Clear Sky Lodge Park

Named after the ancient tree that stands in front of it, this restaurant sits inside the Farlam Hall Hotel. A historic Cumbrian country house, its refurbishment transformed it into an elegant retreat that deftly mixes the antique with the contemporary. The restaurant offers Indian-influenced cooking in the form of a generous tasting menu showcasing British produce – including plenty of ingredients from the kitchen garden – enhanced by subtle spicing. The service team are on the ball and ensure you are well looked after.

The open kitchen takes centre stage at Cal and Siân Byerley's rustic restaurant, where they're all about showcasing Northumbrian ingredients. Cal knows the local area intimately, plucking fresh ingredients from the kitchen garden and leading his team on foraging missions. He and the chefs use this produce with skill and originality, in dishes such as the brilliant fondant cake made using the rare dryad saddle mushroom. The wine flight – including several English wines – is worth going for, and they also make their own juices, tonics and teas.

The Dog and Gun is a proper village pub which does what pubs do best, by providing warmth, honesty and food that puts a smile on your face. Chef-Owner Ben Queen-Fryer cooks with his heart and plenty of natural talent, keeping dishes satisfying and recognisable. Local ingredients, including seafood from Maryport, are showcased in pure, understated compositions with plenty of depth, where flavour comes above all else. You’ll find suet puddings, soufflés and some of the best triple-cooked chips around – not forgetting a great local pint.

Vast and characterful, this rustic restaurant is housed in a former merchant’s house on the historic quayside. Flagged floors, cast iron pillars and exposed brickwork feature downstairs, with equal amounts of character upstairs courtesy of sloping floors, wonky ceilings and carved beams. Detailed, original dishes – such as chicken strozzapreti with spinach, peas and parmesan – are based around fine produce and offer punchy flavours, while also maintaining a lightness of touch. The Sunday Feast menu offers a refined, well-priced take on the traditional Sunday roast.

This intimate, personably run restaurant is just around the corner from the eponymous chef-owner’s flagship, House of Tides, and serves a multi-course tasting menu of well-balanced, highly intricate and complex dishes. The kitchen’s skill allows top-drawer ingredients to shine, whether that be scallops or pigeon, and the meal ends on a high with the varied, exquisitely constructed desserts. The chefs present the plates to guests themselves and provide detailed descriptions of their make-up. Go for the wine pairing for the ultimate dining experience.

Relax by the fire in the cosy sitting room of this 14C pele tower, while enjoying canapés and perusing the hugely impressive wine selection from the estate cellars; then head through to the modish, country kitchen style restaurant with its unique tiled floor and garden views. Accomplished dishes are driven by the seasons and the availability of produce from the surrounding Lowther Estate, with the gardener playing a key role in the crafting of the menu. Sauces are a highlight and really elevate each dish.

Just outside the city centre you'll find this smart, understated shop conversion with seasonally changing décor and just six large tables. The cooking takes the form of a surprise menu, with a hand-drawn bookmark picturing some of the ingredients the only hint at what is to come. An interesting and individual streak runs through the cooking, with flavour combinations carefully thought through to enhance one another. The skill of the kitchen is most evident in dishes that extract wonderful flavours from seemingly basic ingredients, like kohlrabi with goat's curd.