Baraset Barn

‘Foodie heaven, with the bonus of nearby culture in Stratford-upon-Avon’, this restaurant added rooms in 2019 and is new to the Guide after an insider was bowled over by its ‘amazing value and fantastic meals’. The first hotel for Warwickshire gastro group Lovely Pubs it ‘hopefully will be followed by more’. The barn makes a ‘spectacular, atmospheric setting’ for the modern British food, with flagstones, high-beamed ceiling and modern fittings; there is also an outside deck. ‘My scallops with sticky pomegranate and sesame pork belly zinged with flavour.’ Barbecue ribs come with ‘unusual but delicious’ watermelon, chilli, ginger and coriander; ice-cream sundaes are ‘piled high with goodies’. There are gluten-free and vegetarian menus. The ‘pleasant, spacious rooms with neutral palette and splashes of colour’ are in a modern ‘barn’ across a stylish courtyard. All have floor-to-ceiling windows looking on to a meadow; those at the top have a balcony, those at the bottom a terrace. Bathrooms have an ‘impressively powerful’ shower. ‘We cycled on the hotel bikes to Shakespeare’s birthplace – too close to work off the calories.’ (JK)