Cringletie House
Peebles, Borders

Set amid 28 acres of park and woodland in the rolling Borders hills, this Victorian shooting lodge has been given a £2m refurbishment to create a modern, cosmopolitan look. The Sutherland dining room has a spectacular painted ceiling and an appealing menu that opens with the likes of wood pigeon and foie gras pithiviers with date and orange sauce. To follow, pan-fried saddle of venison with pumpkin, mulled pears and cinnamon lines up next to herb-crusted turbot with black kale, smoked eel, bacon lardons, ratte potatoes and a soubise sauce, while desserts are refined takes on traditional favourites, such as baked toasted rice and quince pudding with rice pudding ice cream. Thirteen modern bedrooms come in various sizes and styles, including romantic turrets; all have super king-size beds and fine views.

· Valentine's Day price: DB&B £240 per room. 01721 725750, cringletie.com.

Bruton House
Bruton, Somerset

As you drive through Bruton you can't miss the bright blue restaurant-with-rooms. The elegant dining room - all pale walls, floor-length white tablecloths and fat candles in the fireplace - has a formal feel, but the food is unmistakably modern. The menus are short, and much effort is evident in both the sourcing of ingredients (many of them from within a 30-mile radius) and the flair with which they are cooked. Dishes include foie gras, portobello mushroom and chicken terrine with grape chutney as well as a main course of line-caught wild sea bass with potato galette and saffron and fennel sauce vierge. The two bedrooms upstairs have a striking but simple elegance: neutral colours, crisp linen, big comfy beds and stylish bathrooms.

· Double rooms £70. Three-course set dinner £39 per person. 01749 813395, brutonhouse.co.uk.

White Horse
Blakeney, Norfolk

Blakeney is defined by its narrow streets of fishermen's cottages, and you'll have to negotiate lines of packed-in cars to get to this fine old pub/hotel on the pretty high street. There are two eating areas: the light and airy courtyard conservatory, and the main dining room, which is in converted stables. Fresh fish is the big draw here, while the meat is traceable and smallholders supply vegetables and dairy produce. Start with a fresh crab salad, or smoked cod's roe from Cley Smokehouse on bruschetta with horseradish cream cheese. To follow, there may be pink Gressingham duck breast with Asian coleslaw, wasabi oil and sweet potato crisps, or Loch Duart salmon with roasted fennel, cherry tomatoes, olives and cockles. The best of the nine simple but tastefully furnished bedrooms have views over the estuary towards Blakeney Point; those in the modern annexe have a patio overlooking the garden.

· Double rooms £70-£130. Dinner for two about £40 exc wine. 01263 740574, blakeneywhitehorse.co.uk.

Rose & Crown
Romaldkirk, Co Durham

The Rose & Crown has the whole package: the charm of the Teesdale village setting (overlooking the green with stocks and water pump), a civilised ambience and friendly, efficient staff. The oak-panelled restaurant is formal without being starchy, while the brasserie offers a lighter menu. In the former, dinner might open with Cotherstone cheese soufflé with gazpacho sauce, or chicken liver parfait with jellied strips of Seville orange peel. Pan-fried wood pigeon breasts are served with a parsnip tartlet and juniper berry sauce, and roast monkfish tails with wilted spinach and a red wine and balsamic jus; chocolate and rum pot is an old-fashioned finish. Twelve bedrooms vary in size and look - main house rooms have beams and antiques and heaps of character; the five rooms in the courtyard are sleek and contemporary - but all are quiet and comfortable.

· DB&B from £100 per person. 01833 650213, rose-and-crown.co.uk.

Castle Cottage
Harlech, Wales

Glyn and Jacqueline Roberts have recently renovated their characterful 400-year-old restaurant-with-rooms near the 13th-century castle. The three-course menu, however, still bears Glyn's stamp. Canapés in the bar are followed by aromatic lamb pancakes with hoisin sauce or duck liver and Cointreau parfait with a fruit chutney and toasted brioche. Main courses might consist of free-range Shropshire chicken breast with a wild mushroom and Madeira sauce, or a duet of Welsh beef - grilled fillet mignon and a steak, kidney and mushroom suet pudding with red wine sauce. Follow that with grilled prunes wrapped in bacon on toast or more traditional treacle tart with nutmeg ice cream. There are seven spacious bedrooms in a strikingly converted 16th-century building next door where beams and standing timbers contrast with contemporary furniture, brushed steel light fittings and ultra-modern bathrooms.

· DB&B from £140 per room. 01766 780479, castlecottageharlech.co.uk.

Dartmoor Inn
Lydford, Devon

The Dartmoor Inn is in a lovely spot, despite being on a main road (it's not actually in the village), and has the quiet atmosphere of a country restaurant rather than a local watering hole. The maze of dining rooms suggests something out of Country Living - there's even a boutique selling Swedish linen and glassware, French quilts, and locally designed jewellery. Expect starters such as pan-fried scallops with crispy bacon and wilted rocket salad, or braised pork cheeks with cracked pepper sauce, and main courses of braised oxtail with prune and stock sauce, or pan-fried hake in red wine sauce with fennel purée and sweet potato crisps. Three bedrooms mirror the quiet good taste of the bar and dining rooms with soft colours and antique and hand-painted furniture.

· Double rooms £115 B&B. Dinner £25-£30 per person. 01822 820221, dartmoorinn.com.

· The Which? Good Food Guide can be ordered on 01903 828557, which.co.uk/books (£16.99, p&p free) or bought from bookshops.