LAKE DISTRICT
The Drunken Duck Inn
Barngates, Ambleside, Cumbria, 01539 436347
At an isolated crossroads where narrow winding lanes meet stands this old inn, enfolded by high peaks and craggy tree-covered fells, small tarns and green fields enclosed by stone walls or high hedges. It is a stunning, quintessential Lakeland scene. The Duck has long been a popular watering hole among walkers and still is, in spite of its fresh contemporary face. Traditionally furnished small rooms with beams, picture-lined walls and open fires radiate from the solid bar - sheer joy for real ale enthusiasts, with home-brewed Barngates beers on handpump. And the food is utterly delicious: venison with chestnut polenta, caramelised figs and pistachio nuts; halibut with wild mushroom risotto. The chips are the best and all suppliers of fresh produce are listed. Rustic benches across the lane take in those fabulous views; residents have a secluded garden and 60 glorious acres of woodland and tarn to explore. The staff are brilliant, too. AS

The Punch Bowl Inn
Crosthwaite, Cumbria, 01539 568237
Superbly wrought bourgeois cooking that carefully mixes French and British traditions. There are pâtés and terrines with very British relishes such as quince chutney or tomato pickle. Lunch can be as simple as a great ham sandwich. So no need to fly to Lyons or Bordeaux for the earthly, deeply-flavoured dishes you crave; just take a train to the Lake District and this unassuming pub set in a quiet valley filled with damson trees. Ask anyone in Cumbria for a good place to eat and they'll send you here. It's the best place to eat in the Lakes and way, way beyond. DH

NORTH EAST
The Millbank
Mill Bank Road, Mill Bank, Sowerby Bridge, Yorkshire, 01422 825588
Savour a pint and a rolling moorland view. The Millbank, clinging to the side of a steep hill, has a stripped-down, architect-scripted interior that combines flagstones and log fires with modern paintings and bold colours. Its friendly, cosmopolitan style is echoed in the food, prepared by Chez Nico-trained Glenn Futter, who creates daily wonders with fresh local produce. There might be roast scallops or warm venison salad for starters, suckling pig with black pudding fritter or Holy Island lobster ravioli with asparagus. And then there are the spoiling puddings, the fine Yorkshire cheeses, the guest beers and Yorkshire ales, the excellent wines, the malt whiskies and the first-class snacks in the bar. AS

MIDLANDS
Martin's Arms
School Lane, Colston Bassett, Nottinghamshire, 01949 81361
An Elizabethan farmhouse morphed into an ale house around 1700, and an inn 100 years later. Today it is a deeply civilised pub. The front room exudes so much country-house charm that the bar seems almost an intrusion. Fresh, seasonal menus change daily. Bar snacks include special sandwiches, warm salads and splendid ploughman's lunches with Colston Bassett stilton from the dairy up the road. On Duncan Griffith's menu you'll find dressed crab with celeriac rémoulade, wild rocket and parmesan crisps, followed by panfried seabass with caramelised butternut squash, asparagus, and lemon tart with blackcurrant compôte. Behind the bar is an impressive range of well-kept real ales, cognacs, wines and malts from Adnams. AS

The Howard Arms
Lower Green, Ilmington, Warwickshire, 01608 682226
Turn up at twilight, when the lamps inside have just been turned on, and you'll be instantly seduced. Spare, uncluttered and elegant, the Howard Arms is a glowing Cotswold-stone pub dating from the 17th century, sitting in the shade of a chestnut tree, overlooking the village green. Inside the place has been opened up. The more pubby area, with its low ceilings, polished flagstones and fires, leads onto the graceful dining room. You can eat anywhere; the menu is the same throughout. The more robust dishes, such as beef, ale and mustard pie and Cumberland sausages with white beans and tomatoes, are better than the more refined ones. Puds such as sticky pear and ginger pudding are the business. Very much a local, but outsiders get a warm welcome too. Wellies and loafers abound. DH

COTSWOLDS
The Stagg Inn
Titley near Kington, Herefordshire, 01544 230221
Given that this was the first British pub ever to get a Michelin star, it's remarkable that chef Steve Reynolds is entirely self-taught, which may explain why his cooking is so unshowy. Food is delicious but restrained, it's doggedly regional and it's full of locals. On the menu you might find Trelough duck with elderflower, lamb with fennel and garlic purée and roasted pineapple with ice cream. In fact it's difficult to believe that Reynolds used to be a 'doner kebab and six pints of lager man'. DH

Three Crowns Inn
Bleak Acre, Ullingswick, Herefordshire, 01432 820279
'I've got my own little Provence here,' says Brent Castle, chef-owner of this red-brick, lopsided pub. Most of the fruit and veg Brent uses comes from an organic market gardener who lives just up the road and Brent also has a supply of home gardeners who supply him with gooseberries, rhubarb, quinces and even walnuts. This is a proper pub; the small bar has grapes carved into it, traditional curtains that look like they're made from old pyjamas and plenty of drinkers. Country dishes like cassoulet and steamed treacle pudding are served. I wish there was a pub like this hiding behind every hedgerow in Britain. DH

SOUTH
The Pot Kiln
Frilsham, Yattendon, Berkshire, 01635 201366
TV chef Mike Robinson drank his very first pint in this remote and determinedly old-fashioned ale house - and jumped at the chance to buy it. A sprucing up of the dining room has not altered the faded character of the place one jot, and you still find thirsty agricultural workers crowding the tiny, basic bar with foaming pints of Brick Kiln Bitter from the brewery across the field. Perfectly lovely in summer - the garden looks onto fields and woodland - it's also wonderful in winter. In the restaurant expect 'European country cooking'. That means rich pumpkin soup with fontina cheese fondue, wild rabbit slow-cooked with apples, cider and mustard, gnocchi with wild mushrooms and truffle, daube of slow-cooked oxtail and hot treacle tart. The wine list is serious and affordable, the smell of baking bread drifts through the bar and the service is excellent. AS

WEST
The Rose & Thistle
Rockbourne, Fordingbridge, Hampshire, 01725 518236
A thatched Hampshire dream with a dovecote and a rose-tumbled garden. Like many rural pubs, it started life as two cottages so the two huge fireplaces come as no surprise. It is a perfect mix of heavy oak beams and timbers, carved benches and flagstoned or tiled floors. Add country-style fabrics, dried flowers, tables strewn with magazines and you have a thoroughly enchanting place to return to after a visit to Rockbourne's Roman villa. Tim Norfolk has built up a good reputation for his steaks and sauces and his ever-changing blackboard specials make use of fresh local produce: estate game in season, south-coast fish. At lunchtime you might find it hard choosing between smoked salmon and scrambled eggs, prawns by the pint and a steak and kidney pudding. The more elaborate evening menu favours fish, such as monkfish wrapped in pancetta. The village of Rockbourne is also delightful. AS

The Dartmoor Inn
Moorside, Lyford, Okehampton, Devon, 01822 820221
Although a traditional old England pub, the food has some American influences with French attitudes. A lot of time is spent sourcing ingredients from small-scale producers and the kitchen does fish and chips with a pint of ale as happily as they do a three-course meal with a £40 bottle of wine. This former rundown boozer was converted by proprietors Karen and Philip Burgess with an Old England meets New England style in mind. A small bar with gleaming copper and a roaring fire is at the centre of a network of dining rooms full of ladder-backed goldilocks chairs. Mussel and saffron tart and Devon beef cooked in Burgundy and baby onions are locally sourced house specialities. The Burgesses don't just want to feed you, they want you to taste their local countryside. DH

The Drewe Arms
Broadhembury, Devon, 01404 841267
More like an old antiques shop than a British boozer, the Drewe Arms is bedecked in flags, clocks and everything fishy. The menu, like the owner, is Scandinavian and offers up Swedish classics like Jansson's Temptation (potatoes, anchovies, butter, onions and double cream), gravlax and cured herring as well as French and British dishes such as seared salmon with samphire, sea bream with orange and chilli, or turbot with hollandaise. An accompanying stiff glass of aquavit is a must. DH

The Fox Inn
Corscombe, Dorset, 01935 891330
One of the loveliest pubs in England, with lupins and hollyhocks along its front and roses round its door. The food is unfussy country cooking and just right for the place: braised venison with juniper and redcurrant jelly and smoked ham and mushroom pie. More contemporary fish dishes include roast sea bream with chilli and coriander butter, are based on sound ingredients and are wonderfully fresh and unadorned. This place is genuinely rural, picture-book pretty and worth a detour. DH

With thanks to Alastair Sawday and Diana Henry. To order a copy of Alistair Sawday's Pubs and Inns, (Alistair Sawday, £13.99) or The Gastropub Cookbook, by Diana Henry (Mitchell Beazley, £14.99), for £12.99 and £13.99 respectively, with free UK p&p, go to observer.co.uk/bookshop or call 0870 836 0885