Wellies line the stone-flagged floor, a couple of stuffed pheasants take in the scene: an ‘oasis of calm’ overlooking the village duck pond, Jacquie Pern’s chic, rustic hotel on the edge of the North Yorkshire Moors is a ‘really nice place to stay’. Converted from a former village shop, smithy and barn, it re-enters the Guide this year thanks to readers who praise the ‘friendly staff’, ‘first-class food’, ‘stylish bedrooms’ and ‘peaceful setting’. ‘In a decade of visits, we have never been disappointed,’ says a fan in 2017. ‘Characterful bedrooms’ in a modern country mix of plaids and florals are set around a courtyard of fruit trees; a stone cottage is in a secluded corner. All have ‘nice touches’: cafetière coffee, fresh milk, sloe gin. In the restaurant, and on the vine-hung patio on a sunny day, chef/co-owner Peter Neville’s ‘superb meals’ are ‘deftly cooked’. Foraged finds mix with local ingredients in dishes such as beef tartare, truffle mayonnaise, sourdough; wild sea bass, Jerusalem artichoke, Cumbrian pancetta. (Leave room for the ‘wonderful desserts’.) ‘Good choice’ at breakfast, including honey from moorland heather. (Shirley B Gray, Peter Anderson)