Derbyshire Restaurant Guide

Susan & Max Fischer’s well-known venture occupies a Edwardian property built in the style of a 17th-century manor and has a sizeable fan club for Rupert Rowley’s very “consistent quality” of cuisine, “unobtrusive and slick service” and “very relaxing” style.

This stalwart (est. 1994) husband-and-wife operation is an “excellent spot for a splendid relaxing lunch”, where the traditional French cuisine is of an accomplished standard and “great value” to boot.

“Interesting and enjoyable food” of “a consistently high standard”, combined with a “lovely riverside setting” have kept this venue as “leader of the Derby pack” for very many years. Set in a 19th-century former textile mill, part of the Darley Abbey Mills World Heritage site, the restaurant has a refurbished terrace overlooking the River Derwent.

“For a downbeat setting” – uninspiring façade leading to a “cramped”, basic interior – “the food and service are brilliant” at this much-loved joint, akin to a “small street restaurant in Tokyo”. So how exactly has it come to land in Derby? – that’ll be “the Toyota factory down the road”.

A new landlord at this Peak District pub “got all the locals worried but the good news so far is that nothing’s changed for the worse – it’s still a flower-filled elegant pub, just rooted enough that you could still come here for a pint, but with some seriously good cooking in the middle of a beautiful village…everything anyone could want!”