Britain’s best foodie weekends away

You’re stuffed. You’re sluggish. You’re shuddering at the thought of slogging it back home. It’s a feeling foodies know all too well. But it doesn’t have to be that way. Because, as every food-focussed traveller knows, there’s nothing more satisfying than eating first-class food, sleeping in stylish surrounds, and repeating. So, whether it’s a higgledy-piggledy pub in the countryside or a walled garden in an elegant estate, this is our round-up of all the restaurants with rooms worth making a weekend of. 

Auberge du Lac, Hertfordshire 

The restaurant… Despite its Francophile name, Auberge du Lac is British dining at its best – from its estate’s rich and royal history to its kitchen’s locally sourced and home-grown ingredients. This former hunting lodge shrouded by trees and perched on the water’s edge recently reopened with chef John Barber (ex-Mandarin Oriental) at its helm. And with two AA Rosettes to its name already, it’s tentatively on track for its first Michelin star. Tuck into the tasting menu on the terrace. Trust us. 

The rooms… Cast your gaze across the river’s rippling water and beyond the golf course’s undulating mounds until you reach Melbourne Lodge – Brocket Hall Estate’s converted coach house, where sixteen bedrooms ooze with British country house charm. Post dining, you’ll be chauffeured back here (by golf buggy, naturally) for an overnight stay fit for a lord. 

Chalk Restaurant at Wiston Estate, West Sussex 

The restaurant… You’d expect a multi-award-winning winery to do one thing well – wine. But Wiston Estate’s Chalk Restaurant is proof that the grape doesn’t fall far from the vine when it comes to dining, too. In fact, it’s leveraging these winemaking strengths (like using the wood from spent barrels to smoke ingredients) that makes the seasonal and sustainable fare here worth shouting about. Expect scallops sitting on a sea of seeds (like grains of sand) paired perfectly with a crisp, white wine.  

The rooms… Once suitably stuffed, slink off to the estate’s self-contained and self-catered cottage, The Pump House, to sleep it all off. In the morning, you’ll wake up to the sounds of sheep softly bleating and the sights of the sun rising above the South Downs. Just don’t forget to crack open the complimentary, chilled bottle of Wiston Brut NV in your fridge before leaving. 

Forge at Middleton Lodge, Yorkshire 

The restaurant… With the Yorkshire Dales on its doorstep and a shiny new Green Michelin star under its belt, Forge isn’t just another fine-dining restaurant at a five-star hotel. It’s an ethical and environmental escape, where the family-run feeling and estate-to-plate ethos runs deep. When chef Jake Jones (of three-Michelin-star L’Enclume fame) isn’t heading up the kitchen, you’ll find him foraging ingredients from the kitchen garden to bring the thoughtfully curated tasting menus to life.  

The rooms… A short amble through the quaint collection of stone-clad cottages that make up this elegant estate eventually leads you back to your house, hut, or hotel room – where the wildflower-filled orchards outside your door creep up the walls and all the way inside via the floral décor. 

The Village Pub by THE PIG, Cotswolds 

The restaurant… Having just opened its doors in June, this honey-hued, higgledy-piggledy pub has already established itself as a spot for every season – from pork scratchings and a pint in the garden to bangers and mash by a crackling fire. Expect to encounter all the characteristics we know and love from its fellow PIG properties, like a commitment to home-grown and local produce (plus, a warm welcome from Landlord Luis himself).  

The rooms… Tucked into the eaves upstairs, you’ll find six cosy bedrooms designed in The PIG’s signature style. And soon, you’ll also be able to pop across the road to THE PIG-in the Cotswolds, where the former Barnsley House is being sensitively restored before opening its doors next month. 

Coombeshead Farm, Cornwall  

The restaurant… As you approach England’s southwest tail, there’s one farm-to-fork frontrunner on every foodie’s lips: Coombeshead Farm. Why? Because it’s what happens when top city chefs get their hands on top rural produce. From harvesting honey from the hives to pickling perennials from the veg patch, it’s almost entirely self-sufficient. But for chef Tom Adams, the pull was the pigs. After running Soho’s much-loved Pitt Cue, he knew he wanted a consistent connection to the product – and he found it here. 

The rooms… Coombeshead Farm is perhaps the only place where being awoken by the cock-a-doodle-doo of a commanding cockerel is welcome – especially when the smell of freshly baked bread wafting through your windows finally reaches your nostrils. Here, the farmhouse feel rules the roost. So, expect a small selection of rooms filled with rustic antique furniture and soft woollen blankets. 

Grace & Savour at Hampton Manor, Hampton-in-Arden 

The restaurant… A multi-course, Michelin-starred, immersive meal in a manor. That’s what you can expect from Grace & Savour – a foodie experience not for the faint-hearted. Everything revolves around the gardens here – from the pre-dining tour of the Victorian Walled Garden to the post-dining snooze in a Walled Garden Suite. Each of the tasting menu’s 15 dishes is a tasty testament to its chef director’s commitment to soil health, biodiversity, ethics, and sustainability. It’s no wonder Grace & Savour was recently listed as one of the top 100 restaurants in the UK. 

The rooms… From the main manor house to the hidden coach houses, there’s something for everyone at Hampton Manor. But, for the most immersive foodie experience, stay in a Walled Garden Suite. Whether you’re cooling off in a hand-cast concrete bath or curling up by a crackling fire, this is a stay set up for savouring. 

The Fife Arms, Braemar 

The restaurant… Pack your bags and head to the Highlands. Destination: The Fife Arms – a hotel that’s famed for being as regal as it is whacky. But it doesn’t attract famous faces and art aficionados for its looks alone. It’s also perfectly placed to be a foodie’s playground. Picture this: you start the day with a spot of salmon fishing and foraging, before dining on dishes cultivated from the same land and cooked on an open fire. Feeling full, you wet your whistle with some whisky, before retiring to your room. Delicious. 

The rooms… Whether you’re cosying up in a Croft Room or relaxing in a Royal Suite, there’s no mistake you’re in Scotland in any of The Fife Arm’s 46 rooms. Because despite each being uniquely designed, you’re guaranteed riotously decorated spaces, filled with antiques and artworks that tell an immersive tale of the country’s rich history. 

Walled Garden Restaurant at Lucknam Park, Wiltshire 

The restaurant… Just saying ‘a walled garden in Wiltshire’ sounds delightful. And delightful definitely describes Lucknam Park’s new Walled Garden Restaurant, which welcomes a more contemporary and casual vibe to the estate than its Michelin-starred sister in the main house. Most of the menu is proudly plucked from the 500 acres of Cotswoldsian countryside this hotel calls home – a fact that’s hard to forget with floor-to-ceiling windows showing off the shrubbery surrounding you.  

The rooms… Ready to call it a night? Retreat to your historic suite, where your freshly turned down four-poster bed and roaring fire await. Or, escape to your chic, private cottage, where the country living experience comes with all the contemporary comforts you expect of a five-star hotel. The choice is yours.