The Kings Arms (Scalford)

This rustic and rural restaurant in the Vale of Belvoir is located on the farmstead where Chef-Owner Richard grew up, divided across two buildings constructed using reclaimed materials from the farm. The menu takes a surprise tasting format, with an extended series of generous, heartily flavoured courses that often involve cooking over wood. Richard’s cuisine is informed by his surroundings, with game and kitchen-garden vegetables playing a particularly big role. The wine list has a similar ethos, with natural, organic and bio-dynamic options.

After a change of ownership, this fine rural inn has got a spring back in its step, while preserving some of the best elements from its historic past. The carved Jacobean fireplace in the bar, for example, is still in situ – along with a more formal dining room and suntrap terrace. The cooking draws on hearty pub fare like ham hock and piccalilli; as an alternative to dessert, why not order the local stilton? There are only six dairies in the world licensed to make this cheese, and one of them is right here in Colston Basset – so it would be rude not to!

The old water pump out the back hints at its days as the village forge but this is now a brightly decorated, intimate restaurant run with natural warmth by its experienced owners. The seasonally minded tasting menu is composed of ambitious, creative dishes overflowing with different flavours and textures; if you're lucky, it might include the excellent beef Wellington, which is presented and sliced at the table for a welcome bit of theatre. Boutique bedrooms are available if you're exploring the area.