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A pristine and elegant ambience sets the stage for a fine dining experience at the Grill Room. Located at The Cedar Court Grand Hotel and Spa in Station Rise, its modern British menu caters to the gastronomic impulses of its guests.

The extensive à la carte menu features a creative range of classic dishes and nouvelle delights, made from local, seasonal produce with known provenance including sustainably caught fish and ethically bred meat. Its offerings include home smoked duck with bitter plum jam, seared tuna loin with fregola pasta, crisp Cumbrian ham with herb pannacotta, poached turbot with cannelloni of salmon, samphire and rocket and ballontine of rabbit and summer buckwheat. The signature carving trolley with Gueridon dishes offers a delicious roast of the day. A well-stocked cheese trolley offers choices from around the world, including British classic cheeses. Call it a day with wild strawberries and fromage blanc mousse, passion fruit tortellini or apple tart with caramel sauce. At the bar, select your ideal wine from an eclectic list or choose to enjoy signature cocktails or champagne with your meal.

'Charming' is just one of the epithets you would use to describe The Black Swan at Oldstead, a delightful gastropub in York with 2 AA Rosettes and a Rising Michelin Star. Their refurbished bedrooms have also won five stars from the AA. Located not too far from historic Byland Abbey, the simple and understated décor with oak floors, Persian rugs, and candles emitting a soft glow from atop their perch in brass holders add favourably to the ambience.

The menu features traditional as well as modern British fare, using fresh and locally sourced ingredients, with meat brought in from neighbouring farms. For starters, you could try the hand-dived king scallops with cauliflower puree, golden raisins, poppadoms and a taste of curry and then move on to the saddle of venison with homemade black pudding and beetroot and horseradish risotto. Finish indulgently with a valhrona chocolate fondant with peanut butter ice cream and salted caramel.

The bar is warm and welcoming with stone flagged floor, an open log fire, oak fittings, window seats and antique furnishings; just the place to relax with a mug of beer in the company of friends.

At first sight, 31 Castlegate Restaurant, looks like a grand Georgian town house, which in fact, it once was. Occupying a prime spot at the top of the historic street and managed by Chef Julius Nick, it serves as a café by day and a candlelit bistro by night.

There is a cosy bar area consisting of comfortable sofas and a low coffee table at the front of the restaurant, while the dining room is formally decorated in honey and red tones, with starched tablecloths and gleaming glass and silverware.

Highlights include pan-seared king prawns with garlic and red pepper coulis, an avocado and cucumber salad for starters and roast fillet of beef with potato, pancetta wrapped green beans, oyster mushroom ragout and red wine jus for the main course. Choices of dessert include a seductive warm chocolate fondant with white chocolate and basil ice cream.