Restaurant-Guide.com
hand picked restaurants

Even somewhere so august as Cirencester needs its Chinese and Tanyans fills the slot with the customary style that one associates with the eclectic mixture of county and college peculiar to the town. A clever shop conversion, Tanyans offers most of the traditional Chinese dishes and strays little from that path. Expect well-prepared and authentic delights such as those enshrined in their gourmet dinner, which starts with a chef's hors d'ouevre, through prawns wrapped in lettuce to the ever popular crispy aromatic duck. Prawns with green pepper in black bean sauce, chicken with cashew nuts in yellow bean sauce, dry shredded beef and sweet and sour pork follow in steady succession, all served with fried rice, the student's universal favourite (must be something lacking in college diets).

House wine starts at £9.50 and there is, for a Chinese restaurant which to be fair do not always excel on our forms of homage to Bacchus, an erudite and interesting list, almost entirely from France, with which to toy.

The pretty Cotswold town of Winchcombe is home to No.5 North Street, Kate and Marcus Ashenford's warm and rustic modern European restaurant. The beauty of the perfectly formed three AA rosette dining venue lies in its simplicity, most visible in its half-timbered exterior, and once you enter, in its interior of dark red walls, beamed ceilings and well-spaced bare tables and brown leather chairs.

It is clear that Michelin starred Chef Marcus' focus lies in giving the people of Winchcombe an opportunity to sample beautifully created dishes that are all cooked to very high standards.

You could begin your journey with a starter of smoked haddock and cauliflower puree with baby spinach, poached egg, and a cheese and caraway sable before moving on to a main course of monkfish with sweet-and-sour chicken wings, baby fennel and five-spice reduction. A dessert of coconut milk rice pudding with pineapple and molasses sorbet could provide a hugely satisfying end to the meal.

Lumière is a modern British, fine dining restaurant located in a small Regency terrace in the very heart of Cheltenham. Being close to The Promenade, hotels, offices and the famous Ladies College has its own advantages and does ensure a steady stream of diners. The interior is contemporary and airy, designed in cool purples and creams with modern works of art and glass, generous table sizes and comfortable chairs.

Chef Jon Howe's focus is firmly on local ingredients and bold flavours, with an interesting use of unusual techniques. He excels in being able to put a new and interesting twist on traditional dishes and bring them on par to satisfy modern palates.

Lumière also offers a flexible special arrangement if you are going to the theatre, order in advance and enjoy two courses before the show, then return and have your desserts and coffee later.

Calcot Manor has an excellent reputation as one of the most attractive English country house hotels - but not at all grand as it is actually a converted farmhouse - it manages to combine the right balance between formality and friendliness, and many praise the responsiveness of the staff, fortunately there is also excellent food in the restaurant to match to quality elsewhere.

The main dining area is the Conservatory restaurant and a dinner could begin with: Cornish fish soup with tomato, flat parsley and garlic croutons; char grilled Mediterranean vegetable salad with slow baked tomatoes, rocket and ciabatta croutons; Thai spiced crab cakes with soy, lemon and coriander dipping sauce or a salad of griddled scallops with char grilled asparagus, and crispy pancetta.

Then for main course: pan-fried calf's liver with sage, caramelised sweet onion and polenta mash; roast rack of Cotswold lamb with a garlic and parsley crust; venison steak 'au poivre' with spinach and bacon spatzele or grilled marinated fillet mignon of yellow fin tuna with Moroccan vegetables and cous cous. Finish with pannacotta and fresh strawberries; caramelised fig tart tatin with mascarpone and honey or warm chocolate fondant with pistachio ice cream.

Sitting prettily amidst eight acres of gardens and parkland, this 17th century former rectory of Cotswold stone could not have had a better name. And if relaxation for you means doing 'nothing but sinking into a large sofa with a drink and a book', then there are only a few places that can be compared to the Lords of the Manor.

The elegant dining room has been awarded a Michelin star and three AA rosettes. The emphasis, needless to say, is on serving the finest modern European cuisine. And with dishes such as terrine of smoked eel and foie gras, apple, sweet wine jelly; sirloin of Cotswold longhorn beef with a fricassee of Hereford snails and broad beans, and a dessert of Cox's Farm rhubarb and custard sauternes, Executive Chef Matt Weedon proves just why Lords claims to be one of the best restaurants in the country.

The rambling cellar produces a wine list to complement even the most diverse palate.