringues with goat's curd, ahead of the likes of Herefordshire beef tartare with cep curd and a beef-fat cracker or nori-cured mackerel with ajo blanco, lovage, grape and almond. Mains might feature local venison in season (perhaps served with chocolate, celeriac, pickled pear and a ragoût) or gilthead bream accompanied by Jerusalem artichoke, cannellini beans and sea fennel.
To conclude, there might be a new take on an old classic in the shape of a vanilla custard parfait with Yorkshire rhubarb and stem-ginger ice cream. Faultless presentation matches the impressive grandeur of the surroundings, while properly professional staff are eager to please. The drinks list includes plenty of keenly priced wines (from Tanners of Shrewsbury), and the place also serves afternoon tea seven days a week.
Seriously appealing modern pub food in a dreamy setting
With forested hills sloping onto fields of grazing sheep and the Gothic remains of Byland Abbey towering over the entrance, this pub with rooms is a dream ticket – no wonder it was snapped up by chef Tommy Banks (the Black S… Read more
With forested hills sloping onto fields of grazing sheep and the Gothic remains of Byland Abbey towering over the entrance, this pub with rooms is a dream ticket – no wonder it was snapped up by chef Tommy Banks (the Black Swan at Oldstead is nearby). Inside, there’s a little bar with a snug for those wanting a drink, but the main action takes place in the three dining rooms, one of which is the former piggery – an expansive room with beams, giant flagstones and a double-facing log-burning stove, all illuminated by a conservatory-style skylight. The mood is relaxed and staff stay on top of their tasks, while cute details in the handsome finishes speak of Tommy Banks’ pedigree.
The food also makes a connection to the Banks family farm (without labouring the point), and chef Charlie Smith serves up a procession of seriously appealing, modern pub-style dishes – an incredibly original Dexter steak tartare, perhaps, cut into uniform nuggets resembling translucent rubies decorated with grated wild horseradish, fermented peppers and smoked bone marrow. Elsewhere, there might be a light, elegant plate of smoked Pablo beetroot with ewe’s curd, preserved Yorkshire rhubarb and linseed crackers for texture. Some of the meaty main courses such as a pork rib chop with fermented mushroom béarnaise could do with a little finessing, although fish dishes hit the spot – judging by a pitch-perfect serving of cod with a splendid mussel cream sauce and purple-red potatoes on the side.
Everything is executed with flair, professionalism and a deep respect for local ingredients – and that extends to the dazzling roasts served for Sunday lunch (check out the rare-breed Berkshire pork and Herdwick lamb from the family farm, just two miles away). If you're looking for real value, however, order the mighty Dexter cheeseburger with fries, plus a pint of Yorkshire-brewed ale and a shared dessert – say a soft-serve sundae topped with Douglas fir, blackcurrant and white chocolate. Aside from real ale, drinks include seasonal cocktails, homemade libations and a short but decent selection of wines with plenty by the glass.
The Angel has been a fixture in the Guide for many a decade, surviving various culinary eras and changes of look. Its present incarnation, under chef-patron Michael Wignall (ex-Gidleigh Park et al), offers a smartly attired suite … Read more
The Angel has been a fixture in the Guide for many a decade, surviving various culinary eras and changes of look. Its present incarnation, under chef-patron Michael Wignall (ex-Gidleigh Park et al), offers a smartly attired suite of three dining rooms – ours featuring polished concrete floors, lacquered oak tables and seating in soft grey leather. The aura of relaxed informality remains undented, and the view over the Dales is appetising enough, even if you haven't been hiking the long day through. Presented via a mixture of tasting menus and a carte, the cooking has, once again, acquired the innovative edge it had in days gone by. A delightful starter of tomato textures – fresh, cooked, dried and consommé – is served with lovage ice and basil. Even more fragrant is a serving of Shetland crab in buttermilk dashi with oscietra caviar, green strawberries and herb oil. To follow, guinea fowl is poached and sautéed to crisp satisfaction, teamed with roasted hen of the woods mushrooms and puréed corn, while lamb (and its tongue) arrive with a garniture of salsa verde shoehorned into a roll of lettuce, topped with anchovy crumb. Only desserts fell a little flat at inspection, but the incidentals – particularly the ingenious canapés – are all up to the mark. Wines by the glass start at a reasonable £5 for a small measure of a light Macabeo-Verdejo from Spain.
Part pub, part restaurant with a fondness for local produce
Geographically, Sedbergh is part of the Yorkshire Dales, although it sits on the edge of the Lake District. Something of that dual identity informs the layout of this revamped coaching inn, which accommodates two very different sp… Read more
Geographically, Sedbergh is part of the Yorkshire Dales, although it sits on the edge of the Lake District. Something of that dual identity informs the layout of this revamped coaching inn, which accommodates two very different spaces with two very different personalities. To the left as you go in is the cosy, convivial pub room – our preferred spot – complete with a bar, equine paraphernalia, dried flower displays, bright red banquettes and fairy lights strung around the walls. Here you can sup local ales and get welcome sustenance from platters of home-cooked ham and artisan cheese, hot Herdwick lamb sandwiches, maple pea houmous or Mansergh Hall pork and kimchi stew.
To the right are the dining areas, the first being a dog-friendly antechamber, the second a sparser, more formal split-level affair. The menu highlights local produce but there’s a noticeable Asian bent to the more ambitious dishes: expect Howgill Hereford beef pie with seasonal greens alongside crispy Korean beef wrapped in a shiso leaf or pork belly in XO sauce with alliums. To finish, there might be an 'extremely savoury’ black-sesame panna cotta with basil oil and shards of sesame cracker. On Sundays, prime meat sourced from local herds is the kitchen's USP, accompanied by sides including treacle carrots.
Service is well-meaning, although it seems better suited to the pub side of things than the restaurant. However, the Black Bull’s drinks offer gets full marks, from unusually pleasing ‘softs’ including Zingi Bear (an organic ginger switchel) to fascinating sips from Slovakia, Slovenia and Serbia on the diverse, good-value wine list. A new outdoor bar and kitchen facility should add to the Black Bull's all-round appeal.
‘A fantastic place in the gorgeous countryside,’ is one fan's verdict on this bonny 17th-century thatched pub with rooms, reached down narrow wooded lanes. Renovated and reopened in 2017 by local landowners (the Philli… Read more
‘A fantastic place in the gorgeous countryside,’ is one fan's verdict on this bonny 17th-century thatched pub with rooms, reached down narrow wooded lanes. Renovated and reopened in 2017 by local landowners (the Phillimore Estate) and run by a team who also operate two nearby pub-restaurants, the Bottle & Glass has strong roots in the neighbourhood. Its two bars – one for drinkers (with real ale), the other uncommonly cosy (wood-burner, beams, chesterfield sofas and all) – take up most of the original building. In the rear extension are two new but sensitively designed dining rooms, with wooden flooring and modern art on white walls. In summer, the extensive grounds come into play, with wood-fired pizzas and an enormous, corrugated-iron 'burger barn' as options. On a late-winter visit, the very brief carte (steaks but no vegetarian main course) was outshone by an excellent-value fixed-price deal: £23 for three courses (and at least three choices per course) including a glass of house wine. Yes, robust flavours sometimes trump culinary finesse, but presentation is neat. A hearty bowl of ham hock ‘goulash’ with strands of meat, potato chunks and a large gherkin made an enjoyably rich, salty opener, while smoked mackerel pâté with dill sour cream was lifted by excellent home-baked soda bread. And if a main course of roast skate wing was a mite overdone, its accompanying Jerusalem artichoke velouté packed a pleasing punch. Local meat often takes centre stage: our stew of fallow deer (from the Phillimore Estate) complete with a pastry lid made a fine pairing with braised red cabbage – though sides of mash and kale gave welcome relief from the powerful flavours. Best pud? The apple strudel takes some beating: a plump, cinnamony oblong with light pastry and vanilla ice cream. The carefully curated wine list and first-rate service are further incentives to brave those rustic little lanes.
*Sally Abé (ex-The Pem) has been apppinted ‘head of food’, replacing chef George Williams who has left to join the Fat Badger in Notting Hill. Watch for a new review coming soon.*
The team behind Notting Hill's… Read more
*Sally Abé (ex-The Pem) has been apppinted ‘head of food’, replacing chef George Williams who has left to join the Fat Badger in Notting Hill. Watch for a new review coming soon.*
The team behind Notting Hill's Pelican pub have branched out into the Cotswolds, but lest anyone get the impression that they have simply followed a well-heeled clientele out to their holiday homes, owners Phil Winser and James Gummer grew up around these parts and cut their drinking teeth in the Bull. The place itself has been standing on the corner of Sheep Street since Henry VIII was taking wives, and it retains an air of homeliness, with raftered ceilings, welcoming fires and the flicker of ecclesiastical candles. Staff are clued-up as well as boundlessly helpful, and it would be positively churlish to overlook the offer of soda bread and seaweed to start proceedings. Chef George Williams' kitchen draws on produce from its own nearby smallholding, and there are plans for the tending of livestock before too long. Dishes have that winning combination of accessible simplicity while being big on impact, resulting in starters such as trout with green tomatoes, plus an intermediate slate of vegetables and sides listed ahead of the mains. Consider a loaded vegetable platter for two, or salt-baked celeriac with green sauce, before setting about centrepiece platefuls with plenty of substance. Expect anything from beef rib for two or a pork chop with creamed chard to brown-buttered plaice, although we were particularly taken with the muntjac schnitzel. Fish specials and Sunday roasts turned on the spit add to the allure, while desserts could run from treacle tart to poached pear with meringue. An enterprising list of cask ales and speciality ciders competes with the adventurous wine selection (fleshed out with a weekly changing list of single bottles).
Along the narrows at the top end of Totnes, the Bull Inn is a flesh-coloured pub that has had the kind of makeover that makes over a million pounds look artfully like ten grand. Foliage entwines the rafters, potted plants loom in … Read more
Along the narrows at the top end of Totnes, the Bull Inn is a flesh-coloured pub that has had the kind of makeover that makes over a million pounds look artfully like ten grand. Foliage entwines the rafters, potted plants loom in the corners, the bar frontage is done in jade-green, and an air of dynamic, but not oppressive, hubbub prevails. Organic and ethical credentials pour forth from both the portable chalkboard menus and the drinks list, where cask ales, cloudy shrubs and ingenious cocktails are the main lures. An extensive roll call of substantial starters is cause for celebration, with both roasted late Jerusalem artichokes in green sauce, and grilled early asparagus spattered with garlic and hazelnuts, on offer at our spring visit. A trio of venison koftas in thin cumin-laced yoghurt, sumac onions and honey proved to be a delightful way in. Mains bring a shorter choice of enterprising veggie dishes, an old-school bistro bavette in creamy mushroom sauce, or a hunk of (very slightly overdone) monkfish in the kind of buttery curry sauce that could have seen service on a bag of chips. For dessert, a complicated cake of chocolate and olive-oil mousse on pistachio sponge, dressed with Cognac-poached pear, coffee syrup and mascarpone filled to capacity the tiny tea-plate it was served on. Otherwise, resist if you can the Basque cheesecake with Earl Grey prunes. Wines are a little less than thrilling, but there is a reasonable selection in three glass sizes.
It may only be a few miles from the brash lights of Blackpool but this remodelled 17th-century coaching inn beside the tidal river Wyre is light years away in style and atmosphere. There are tranquil views of the Fylde plain acros… Read more
It may only be a few miles from the brash lights of Blackpool but this remodelled 17th-century coaching inn beside the tidal river Wyre is light years away in style and atmosphere. There are tranquil views of the Fylde plain across to the Bowland Fells, and restaurant tables overlooking the river are always at a premium – although there is much more to engage both eye and palate here.
To the rear, a small garden-courtyard, edged by a deli, gallery and jewellery shop, is festooned with painted bird houses, trees strung with coloured streamers and sequinned bunting. Inside, the decor is not so much quirky as idiosyncratic, with an eclectic collection of art and craftwork brightening up the bar and dining areas. It might not be to everyone’s taste but it’s fun and engaging.
On the whole, the food matches the setting, with a good selection of seasonal dishes served at wooden tables decorated with whimsical hand-blown glass mushrooms. The menu has serious French aspirations, and there's an emphasis on big, bold meat and game specialities such as local wood pigeon saltimbocca, braised pig's cheek tacos and grilled, stuffed lamb’s heart. Prissy it ain’t. The Gallic blow-out entitled 'premeditated gluttony’ needs to be ordered 48 hours in advance and features a ‘grands fruits de mer’ platter that has been described as ‘the best we have had anywhere in Britain or France.’
Concepts are contemporary but avoid falling down too many ‘creative’ rabbit holes – although on our latest visit it was the small things that let the side down (salty and oily potted hot-smoked trout, for example). Our daily fish special, however, was memorable: line-caught wild sea bass from Morecambe Bay, served with vegetables from the garden and a delicate lemony sauce. For afters, the choice might include banana parfait choc ice with hazelnut praline and goat's milk caramel or a ‘croissant’ bread and butter pudding embellished with roasted peach, while the enterprising wine list is noted for its global spread, fair mark-ups and by-the-glass selection.
Nicholas Culpeper was a 17th-century botanist, physician and astrologer – and the Whitechapel pub that bears his name is equally adept at playing many roles. Starting from the top, there's a vegetable garden on the roof, wit… Read more
Nicholas Culpeper was a 17th-century botanist, physician and astrologer – and the Whitechapel pub that bears his name is equally adept at playing many roles. Starting from the top, there's a vegetable garden on the roof, with produce growing in the shadow of City spires and skyscrapers; the second floor offersa few sparsely stylish guest rooms, while the first floor houses the kitchen and an airy dining space. But the heart of the operation is the ground floor, where post-work drinkers and diners gravitate to a horseshoe bar, and where the aesthetics gracefully balance hipsterdom and Victorian heritage with giant windows, scuffed parquet floors and dangling light fittings. The small menu magpie-picks from contemporary European influences: starters might include the likes of lightly battered fritto misto with a generous dollop of preserved lemon aïoli or a warming Jerusalem artichoke orzotto with rosemary pesto and pickled onion. Mains are characterised by hearty and homespun choices – think rustic cassoulet swimming with confit duck leg, Toulouse sausage and pork belly (the star of our inspection meal) or a Mitteleuropean medley of spätzle with squash, chanterelles and chestnuts, speckled with crispy cavolo nero. Dense chocolate and hazelnut brownie is a fitting way to conclude; otherwise, the blackboard trumpets suppliers behind the exclusively francophone cheeseboard. Drinks cover all bases, from real ales and cocktails to Old World wines (including skin-contact varieties).
Sam and Georgie Pearman continue to build on their reputation for creating cool, country house-style inns. At the former Plough, a substantial, stone-built 17th-century pub in a bucolic west Oxfordshire village, they have got it r… Read more
Sam and Georgie Pearman continue to build on their reputation for creating cool, country house-style inns. At the former Plough, a substantial, stone-built 17th-century pub in a bucolic west Oxfordshire village, they have got it right from the start, providing all the warmth, atmosphere and chic rusticity you could wish for – with positive, approachable service and a keen eye for seasonality added to the mix. The Duke is a strong draw even on the bleakest of midweek nights. Local families come for a pub meal in the large, woody bar area (well-stocked with local ales), couples head for a table in the dimly lit, intimate dining rooms (perhaps by a smouldering fire), and friends chew the cud under venerable beams and portraits in oils – or sit on stools at the chefs’ counter by the open kitchen. Unless, of course, it’s a warm summer’s day, when the garden terrace is a magnet. The same menu is served in the bar and restaurant. A recent spring meal began with snacks in the bar (goat’s cheese, wild garlic and honey flatbread; wood-fired aubergine and miso dip) before moving to the dining room for Evesham asparagus with sheep’s yoghurt and pistachio followed by wood-fired cod with smoked velouté, baby gem, peas and broad beans. Elsewhere, readers have praised a well-flavoured little portion of tender beef tartare under a mound of Parmesan, as well as a mouth-wateringly succulent log of (boneless) bacon ribs, neatly matched with a tangle of crunchy, shaved fennel slaw. Steaks are a forte and appear in various guises, including hefty 1kg porterhouses for £95. Our visit ended on a high note with a forced Yorkshire rhubarb pavlova with blood-orange curd (an expert balance of sweet and zesty). The drinks list offers plenty of joy – from a varied, mostly Old World wine selection (including English labels and ample by-the-glass options) to house cocktails, bottled English ciders and even a couple of meads.
Part of Charles and Edmund Inkin’s 'Eat, Drink, Sleep' trilogy – which also includes the Gurnard’s Head and the Old Coastguard in Cornwall – this ever-popular pub with rooms is, in many ways, an archet… Read more
Part of Charles and Edmund Inkin’s 'Eat, Drink, Sleep' trilogy – which also includes the Gurnard’s Head and the Old Coastguard in Cornwall – this ever-popular pub with rooms is, in many ways, an archetypal dream of a country inn. It transports you to a half-imagined heyday of fireside sofas, knobbly brickwork, low beams and quarry tiled floors, with craft ales at the bar and fresh, home-cooked food buoyed up by produce from the kitchen garden.
For all its heritage vibes, the Griffin is also a slick, modern operation, with polished service and a properly cheffy kitchen (headed by Gwenann Davies). Her repertoire includes traditional ideas such as broccoli and Stilton soup or lamb rump with faggot, peas and red wine gravy alongside more contemporary dishes – perhaps a sticky glazed BBQ short rib with sweet, spiky kimchi, luscious sriracha mayo and fresh herbs, ahead of pearly, crisp-skinned hake with a crunchy, breadcrumbed crab and chorizo cake, set on an intense, velvety, red pepper purée.
Each dish is carefully considered, right through to dessert. A voluptuous white chocolate mousse with berry ice cream, fresh raspberries and crunchy, bittersweet honeycomb provided a satisfying end to our most recent visit. Sunday lunch is an ultra-traditional feast featuring meat from the lowland hills, greenery from the garden and plenty of homely touches. In addition to real ales, drinkers can pick from a fair-sized wine list that has been annotated with personality as well as knowledge; the numerous options by the glass are well worth considering.
One of the smallest towns in England, well-heeled Stockbridge is charming – and the ancient Greyhound is the perfect inn to match the surroundings. From the mind-your-head beams, wood burners in inglenooks, bare wood fl… Read more
One of the smallest towns in England, well-heeled Stockbridge is charming – and the ancient Greyhound is the perfect inn to match the surroundings. From the mind-your-head beams, wood burners in inglenooks, bare wood floors and tables to the evening candles, soft lamplight and a please-all menu, there’s plenty to entice. Its location – the front overlooking the broad High Street, a garden at the back by the Test (Hampshire’s finest chalk stream, complete with half a mile of fishing rights) – is a prime draw whatever the season, visitors coming for food that comforts rather than challenges. In the kitchen, Phill Bishop looks to the locality for ingredients but also mixes up influences in a true modern British way: New Forest asparagus tart with cashew-nut houmous and avocado rubs shoulders with cured Test trout and scallop ceviche served with rhubarb, elderflower and pickled ginger, or there could be new-season lamb cutlets with crispy cannelloni, artichoke, wild garlic and glazed carrots. To finish, poached pineapple with coconut biscuit, lime purée, mint, rum and coconut sorbet makes a big closing statement. Welcoming, efficient staff are dedicated to doing things well. In addition to the carte, the prix fixe is particularly good value, as is the serviceable list of mainly European and English wines, which starts at £24.95.
Spectacular art-filled venue serving big-boned British dishes
On the fringes of a 1,000-acre deer park just four miles from the Norfolk coast, this idiosyncratic pub/restaurant with rooms is quite a prospect. The grey-stone exterior may seem rather stark but inside all is comforting, thanks … Read more
On the fringes of a 1,000-acre deer park just four miles from the Norfolk coast, this idiosyncratic pub/restaurant with rooms is quite a prospect. The grey-stone exterior may seem rather stark but inside all is comforting, thanks to soft, warm furnishings, lots of varnished woodwork, leather, blazing fires and the owners' collection of contemporary British art from the likes of Tracey Emin, Damien Hirst and Lucien Freud.
A recently acquired walled garden and chicken coop bolster the kitchen's larder, while big-boned British dishes are the order of the day. Much attention focuses on the mighty Elk Room fire, where cuts of meat are dramatically cooked to order as you watch from your table – expect anything from Blythburgh pork chops, ribs of beef and herby Gunton venison sausages to flavoursome sirloin steak served with goose-fat roasties, sauces and rowan jelly. Rich, carefully seasoned pies are also something of a trademark (perhaps chicken, bacon and leek) and there’s fish from the coast too (sea trout with seashore vegetables and King’s Lynn shrimps, for example). For afters, a delicate Amedei chocolate mousse was the standout for one visitor, but there’s also comfort to be had from the vanilla cheesecake with rhubarb or the Bramley apple and almond tart.
Sunday brings roast Aberdeen Angus sirloin as well as roasted chickens, which are carved by skilled staff and served with veg from the walled garden, garlicky bread sauce and a spectacular gravy that elevates the whole feast to another level. Everyone praises the cheerful, prompt and ‘incredibly friendly’ service too. Norfolk ales are on tap in the bar and the short wine list offers a decent spread at fair prices.
Impressively refurbished village inn with high culinary aspirations
In 2021, new owners gave the Millbrook Inn a much-needed makeover, but thankfully the refit has been done with restrained taste and the place still retains its identity as a local pub in a pretty south Devon village. There's … Read more
In 2021, new owners gave the Millbrook Inn a much-needed makeover, but thankfully the refit has been done with restrained taste and the place still retains its identity as a local pub in a pretty south Devon village. There's a spruced up outdoor terrace with parasols, a pair of new holiday cottages across the road for tranquil getaways, and an extra dining space on the upper floor, where spindly old rafters and a paper globe lantern set the tone.
Better still, the menu is now buttressed with organically produced rare-breed meats from the family farmstead (Fowlescombe) and the cooking is now in the experienced hands of Tom Westerland (ex-Gilpin Hotel in Cumbria), who is nudging the Millbrook in the direction of destination dining. Look at the precision and quality in a starter of pickled and salted farm cucumber with miniature cucamelon, sheep's curd and mint, or the savoury indulgence of beef carpaccio adorned with truffled horseradish cream and crispy capers.
Dressed Salcombe crab is every bit as fresh and toothsome as is proper, although it could do with a little more of the gribiche and farm herbs that partner it, while the Manx Loaghton hogget (cut into thick chops) is sensational, its fatty fringe blistered, the interior rosy-pink, sauced with its own jus at the table and accompanied by surprisingly delicate charred spring onion and courgettes. The day's fish is done in the charcoal oven and presented with smoked potatoes and samphire in caper-strewn brown butter.
Afters might offer bitter chocolate tart with raspberry sorbet or buttermilk panna cotta with strawberries and elderflower, but the sticky toffee crowd isn't ignored. Fans also say that Tom Westerland's Sunday lunch is ‘absolute perfection’, with superb meat, copious quantities of veg and other traditional accompaniments. In the drinking stakes, South Devon beers and ciders are given a spotlight of their own, while the adventurous wine list reaches for the stars, with glasses starting at £6.80 for a light Lisboa red.
For many visitors, enthusiasm for this lovely 17th-century country house remains undimmed. As a member of the Pig Hotels group, the entire package appeals, including the chance of alfresco eating on fine days. Inside, the honeycom… Read more
For many visitors, enthusiasm for this lovely 17th-century country house remains undimmed. As a member of the Pig Hotels group, the entire package appeals, including the chance of alfresco eating on fine days. Inside, the honeycomb of rooms and passageways feels convincingly special, informal but stylish with plenty of panelling, open fires and comfortable seats. Meals are taken in a conservatory-style dining room done up in the Pig’s trademark 'chic garden shed' style with bare tables, shelves of bottled produce and plants galore. The output of the open-to-view kitchen is testament to its championing of local and regional produce aided by a burgeoning kitchen garden and an emphasis on provenance. While much is made of local sourcing on the ’25-mile menu’, inspiration for dishes comes from wider-spread European roots, exemplified by snacks such as moreish pork belly croquettes, excellent venison and pork meatballs, and flavoursome beetroot houmous. Roasted courgettes with toasted hazelnuts and pesto, followed by basil and cavolo nero pappardelle, plump sardines from Folkestone market (with garlic butter and roasted shallot) and thrice-cooked chips proved to be good shouts at a late-August lunch. There’s a Kentish cheeseboard if a boozy G&T jelly topped with tangy lemon sorbet doesn’t appeal. Cocktails abound (of course), and the modern wine list includes Kentish names, with a sommelier on hand to give sound advice.
‘From the moment you walk in until the moment you leave, you feel relaxed and happy, the decor is fantastic, and the service is perfect: attentive but not over-bearing.’ Welcome to the Rose – a great dining pub p… Read more
‘From the moment you walk in until the moment you leave, you feel relaxed and happy, the decor is fantastic, and the service is perfect: attentive but not over-bearing.’ Welcome to the Rose – a great dining pub pursuing smart technique and quality ingredients in an atmosphere of scuffed wood floors, vintage furniture, modern art and fashionable colours. Rivitalised by Christopher Hicks and Alex Bagner, it’s relaxed enough to cater for those who just want a drink in the bar or fancy taking advantage of the alfresco tables in the courtyard. This impressively skilful balancing act also comes with the bonus of splendid bedrooms and terrific breakfasts too. Nuno Mendes (Lisboeta et al) is a friend of the owners and helped to kick-start the menu, although chefs David Gadd and Luke Green have put their own stamp on proceedings, belting out a regularly changing line-up of sharply executed snacks and bigger plates all defined by a flavour-first approach to seasonal produce. There’s sheer enjoyment to be had from simple assemblies such as flatbread with fresh cheese and pickled wild garlic or razor clams with courgette and beach herbs. For something more substantial, consider roast rack of lamb with radishes and sorrel or a take on skate with brown butter also involving cockles and samphire. Round off with an ice-cream sandwich or rhubarb and frangipane tart. Inventive cocktails vie for attention with the concise, good-value wine list.
Classic, contemporary cooking in an appealing coastal setting
'In short, we love the place, and we love the people,' – a note from one happy guest captures the vibe at this appealing restaurant with rooms on Aldeburgh’s High Street, and others echo the sentiment. The ‘… Read more
'In short, we love the place, and we love the people,' – a note from one happy guest captures the vibe at this appealing restaurant with rooms on Aldeburgh’s High Street, and others echo the sentiment. The ‘place’ in question is a handsome former coaching inn, transformed with a touch of class by owner George Pell who fell hook, line and sinker for the building and its surroundings during COVID. The ‘people’ include head chef Tom Payne, whose restrained touch with fine ingredients makes for delicious, uncomplicated eating. And how refreshing to be offered a straightforward carte with a couple of specials, something to share and some classic desserts rather than the prevailing 'taster' format.
Seafood beckons. Oysters from nearby Butley Creek require nothing more than shallot vinaigrette to spark the appetite, while scallops spend just enough time in the pan to get a good sear before bouncing onto a bed of buttered samphire – just add a spritz of lemon and a shard of salty bacon for a generous starter. A whopping brill (catch of the day) becomes a feast to share, seared on the Bertha charcoal oven and portioned tableside, while halibut en croûte is an elegant masterclass of fish and pastry cookery, the puddle of beurre blanc sauce zippy with dill and chives. Meat-eaters could be tempted by ultra-classic pork schnitzel Holstein (topped with an egg and anchovies) or a côte de boeuf to share (from Salter & King, the excellent butcher just over the road). Chips are a hot, salty, crisp must-order.
This kitchen takes no short-cuts with ingredients, and there’s no unnecessary faff on the plate. Nor is it a kitchen that sets out to challenge, because who needs that over lunch? A lemon tart couldn’t have been zestier, or you could try sharing an impressive tiramisu millefeuille. The compact wine list delivers familiar names and several by the glass (around £8), tempting at the top end with the likes of Bordeaux’s Left Bank winner, Château Palmer ‘Alter Ego’ 2009.
* Paul Green (ex-Driftwood Portscatho) has been appointed executive head chef to replace Scott Davies, who is now at the Old Manse of Blair in Perthshire.*
In the far north-west of Skye, on the shores of Loch Dunvegan, stands a w… Read more
* Paul Green (ex-Driftwood Portscatho) has been appointed executive head chef to replace Scott Davies, who is now at the Old Manse of Blair in Perthshire.*
In the far north-west of Skye, on the shores of Loch Dunvegan, stands a whitewashed cottage – one of the most far-flung restaurants in Britain. Remote it may be, but down the years the Three Chimneys has earned an unrivalled reputation for fine cuisine, ever since Shirley Spear arrived in the mid-80s to cook the kind of homely food she liked to eat herself. Its reputation grew under chef Michael Smith (now at Loch Bay) especially when its starry clientele, with no enthusiasm for the long and winding road to Colbost, found they could land their helicopters on the edge of the loch. Chef Scott Davies followed Smith in 2015 and has maintained – and arguably improved – the restaurant's reputation. Using Skye’s superb produce, he creates light, refreshing dishes with flavours that ought not to work, such as his alder-wood smoked salmon with Bramley apple purée or – wait for it – pickled herring ice cream. Suffice it to say that they work superbly. He has abandoned the popular seafood platter but there is no shortage of fish on offer: oysters, scorched langoustines and oyster mousse; a soothing smoked haddock raviolo with mussel and horseradish velouté; halibut (reared on the Isle of Gigha in low-density inshore tanks) – a beautiful fish, served with brown shrimps, tender autumn vegetables and a side dish of smooth whipped potato with an umami hit of ‘bacon jam’ lurking in the base. It's not all fish, however: red deer is generously served with a faggot, sausage, dumpling and elderberry sauce; partridge is roasted with honey and spices; a crisp tart is filled with foraged mushrooms. It's a celebration of wonderful Scottish produce. Davies' cooking is technical and rigorous but never overblown. He keeps his flavours pure so that everything tastes of itself yet retains traces of the satisfying, homely cooking that was Shirley Spear’s hallmark. As for wine, expect an intelligent list of carefully chosen bottles with the emphasis on provenance, quality and terroir. The limited-edition Three Chimneys gin and Isle of Raasay whisky are also worth a punt.
A picture-perfect pub that gets all the details right, the 'Welli' sets out its stall with a well-manicured garden, growing patches and a veritable barricade of giant shrubbery pots. Inside, there’s a charming clutter about … Read more
A picture-perfect pub that gets all the details right, the 'Welli' sets out its stall with a well-manicured garden, growing patches and a veritable barricade of giant shrubbery pots. Inside, there’s a charming clutter about the place, its red-tiled floors and black beams contrasting with details such as ornate butter knives, neat menus boards and stacks of homemade provisions. The kitchen takes ingredients and provenance seriously, and the menu is peppered with tags such as ‘HG’ (home-grown). ‘HR’ (home-reared) and ‘FR’ (free-range). The result is honest cooking, elevated by spot-on technique and an eye for detail. There’s always a soup to start (perhaps celery garnished with fried celery leaves), and the pub’s twice-baked Keen’s Cheddar soufflé is a triumph – wonderfully light and golden-brown, with the addition of creamy courgettes and a cloud of grated Parmesan. ‘Potpies’ are a fixture of the menu (Baughurst House roe deer, HR Jacob lamb), and the steak and kidney version is everything you could wish for with its beef-suet crust, tender braised meat and full-flavoured gravy. Otherwise, expect produce-led dishes ranging from chargrilled Dexter ribeye steaks or chicken Kyiv to baked lemon sole with brown butter, capers and wild garlic. Puddings are exactly that – calorific old-school comforters such as Bakewell tart, jam sponge or spotted dick (an excellent version with loads of golden syrup and the pub’s own vanilla ice cream). Service is relaxed, clued-up and full of smiles, with no faff or hyperbole. The house ale comes courtesy of the Longdog Brewery in Basingstoke, and the well-balanced wine list has some real treats at the top end.
Graham Garrett’s delightfully laid-back restaurant with rooms certainly has formidable staying power – it celebrated its 20th birthday in 2022. The 16th-century weaver’s cottage is fittingly discreet from the out… Read more
Graham Garrett’s delightfully laid-back restaurant with rooms certainly has formidable staying power – it celebrated its 20th birthday in 2022. The 16th-century weaver’s cottage is fittingly discreet from the outside, warm, understated and beautifully timbered within, with affable service and a choice of fixed-price menus: diners can go ‘short’ at lunchtime (four courses) or ‘full' in the evening (five courses, plus cheese as an extra). Either way, the kitchen sets high standards with seasonally aware dishes demonstrating a solid understanding of classic techniques and enlivened by vibrant contemporary flavours.
Garrett’s fish supplies are spot-on for freshness and his timing is true – as in crisp-skinned wild sea bass offset by bittersweet caramelised endive and a ‘really savoury’ chicken sauce or skrei cod fillet with grilled baby gem and brown shrimp butter. As for meat, acorn-fed Ibérico pork ‘presa’ (a shoulder cut) is a favourite with the kitchen, perhaps served with celeriac purée and a slice of pickled quince. Following a palate cleanser, dessert proper might be baked rhubarb cheesecake with rhubarb sorbet and gingerbread crisp, although Garrett’s take on Bakewell tart is a ‘knockout’, with the thinnest, crispest pastry and a fig/almond filling.
The serious-minded wine list packs in a host of dependable producers, with plenty for the traditionalists while lifting the lid on a smattering of off-piste labels. Two dozen choices by the glass or carafe offer a tempting way in.
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