The Yorke Arms

'Unconditionally recommended' by a gourmet reader this year, this creeper-covered rural inn has a timeless setting on the green of a hamlet in a beautiful Yorkshire dale. Bill Atkins is the 'amiable' host in the busy flagstoned bar; the dales are the larder for the Michelin-starred cooking of his wife, Frances. Herbs and vegetables come from a cultivated field behind the inn for her innovative dishes, eg, rabbit, leek and carrot terrine; saddle of venison, wild mushroom, tournegas, braised celery. Service is 'excellent'. The bar has old beams, log fires, wooden tables and settles; lunches here (or outside in good weather) include toasted sandwiches, salads, fish and chips, mutton with spiced lentils. The 'well-furnished' bedrooms have high-tech fittings (LCD TV and DVD-player) and an 'ultra-modern' bathroom, but some rooms are small. Breakfast, between 8 and 9 am, has fresh juices, home-made marmalade; strong-cured bacon. Good walking from the door; the Gouthwaite Reservoir bird sanctuary is nearby. (David Hampshire, and others)