Hambleton Hall

Adrift on a peninsula tethered to Rutland Water, Hambleton Hall is a template for how to do the English country house experience properly. The many-gabled Victorian pile was built in 1881 by bon viveur Walter Marshall, as a base for blowing his brewing fortune on fox hunting, keeping an excellent table and fast living. Fast forward almost a century, and Tim and Stefa Hart are now weaving their magic in this sybaritic, sophisticated, rural retreat. Within it's all very grand and impeccably comfy in drawing rooms full of antiques, luxuriant sofas and log fires to boost the feelgood factor. Genteel staff are as well-dressed as the dining room, an intimate venue in warm hues with immaculate white linen, fulsome flower displays, lush brocades and oil paintings, all set to the scenic backdrop of the garden and lake. Chef Aaron Patterson's inspired cooking echoes that of his mentor, Raymond Blanc, in its pursuit of clarity of flavour and insistence on sourcing seasonal produce that is second to none. And what better source than the hotel's own kitchen garden for fresh vegetables, herbs and salads - and local Rutland game is worth homing in on. The result is dishes that are carefully composed and immaculately presented in an array of fixed-price menus spiked with luxury materials - naturally, this sort of excellence comes at a price. The menu might start with cannelloni of squid and chorizo with piquant peppers, or if your luck is really in, a winter risotto of Périgord truffles. Main courses might propose a straightforward marriage of poached and roast Bresse pigeon with emulsified baked potato and Puy lentils, or a more speculative pairing of fallow venison loin with roast pineapple, gin and tonic jelly and cocoa-flavoured sauce. At dessert, hazelnut and chocolate fondant tart with Valrhona chocolate sorbet and an orange reduction should hit the spot, or you might go off-piste with more of those Périgord truffles, this time in ice cream form.

8m W of A1 Stamford junct (A606), 3m E of Oakham
Nearest station: Oakham

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