Fischer’s at Baslow Hall

Built in 17th-century vernacular style, with leaded, stone-mullioned windows and rich Jacobean interiors, Max and Susan Fischer’s manor house hotel is a brilliant Edwardian pastiche. It stands in beautiful grounds with brimming borders, clipped yews and an arboretum. Luxurious bedrooms have period furnishings, heavy fabrics, perhaps a half-tester bed, home-made biscuits, a coffee machine and smart toiletries. ‘Our suite was splendidly shaped, with an initial sitting room. The bedrooms contained – hurrah! – both a proper full-length wardrobe and a decent chest of drawers,’ one reader relates. In an annexe, spacious, contemporary-style rooms have a private walled garden. Menus, for omnivores and vegetarians, make creative use of local, home-grown ingredients home-grown and foraged ingredients. Maybe dry-aged duck breast, blueberry, broccoli; monkfish, leek, spelt, chanterelle; turnip, duck egg, spinach, Gruyère. ‘The famous tasting menu was every bit as delicious as we had anticipated, and the wine list contained real gems.’ ‘The staff couldn’t have been more diligent. The gardens are a delight.’ (John and Kay Patterson, AW)