Hipping Hall

Not only the sight of the minstrels' gallery in the dining room at Hipping Hall, but the smell of the real fire, will have you tripping back on an imaginative journey to the Middle Ages. The room really is as old as that, with its beamed and vaulted ceiling and tapestry, all an evocative treat on a candlelit evening. If you're thinking medieval banqueting, though, refresh your expectations, for young New Zealander Brent Hulena has more up-to-date business in mind. Poised as it is between the Lakes and Dales national parks, Hipping is perfectly placed to draw on a wealth of fine regional produce, evident in pressed terrine of local rabbit and foie gras with puréed prunes, poached Goosnargh chicken breast with confit leg and albufera sauce, or roast short loin of lamb with puréed aubergine and ratatouille. Pre-dinner nibbles elicit gasps of appreciation, as might a dessert entitled 'Emphasis on Chocolate', combining white chocolate pannacotta, Valrhona liquid truffle coated in hazelnuts and a milk chocolate mousse.