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The Thistle Cheltenham can be found just minutes off the M5 and not far from Cheltenham's town centre. Surrounded by tranquil landscaped grounds, the contemporary hotel is popular among both locals and visitors not only because it carries forward the town's spa legacy with its very own steam room, spa and indoor heated swimming pool, but also since it caters for weddings and special occasions and offers modern conference facilities.

The hotel encourages guests to dine at its Burford Restaurant right through the day and into the night. With brightly decorated sofas and ambient lighting, the recently refurbished interior offers the ideal setting for an enjoyable meal. So get set to sample home-cooked British and modern European dishes that include well known favourites and newer creations. A well constructed list of classic and New World wines provides added pleasure.

For those who wish to have something lighter, Thistle's Lounge Bar offers snacks and light meals.

Pizza Express remains a hugely popular bedrock of casual eating. Its popularity is testimony to the fact that across the country, they have restaurants where you will always be guaranteed a good nosh, with children's tastes being well catered for.

Pizza Express has gone even more Roman, and following the success of that particular example of listening to their public have introduced Romana pizzas, including the scorching Etna and the hearty Siciliana.

These pizzas are now thinner, bigger and crispier, and if that sounds like a marketing line, it is. However, unlike many such lines, this one is true, and their quality is always consistent, though cleverly they have still managed to retain a homemade feel to their pizzas.

As an alternative to pizza, try their pollo pesto - cavatappi pasta with torn chicken breast, mushrooms, red onions and mozzarella in a creamy gruyere, parmesan and pesto sauce and finished with grana padano - or the niçoise salad with mixed leaves, yellowfin tuna, free range egg, green beans, potatoes and tomatoes with olives, anchovies, capers and house dressing.

Many of the big chains have come a long way, and Pizza Express is certainly amongst them. One of the first to be quoted on the Stock Exchange - in 1993 - Pizza Express is not a franchise operation and retains tight control through its own staff.

Their wine list - though short - contains some surprisingly good offerings, especially their intense Australian Chardonnay, and a big, full-bodied Merlot from Cusumano, Sicilia.

The majestic white façade of the Alveston House Hotel gives a clear indication of what to expect inside; beautifully designed bedrooms, well-equipped conference facilities, an attractive walled garden and much more. The Carriages is largely a brilliant endeavour; now armed with an AA Rosette, diners could enjoy a pre-dinner drink in the conservatory before heading to the candle-lit restaurant.

The kitchen turns in a fine performance and at the top of the order there is pork, apricot and pistachio terrine with onion marmalade, and pan fried king prawns with chilli, garlic and lime. For main course the choice can range from fillet au poivre, pan-fried beef with a brandy and peppercorn sauce, or seared Gressingham duck supreme. The nostalgic essence of desserts like sticky toffee pudding and Pavlova with fresh passion fruit, thick dairy cream and crushed raspberries is heart-warming.

After a meal retire to the lounge area for coffee, and perhaps a liqueur in front of the open fire to round off the evening at Carriages.

Located in a magnificent Edwardian manor house on Gloucester Road, in the heart of the Cotswolds, Le Spa is a premier hotel, day spa and detox retreat, all rolled into one. The Red Restaurant fits seamlessly into a setting such as this with an interior that can be termed as contemporary with a modish touch. During summer the terrace could be just the place to sip a glass of wine before a full-blown evening meal.

Smoked duck and orange salad garnished with a sweet chilli dressing, and chicken liver parfait with radish and shallot salad served with char-grilled bread could set the tone. To follow, there could be roasted pork loin wrapped in Parma ham served on a celeriac mash with caramelized apples and a sweet cider sauce, or fillet steak stuffed with stilton wrapped in smoked bacon.

Come winter and the craving for comfort begins to intensify, and Red Restaurant winter warmers such as chef's pies of steak and Guinness, and chicken and mushroom come to the rescue. The Red Restaurant welcomes non-members of Le Spa.

Taking its name from the black Hamburg grapes which suspend seductively above you as you dine in the Conservatory restaurant, the Grapevine is well sited in the centre of the town that styles itself 'the antiques centre of the Cotswolds'. So after a hard day's bargaining you may be more than usually ready for a little tender culinary care, where cheerful staff and agreeable surroundings smooth your cares away.

A smoked duck and fig salad with truffle dressing leads off a selection of attractive starters that include a terrine of foie gras and confit duck, Thai spiced beetroot soup and that sturdy favourite a Caesar salad with anchovies, smoked chicken and parmesan. The roast monkfish with confit cabbage and wild mushrooms creates a good flavour-mix, and pan-fried calves liver with crispy bacon and mashed potato are hardy favourites, though not always prepared quite as carefully as these are at the Grapevine. In the pudding department the simple chocolate and honey brulee served with coconut ice cream sets a high standard on which to complete an enjoyable meal before beginning to worry again about that antique chaise longue you 'invested' in earlier during a carefree moment.

Although termed a pub, the Yew Tree is dedicated to the serving of very good food, which it does extremely well. Though modern in appearance the Yew Tree has a long history, partly as a cider house, and enjoys stunning views from the slopes of May Hill.

Under the ownership of Caroline and Philip Todd since 2005 the pub has flourished offering simple well cooked meals using the best quality local produce. Herefordshire beef, Old Spot Pork and local cider cured bacon form the basis of their menu backed up by a daily specials board offering interesting and imaginative meals.

Philip and Caroline import all their own wines which are on display in their in house wine shop. Any of the 60 to 70 wines can be drunk in the pub with a minimum corkage charge, which makes them extremely good value, or alternatively bought to enjoy at home. You will also find an excellent selection of local artisan ciders and well kept real ales from Herefordshire and Gloucestershire.

A relaxed and friendly place offering great food and good value for money!

The Hilton Puckrup Hall Hotel and Golf Club can be found on the edge of the Cotswolds, surrounded by a hundred and forty acres of secluded parkland and with its own eighteen hole championship golf course.

The laidback retreat offers the services of its gym and spa for those who wish to relax, while for the business minded, sixteen meeting rooms are always available.

The dining facilities at Puckrup Hall are second to none, and guests can choose between the elegant Balharries Restaurant and the Terrace Bar. Balharries services food that is influenced from all corners of the world, in a bright maroon and cream setting featuring crisp white tablecloths and floral displays.

The cosy golf course terrace bar is the perfect place to relax with a drink under the stars.

Elsewhere on this site a nearby place, and very different sort of establishment to the Daneway Inn, is reviewed. Both are completely relevant to the age in which we live, both can appeal to the same sorts of people depending upon their mood and circumstances. So let's have no polarisation here.

The Daneway became a pub in the first half of the 19th century (1807) when the Sapperton Tunnel for the Thames and Severn Canal was under construction, and was christened the Bricklayer's Arms. By the 1950s it had been acquired by a Stroud bookie of some substance with a nag called Daneway, and the rest is history.

Do not go here if you are looking for great cuisine, but head unhesitatingly for its doors if you want a quiet drink in traditional surroundings with a very limited menu upon which the most ambitious dish is likely to be a wonderful bacon and egg butty, and no pretensions whatsoever - you will love it.