Stoke Bliss Restaurant Guide

“Brilliant flavours in a sublime setting” have helped win renown for this “lovely” converted barn on owner Peta Darnley’s 1,200 acre family estate, where head chef Chris Simpson helped it carry off Visit England’s ‘Taste of England’ award as best restaurant in 2023. On the downside, its ratings took a slight knock this year, with a few diners being “a bit underwhelmed given the hype”: they query, “has it all gone to their heads?” and discern “a slight preciousness” in the overall approach. Most accounts, though, continue to applaud its “exceptional” overall standards.

2022 Review: Rescued by local regulars from the threat of demolition six years ago, this 200-year-old former drovers’ pub (‘bait’ as in ‘bite’ or ‘snack’) is now an upmarket pub-with-rooms on the Herefordshire-Worcestershire border, serving food of a “consistently high standard”. “The lamb dishes are particularly delicious” (Kate Lane, one of the co-owners, farms sheep). Building on their success here, Kate and her lawyer husband Andrew Cornthwaite now have a growing collection of reinvigorated village pubs.

Ivan Tisdall-Downes and business partner Imogen Davis moved on from their high-performing Mayfair venue in May 2024 to open this 32-cover venue at the Netherwood Estate on the Worcestershire/Herefordshire border, replacing award-winning Pensons (RIP, which closed at Christmas 2023 after five years). It’s a new showcase for their zero-waste and foraging ethos that has earned accolades for creative cuisine at venues in both London and Essex: ingredients from the estate will help form many of the dishes. There will be three menus – four courses at £65 per person, seven courses for £105 person, and a Sunday lunch three-course offering at £45 per person.