Finchden Barn

One-time '80s rock drummer Graham Garrett has now been in the kitchen longer than he was on stage. His family run restaurant is in a great spot, located in a picturesque village and housed inside a 16th-century cottage with heavily timbered interiors. Graham's dishes are stripped down to show off his quality ingredients and years of technical experience; if you're lucky, you'll get the finely crafted parmesan churros as a snack. The wines are local, the service is as unfussy as the food and the bedrooms have stylish themes.

Nestled deep in the countryside is this 70-acre farm and wine estate with a shop, a café, a tasting room and stylish bedrooms in its former hop barn. The restaurant, occupying converted farm buildings, has a rustic, airy quality with large windows overlooking the vines – as it gets busier, a terrific buzz fills the room. The ingredient-driven cooking focuses on pure, fresh flavours, available from a fixed-price, three-course lunch menu or an à la carte of sharing plates at dinner. The wine list includes their own low-intervention selection.

The charming town of Rye is a destination in itself, and wandering through its steep cobbled streets, you will be happy to stumble upon this converted historic pub to recharge your batteries. Its refurbishment has left it more as a restaurant – one with a rustic, slightly bohemian style – but you can still smell the centuries of welcoming wood fires that have blazed in its antique fireplaces. The cooking casts an appealingly wide net, taking in influences from Cantonese (char siu monkfish skewers) to classical French (chocolate delice with boozy prunes).

Built in 1616 for the Boys family, this charming old house has been sympathetically converted into a hotel with eye-catching features at every turn, plus lovely gardens and land. The restaurant sits in an extension to the main house and serves high-quality Kentish produce, in flavourful dishes such as hake with roasted cauliflower, caviar and butter sauce. Great wines, also from Kent, are available to pair with your food and, should you wish to grab a drink before dining, the grounds also house a pub with a terrace.

Located inside boutique hotel The Gallivant, Harry’s bears all the same hallmarks of discrete seaside elegance. Think comfortable rattan armchairs, tables covered with fine linen and exotic plants giving a greenhouse vibe; guided by a charming team, you will instantly feel at ease here. The cooking is classically French through and through, from traditional terrine to rabbit with mustard sauce via beef Bourguignon – all underpinned by strong produce and textbook technique from an experienced chef.