We had a lovely stay in this hotel. We had a pleasant room for two nights. The food was really good, especially in the restaurant where we ate on the first night of our stay. On our second day we ate in the bar and still found the food well above average.

The area is lovely and there are good sights to see (though you need a car).

On the strength of Paddy Burt's review in the Daily Telegraph and its inclusion in Diana henry's Gastropub Cookbook, we thought we would would travel the 50 miles to the Chequers inn for an evening meal for 4. I made sure we telephoned in two days in advance to establish what would be a good time to arrive to ensure we got a table and to establish that the pub restaurant was open on Saturday. We were told ,"Of course it would be." Quarter to seven is not a bad time to arrive, even on a Saturday. The signs were not good when we could not find a space in the car park, so we parked on the road...not too much of a problem. Upon entering the pub we found that the pub restaurent was closed for a wedding ( obviously a late booking) and there was just the small bar area for eating, which was not laid up for food and allowed smoking.We had come a long way and so we waited around outside until a table under a tree became vacant ( as it turned out, with the incects at table for four to forty) Bar service was very slow with once barmaid working slavishly to serve everyone. Not unnaturally it appeared the wedding guests got priority in ordering. Eventually we ordered the food from the balckboards displayed in the bar, the range did not match Diana Henry's descriptions but it offered a range. The sea bass was well presented and tasty, the deep fried haddock was moist and with a crisp beer batter. The char-grilled chicken caesar salad, was an appealing dish and visually pleasing but rather bland according to my colleague and not a patch on a similar dish on Frances Atkins menu at the Yorke Arms in Ramsgill.
Deserts were excellent.In particular the lemon tart and the raspberry creme brulee.

The food,overall was good, as Paddy Burt and Diana Henry had found. The wedding meant we had to eat outside, sharing the table with the insects. This spolied the evening as we had travelled a long way and had gone to the trouble of checking in advance that the pub seating was open.