Wardlow Restaurant Guide

The future of this well-known Edwardian manor house seemed in doubt when it went onto the market in mid-2023, but instead longtime guardians Max & Susan Fischer (latterly handing the reins to son Neil) have leased two of their pubs – the Prince of Wales in Baslow, and Bulls Head at Foolow – to Nick & Jemma Beagrie of the Bakewell bakery, and refocused their interest on Fischer’s, so far kept afloat thanks to lucrative new deals with the likes of luxury giants LVMH, who will oversee a new summer champagne bar (part of their wider expansion plans). Given such exciting events, there was the odd blip this year, but the general tenor of reports was still upbeat (“never had a bad meal here”; “best meal of the year”).

“Great-value French cuisine” has drawn guests for more than 25 years to this family-run venture from Eric & Christiana Piedaniel – both career chefs. It makes a “lovely quiet environment for lunch” just 10 minutes’ drive from historic Chatsworth House.

This swish country house hotel, in one of the Peak District’s most picturesque villages, is transforming before visitors’ eyes as part of an ongoing, £1.1 million makeover. As we went to press, the more casual ‘Garden Room’ had already been reborn, with chef Adam Harper (ex-of the acclaimed nearby Fischer’s) overseeing a new menu with impeccable local sourcing such as Chatsworth beef; this, the more formal fine diner, will follow suit, but meanwhile won praise this year – well “on its way to a Michelin star” by some accounts. All reports acclaim the “brilliant food and ambience in all areas” and it’s also tipped for afternoon tea.

A “very enjoyable and original menu of small and large plates is eaten with a great view of the countryside” (particularly from the conservatory, though you can also eat in the bar) at this “always superb” 12th-century inn – Visit England’s pub of the year in 2023, and – even more impressively – the fifth oldest pub in the land. PS – if you want to linger in the Peak District, they now have five luxury bedrooms as well as a stand-alone cottage, ‘The Barn’.

The River Wye is the river in question, and this attractively located period restaurant with rooms (dating from the 1600s) sits nearby, complete with walled garden. It doesn’t inspire huge volumes of feedback, but fans are enthusiastic: “a fabulous meal here to celebrate an 80th birthday – wonderful food was beautifully presented”.

“Correctly described in last year’s guide as ‘What the Peak District needed… and now has” – this “warm, welcoming” and unmistakably ambitious venture (crowdfunded five years back) occupies the cosy setting of a converted stable block. Chef-patron Lee Smith oversees the modern British cooking, based on “really good locally sourced produce (meat is from a real farm shop next door)”, and “tasting menus are not obligatory” since there’s also a “good à la carte” – plus the £23 per person ‘Market Menu’, which will have you in and out in under an hour. Whichever you go for, it’s all “exceptionally good” and “definitely worth the detour” if you’re heading up north.