Dining Room, The

Here is a real gem tucked away up in darkest Derbyshire, with due deference to the good people of Ashbourne. Very much a hands on operation with the owners, Pete and Laura, involved in every aspect. Close attention is paid to detail and the results are resoundingly good. The concise menus are full of local produce with most of the meat that they serve coming from no more than 5 miles away.

You might start with the home cured beef bressaola, with fresh lime, black pepper and pickled fig and shallot salad. The cod cooked in olive oil loses any sense of that dryness which cod can sometimes have and the poached scallops make a wonderful foil. Served with it is Parmesan and ricottoa ravioli, petit ratouille and tomato broth it is a wonderful assembly of flavours and contrasts. As a lifelong connoisseur of rice pudding I would find it had to resist the prune and Armagnac version here, with vanilla ice cream and shortbread biscuit.

One of the best ways to enjoy The Dining Room is to try the ten course tasting menu (which has to be ordered upon booking and requires a 7.15 arrival). Do book well in advance as they only have six tables and do not take double sittings, (the table is yours for the evening).

The wine list is drawn mainly from the old world with some new world additions with not much above £20, unless you are thinking of celebrating in style with the vintage Dom Perignon 1993.

No bookings or enquiries by e-mail.