'People come here for the food, and for good reason,' says a Guide insider of this buzzy pub with rooms, which is 'very much ye olde village inn, with rustic furniture and roaring fires under the beams'. Within three former farm labourers' cottages you'll find plenty of cosy corners where you can enjoy anything from the pub's own beer to a £180 bottle of Mendoza. Owner Ben Jones is a 'genial host'. Service is 'smiling', the vibe 'easy-going'. Menus featuring local produce and ingredients from the pub paddock might include wild mushroom tagliatelle or slow cooked beef short rib. A Sunday roast provided 'melt-in-the-mouth roast beef with buttery Yorkshire pudding and the freshest of veg'. Bedrooms in Beech House, opposite, are stylish, characterful and named after food. Biscuit, in shades of tan, has a wooden floor and headboard as well as a garden area and sitting room. Upstairs, Double Cream has 'a French antique bed, an open bathroom and a loo behind a screen, not for the shy'. In the morning ask for a picnic, borrow a bike, and go to see the fantastical avenue of clipped yews at Clipsham Hall. Stock up at the pub shop before you leave.