We wrote down everything the ideal pub should have,' says 30-year-old Will Beckett, who, with business partner Huw Gott, has transformed the run-down Marquess Tavern into one of Britain's top gastropubs and your choice for Best Sunday Lunch. Tucked away in a residential street in Islington, until two years ago the Marquess was a forgotten, old-man pub, frequented by a dwindling handful of regulars. 'There was no food - this room was unused,' says Beckett, indicating the airy dining room with its ornate skylight and cornicing in which we are tucking into a delicious warm pike salad and Welsh rarebit. 'We just gave it a clean coat of paint - all the furniture is reclaimed.'
Their criteria seemed to have chimed with many other people's: cosy sofas, dark wood and original fittings, a spacious, informal dining room - not forgetting traditional British food and a wide selection of unusual beers and whiskies.
What about the previous regulars? 'Some liked it the way it was,' Beckett says tactfully. 'But we kept a few. One guy has a chair at the bar that he's been drinking in for 40 years. Another guy's dog just died and we put a plaque on the floor where the dog used to lie so there is that continuity.'
With an average of 100 Sunday lunches, the Marquess embodies Beckett and Gott's ethos of taking a simple concept and trying to do it better than anyone else. Chef Jamie Webber, previously at the Ivy, scours the internet and old books for traditional recipes that can be imaginatively revived. Meat comes from Millers of Speyside - roast beef and roast sirloin account for nearly half of all food sales, though there is also a devoted following for pig's head cribbeens and oxtail.
Beckett's passion is speciality beers and whiskies - the Marquess has 20 different beers and 60 Scotches. Each dish comes with a recommendation for an accompaniment - Beckett is so enthusiastic about beer with food that last year he wrote An Appetite for Ale with his mother, food and drink writer Fiona Beckett.
Despite such a pedigree, Beckett was planning an academic career when old schoolfriend Gott asked him to come on board. Gott had dreamed of owning his own bar and restaurant since his teens. He worked as a kitchen porter, then in a bar while studying business and working at the Stock Exchange. In 2003, he got a cheap deal on a kebab shop in east London, persuaded friends to invest and opened a late-night bar, the Redchurch, followed by another, Green & Red, then the Marquess and, most recently, New York-style steak restaurant Hawksmoor, in Spitalfields.
And the key to a great restaurant?
'Consistency and service,' says Beckett. 'If the service is good and people know what they're getting, you can apply that to anything.'
It certainly seems to have worked for the good old British Sunday roast.
· Marquess Tavern, 32 Canonbury St, London, N1, 020 7354 2975, www.marquesstavern.co.uk
Best of the rest
London
Anchor & Hope
36 The Cut, SE1, 020 7928 9898
Book ahead for the fantastic three-course set menu.
Chez Bruce
2 Bellevue Rd, Wandsworth Common, SW17, 020 8672 0114, www.chezbruce.co.uk
Go for a walk on the common and then tuck in to the brilliant food.
Royal China
13 Queensway, Bayswater, W2, 020 7221 2535, www.royalchinagroup.co.uk
Forget roast beef, Royal China has created its very own dim-sum Sunday experience.
Petersham Nurseries
Richmond, Surrey, 020 8605 3627, www.petershamnurseries.com
A little piece of country on the edge of town. Try the slow-cooked lamb.
Ealing Park Tavern
222 South Ealing Rd, W5, 0871 332 8188
Great child-friendly gastropub with huge garden and splendid lunches.
Joanna's
56 Westow Hill, Crystal Palace, London SE19, 020 8670 4052
Go for the crackling on their roast belly of pork alone. Excellent food and amazing views over the city.
The Charles Lamb
16 Elia St, N1, 020 7837 5040, www.thecharleslambpub.com
Perfect Sunday pub lunching - unpretentious and comfortable.
Southern England
Fiddlers Elbow
11 Boyce's St, Brighton, 01273 325 850
With nine different vegetables plus a Yorkshire, this is an intense roast-dinner experience.
The Hinds Head
High St, Bray, Berkshire, 01628 626 151, www.thehindsheadhotel.com
Heston Blumenthal's simplified gaff. Yum.
The Sportsman
Faversham Rd, Seasalter, Whitstable, Kent, 01227 273 370, www.thesportsmanseasalter.co.uk
Food comes from 'farm, boat or game dealer' eaten to the sound of sea on shingle.
The Harris Arms
Portgate, Lewdown, Devon, 01566 783 331, www.theharrisarms.co.uk
A perfect country pub, the ideal place for stuffing an empty belly after a hike in the wilds.
Rose of Denmark
6 Dowry Place, Bristol, 0117 940 5866, www.theroseofdenmark.com
Fantastic pub grub at equally tasty prices.
The Olive Shed
Floating Harbour, Princes Wharf, Bristol, 0117 929 1960, www.theoliveshed.com
Gorgeous food and fab harbour view.
Midlands
Creme
2 Toton Lane, Stapleford, Nottingham, 0115 939 7422, www.cremerestaurant.co.uk
Three courses for £14.95 and some adventurous cooking.
Cock & Hoop
25 High Pavement, Nottingham, 0115 852 3231, www.cockandhoop.co.uk
Cosy townhouse setting with interesting menu (hot brie beignets, anyone?) and your dog's allowed in!
Fischers
Baslow Hall, Calver Rd, Baslow, Derbyshire, 01246 583 259, www.fischers-baslowhall.co.uk
Superbly cooked local produce in grand country-estate splendour.
The Stagg
Titley, Kington, Herefordshire, 01544 230 221, www.thestagg.co.uk
Three courses of posh Sunday lunch for a gloriously cheap £14.95.
Darleys
Darley Abbey Mill, Darley Abbey, Derbyshire, 01332 364 987, www.darleys.com
Very stylish restaurant right on the river.
Hassop Hall Hotel
Hassop, Bakewell, Derbyshire, 01629 640 488, www.hassophallhotel.co.uk
Splendid hotel surrounded by stunning gardens. Have a stroll before lunch.
Hilltop Farm Shop & Café
Fosse Way, Hunningham, Warwickshire, 01926 632 978, www.hilltopfarmshop.com
Tasty food from its own farm, Hilltop boasts fantastic views of the Warwickshire countryside.
Northern England
The Star Inn
Harome, Helmsley, North Yorkshire, 01439 770 397, www.thestaratharome.co.uk
Over 30 varieties of herbs in the garden, residential cookery courses and a Michelin star. Go. Enjoy.
The Blackwell Ox Inn
Huby Rd, Sutton on the Forest, Yorkshire, 01347 810 328, www.blackwelloxinn.co.uk
A regularly changing Sunday menu strays refreshingly from the usual joint options.
The Three Fishes
Mitton Rd, Whalley, Lancashire, 01254 826 888, www.thethreefishes.com.
Drawing on the best of Lancashire produce this relaxed eatery has a delicious omnivorous air to it.
Northcote Manor
Northcote Rd, Langho, Blackburn, Lancashire, 01254 240 555, www.northcotemanor.com
Four courses of rich flavours and food combinations for a very reasonable £30.
The General Tarleton
Boroughbridge Rd, Ferensby, Knaresborough, Yorkshire, 01423 340 284, www.generaltarleton.co.uk
With both restaurant and brasserie to choose from, the choice of food is extensive.
Sam's Chop House
Back Pool Fold, Chapel Walks, Manchester, 0161 834 3210, www.tomschophouse.com
Priding itself on its roast beef and traditional style, Sam's Chop House serves a supreme Sunday roast.
The Mill Race
2-4 Commercial Rd, Kirkstall, Leeds, 0113 275 7555, www.themillrace-organic.com
Using only organic produce doesn't always have to come with an organic price tag. Excellent value for money.
Scotland
Ubiquitous Chip
12 Ashton Lane, Glasgow, 0141 334 5007, www.ubiquitouschip.co.uk
How about free-range Perthshire pork braised for 36 hours with basil mash, leek purée and crispy onion? Get the car out!
The Black Bull
Market Place, Lauder, Berwickshire, 01578 722 208, www.blackbull-lauder.com
A diverse seasonal menu, served in a cosy Scottish-borders inn.
Contrast
20 Ness Bank, Inverness, 01463 227 889, www.contrastbrasserie.co.uk
An 8oz Black Isle rib-eye steak, thick cut chips and salad for £14.95. Bring it on!
Orocco Pier
17 High Street, South Queensferry, Edinburgh, 0870 118 1664, www.oroccopier.co.uk
A menu favouring seafood is no bad thing, particularly if you're sitting by the sea.
Wales
The Felin Fach Griffin Inn
Felin Fach, Brecon, 01874 620 111, www.eatdrinksleep.ltd.uk
The personal touch and the excellent service makes the terrific food here all the more enjoyable.
The Beaufort Arms
High St, Raglan Village, Monmouthshire, 01291 690 412, www.beaufortraglan.co.uk
Book ahead to try Sunday specials such as leg of lamb stuffed with apricot.
The Bell at Skenfrith
Skenfrith, Monmouthshire, 01600 750 235, www.skenfrith.co.uk
An old coaching inn with a £20 three-course menu and a terrace overlooking the river for summer.
Northern Ireland
Beatrice Kennedy
44 University Rd, Belfast, 028 9020 2290, www.beatricekennedy.co.uk
You can't miss the bright pink exterior - nor should you miss the flourless chocolate cake.
The Merchant
35-39 Waring St, Belfast, 028 9023 4888, www.themerchanthotel.com
Very grand former bank with formal dining room and casual bar called the Cloth Ear.
