As the Competition Commission gradually allows swathes of Britain’s varied
cultural landscape to disappear under a tidal wave of uniformity, it is
heartening to know that there are still thousands of people mad enough to
plough their own lonely furrows.
Pub landlords tick most of the mad boxes: they take risks, work all hours,
suffer complaints, endure the public at its most vociferous and ill-behaved.
But, bless them, they are sometimes all that stands between us and
Tescopoly. Their pubs are often beacons of individuality, taste, colour,
vitality, honesty and sheer enterprise. So when we find the best of those we
now try to reward them. Here are the best of this year’s bunch – a more
stimulating and worthwhile gathering of names would be hard to find.
Local, Seasonal & Organic Produce Award Winners
The Sun Inn
High Street, Dedham, Colchester, Essex, tel. 01206 323351
The rambling layout, timbered Tudor ceilings, panelled walls, planked floors,
log fires in grand grates and board games on old tables take you back
centuries. Piers Baker’s food, on the other hand, is entirely modern, with
produce and seasonality paramount. The Mediterranean is a strong influence,
particularly Italy, so among the treats are penne with slow-cooked beef ragu
and parmesan, and grilled rib-eye steak with artichokes, borlotti beans,
kale, squash and fresh horseradish. Fish (almost) always comes from British
waters, beef and pork is reared naturally, there’s locally shot game and
organic ginger beer from Belvoir. Come for fair prices, real ale (including
stout-like Oyster from Kent) and children’s portions of whatever takes their
fancy. Busy in the tourist season, the Sun is a quiet, warm refuge on a
winter’s day. Gorgeous, luxurious bedrooms have panelled walls or madly
sloping ceilings, antique wardrobes or stylish mirrors. Next door, Pier’s
wife runs Victoria’s Plums, a tiny shop selling locally grown fruit and veg.
Main courses £8.50-£16.50; bar meals £4.50-£8.50.
The Parrot
Forest Green, Dorking, Surrey, tel. 01306 621339
Charles and Linda Gotto finally gave up their mini-empire of London pubs in
2006, after 25 hugely successful years, to concentrate on running a
livestock farm in the Surrey hills. But, not content with just being
farmers, they bought this rambling, 17th-century, tile-hung pub that
overlooks the village green and cricket pitch in nearby Forest Green. The
Gottos are passionate about food, its provenance and quality, and the Parrot
pub showcases meats reared on their farm - Shorthorn cattle, Middlewhite
pigs, mutton - both on the short, imaginative menu and in the unique farm
shop inside. Surely one of few pubs where you can tuck into game pie, lamb
rump with minted pea purée or roast belly pork with mash and braised
cabbage, and then buy the produce to take home (farm meats and free-range
eggs, locally produced sausages, pies, pickles, cheeses). Elsewhere, beams,
flagstones and bits and bobs, old settles and blazing fires, Young’s on tap
and 16 wines by the glass. Brilliant value.
Main courses £9.25-£13.50; Sunday roast £11.
The Wellington
Wellington, Hereford, Herefordshire, tel. 01432 830367
The austere frontage hides a welcoming bar and some memorable food. At
comfortable banquettes around the fire, Butty Bach, Landlords and Hobsons
ales can be quaffed; beyond the bar is a dining room of exposed brickwork,
old beams and lots of hops - very Herefordshire. Settings are simple: some
tables clothed, others bare, and smart dining chairs with comfortable rush
seating. A list of suppliers is on show, the chef is a stickler for
seasonality and visiting celebrities like Franco Taruschio (ex Walnut Tree,
now Barnsley House) have left their mark. So pitch up for vincisgrassi
Maceratese (Parma ham and porcini lasagne finished with truffle oil: a
sumptuous starter), Hereford sirloin with hand-cut chips and red onion
marmalade, and wild mushroom risotto with parmesan shavings and white
truffle oil... there’s a notable Italian accent. Puddings might include
damson, honey and whisky fool, the cheeses are local and the Sunday roasts
magnificent. Be sure to book: Wellington is a big, hungry village.
Main courses £9.50-£16.75; bar meals £4.95-£7.95; Sunday lunch £12.50 &
£17.50.
Authentic Pub Award Winners
Harrow Inn
Steep, Petersfield, Hampshire, tel. 01730 262685
The 16th-century Harrow is a gem. Unspoilt, brick-and-tiled, it hides down a
country lane that dwindles into a footpath by a little stream - not easy to
find! Formerly a drovers’ stop, it has been in Claire and Nisa McCutcheon’s
family since 1929 and they keep it very much as it must always have been.
Where nicer to spend an hour than within these two small rooms with their
timbered walls, brick inglenook fireplace aglow in winter, scrubbed elm
tables and benches along the wall? No bar, just a hatch-like serving counter
behind which barrels of local ale rest on racks, bundles of drying hops
hanging above. There’s a small, wild orchard garden, and some weather-worn
rustic benches and tables to the front - only the distant hum of the hidden
A3 disturbs the bucolic calm. Food is limited to generously-filled
sandwiches, a split-pea and ham soup full of fresh vegetables served with
great chunks of bread, a ploughman’s platter or salad of home-cooked ham,
homemade treacle tart - served with a smile. Loos are a quick dash across
the lane.
Bar meals £4.30-£11.
The Bridge Inn
Topsham, Exeter, Devon, tel. 01392 873862
Cut across the bridge too fast and you miss one of England’s last traditional
ale houses. Unchanged for most of the century - and in the family for as
long - the 16th-century Bridge is a must for ale connoisseurs. And for all
who appreciate a genuine pub furnished in the old-style: just high-back
settles, ancient floors and simple hatch. (The Queen chose the Bridge for
her first official ‘visit to a pub’.) Years ago it was a brewery and
malthouse; Caroline’s great-grandfather was the last publican to brew his
own here. No lager and no louts! This is beer-drinker heaven, with up to ten
real ales served by gravity from the cask in a timeless setting by the Exe.
There’s cider and gooseberry wine, too. Cradle your pint to the background
din of local chatter in the Inner Sanctum, under a grandfather clock by a
blazing log fire, or out in the garden by the steep river bank. With bread
baked at the local farm, home-cooked hams, homemade chutneys and Devon
cheeses, the sandwiches and ploughman’s are top-hole.
Bar meals £2.50-£5.50.
Black Bull Inn
Bridge End, Frosterley, Durham, tel. 01388 527784
Here is an enticing village pub run just as its owners like it. It is
atmospherically lit - Duncan Davis was a photographer before the Black Bull
came his way – and you’ll love the solid tables and high-back settles
(cushioned for comfort), the stone flags, the ticking clocks, the glowing
ranges, the warmth and good cheer. No lagers, but coffee and scones from
10.30am (truly!), followed by cider from the cask and beers from a few
villages away. How about a dark malty porter from Wylam Brewery or a bitter
from Allendale? The hop is treated with reverence here, and the inexpensive
food is a joy. Rather than devising a menu then searching for suppliers,
Diane and Duncan, ever perfectionists, source the produce first: local as
much as possible, and in tune with the seasons. A shin of Broomhill Farm
beef braised in ale on root vegetables with dumplings and roast potatoes is
the sort of thing they do brilliantly. Once a month local musicians play
classical, folk or jazz…hey, this place even has its own peel of bells.
Main courses up to £10.50. Sunday roast £7.50.
Pub with Rooms Award Winners
The Punch Bowl Inn
Crosthwaite, Kendal, Cumbria, tel. 015395 68237
A reassuring old inn in a gentle setting, overlooking the valley. The
Punchbowl has gone from strength to strength since being restyled by the
owners of the famous Drunken Duck, but the old rafters are intact and the
dining room keeps its intimate corners. The long bar is stylishly
slate-topped, a fitting accompaniment to flagged floors, polished dressers
and immaculately chalked boards; relax over a pint of Barngates beer and a
posh ploughman’s. Outside is a sheltered area overlooking the church; in the
restaurant are gleaming dark oak boards, swish leather chairs, white cloths
and a fine 18th-century stone fireplace. The man in the kitchen is Matt
Waddington, whose popular dishes employ the best local ingredients: try
mussel, salmon, shrimp and monkfish broth, Tag Lag ale stew with thyme
dumplings, and café crème parfait to finish. Withdraw gracefully to fabulous
rooms with bold fabrics, king-size beds, flat-screen TVs and bathrooms with
heated floors; the amazing suite has double baths and views down the valley.
Main courses £12-£24.
Doubles from £110.
The Olive Branch
Main Street, Clipsham, Rutland, tel. 01780 410355
There are so many blackboards here you might think that Sean Hope and Ben
Jones were school teachers unable to let go. But it’s the simplest way to
list the speciality wines, the bar snacks and the daily lunch menu. This is
not your usual chi-chi ex-boozer; a relaxed pub personality is pinned here
to a Michelin star. The casual mood is created by closely arranged tables
and a medley of books, furniture and roaring log fire, the adjoining barn is
a small party-and-breakfast room, and there’s a sheltered patio that
squeezes in Saturday barbecues. The menu roams through pork and stilton pie
with piccalilli to roast turbot, confit duck leg, chocolate brownies and
local cheeses; British cooking and local produce hold sway. Fish ‘n’ chips
and roast rib of beef are given a delectable modern edge, real ales are
taken seriously and the wines are a joy. You can take away from the ‘pub
shop’ list, or stay the night in Beech House across the lane. Stylish,
individual rooms ooze comfort - goose down duvets, flat-screen TVs, Roberts
radios, lavish bathrooms, real coffee. Superb.
Main courses £10.50-£22.50; set lunch £19.50; Sunday roast £14.50.
Doubles from £90
The Inn at
Grinshill
High Street, Grinshill, Shrewsbury, Shropshire, tel. 01939 220410
A ridge of pine soars high above the village, so bring the boots and take to
Shropshire’s hills. Down at the inn, nothing but good things; this is a
wonderfully welcoming bolthole, a top-to-toe renovation that now shines.
Wander at will and you will find an 18th-century panelled family room with
rugs and games, a 19th-century bar with quarry-tiled floors and a crackling
fire, and a 21st-century dining room, serene in cream and flooded with light
courtesy of glazed coach-house arches. Bedrooms are just as good;
understatedly elegant, they come with piles of pillows, crisp white linen,
wispy mohair blankets or shiny quilted eiderdowns, and technology hidden
behind mirrors. Back downstairs, ambrosial delights pour from the kitchen -
the breast of duck served with an orange and lemon marmalade was faultless.
A grand piano gets played on Friday nights and life spills out into the
garden in summer. Church bells peel, roses ramble, there’s cricket in the
village at the weekend and the Shropshire Way passes by outside.
Main courses £10-£16; sandwiches £5; Sunday roast £9.95.
3 doubles, 2 twins, 1 single.
Doubles from £100.
Community Pub Award Winners
Duke of York
Iddesleigh, Winkleigh, Devon, tel. 01837 810253
Built to house the 14th-century stonemasons working on the church next door,
the thatched Duke of York is the most genuine of locals: a big-hearted,
generous place. It serves comforting food, real ale, Sams Cider from
Winkleigh and a great welcome from farmer-pub landlord Jamie Stuart and his
wife. Pass a parked tractor on your way in; enter to mingle with farmers,
shooters and the odd slaughterman parleying in the single bar over pints of
Cotleigh Tawny tapped from the cask. Scrubbed oak tables have fresh flowers
and candles, there are village photographs on the walls, bank notes on the
beams, rocking chairs by the blazing log fire - it’s rustic and enchanting.
With fish fresh from Clovelly and Brixham and locally sourced beef, lamb and
pork, you tuck into the heartiest home cooking: tureens of homemade soup,
steak and kidney pudding, lamb chops with rosemary and garlic gravy, whole
baked sea bass with lemon butter, scrummy puddings. And the all-day
breakfasts are not for the faint-hearted.
Set menu, 3 courses, £22; bar meals £4.50-£13.
Old Poets’ Corner
Butts Road, Ashover, Chesterfield, Derbyshire, tel. 01246 590888
Old Poets’ Corner has something for every one, and it has been achieved with
effortless style. Inside this mock-Tudor village-centre inn, ideally placed
for forays into the Peaks and Dales, is a whirlwind of activity that pulls
together live music, eight real ales, one perry, an ever-changing range of
five ciders, good stout food and an Edwardian Arts and Crafts interior. And,
living up to its name, there’s a regular poets’ night for local rhymesters.
From good hefty farmhouse settles and pine tables, music-loving regulars sup
Old Poets ale brewed locally by Leatherbritches and Tower (4.1% alcohol by
volume) and ciders such as Broadoak Moonshine (8.4% abv)... And with that in
mind the menu is more than substantial, trumpeting chillis, pastas, meat and
potato pies, casseroles and a carvery on Sundays. Few pubs can give so much
and succeed, but here they do, so sit back, relax, and, as if by accident,
be entertained by the energy and good vibes surrounding you.
Main courses £4.25-£14; bar meals £.3.25-£9.50; Sunday roast £6.95.
White Hart
Helmingham Road, Otley, Ipswich, Suffolk, tel. 01473 890312
Deep in Suffolk, the quintessence of community spirit. Lynda saved the pub
five days before it was to be sold off as a house; a year on, it is the hub
of the village. She, Sarah and chef Sam have made the White Hart their own:
free-spirited, utterly individual, a place to expect the unexpected - and
that includes the food. Scout leaders pop in for the warmth and the beer,
Knitting and Crochet meet every other Monday, the piano may be commandeered
for a singsong at any time. At weekends children sprawl on the sofa or play
battleships under the tables and anything goes; a dining room is tucked
around the end of the very long bar but you can eat wherever you like. So
kick off your shoes, pull up a chair and order a meal – it’s brilliant
value. There’s pâté de campagne à la Elizabeth David,
Sri Lankan fishcakes and red Thai fish curry, half a pint of prawns and
sirloin steak with chips. They are even founder members of the Slow Food
movement so the food bursts with flavour and the sourcing is impeccable.
Main courses £7.45-£12; Sunday roasts £3.95 (child-size), £6.95 &
£8.95.
To buy a copy of Alaistair Sawday's Special Places: Pubs & Inns of
England & Wales at the reduced price of £13.49 go to Books
First
