People often forget what a terrible place to eat Britain was in past generations. Food was either fast and microwaved, or posh and consumed in reverential silence. Now we are spoilt. Not only are we much more comfortable with the process of eating out – keen to sample new dishes, local produce and seasonal goodies – but there's a ton of choice: everywhere from local pubs serving inventive takes on traditional British dishes to a selection of foreign cuisines you would be hard pressed to find in any other European country. This month I've been seeking some of them out...
A Foodie Tour of Suffolk...
I was in Suffolk recently to update my Telegraph Guide to the county, and realised while I was there that it's much like a gentler and more undiscovered Cotswolds – very rural and full of idyllic villages like Bildeston, where I enjoyed an overnight stay in one of the very comfy rooms at The Crown and enjoyed an excellent dinner of local chalk stream trout and venison. Suffolk has some brilliant places to eat, and The Crown is without doubt one of them, serving food sourced from the owners' Nedging Hall estate and ales from their very own Mauldons Brewery. I also stopped off at Lark, a sublimely simple, 'hyper-seasonal' small plates restaurant right in the heart of Bury St Edmunds, and on the next day at the equally high quality Greyhound. Tucked away in the tiny village of Pettistree, just outside Woodbridge, it's a pub which serves a top-notch, delicious menu of inventive dishes made with local ingredients. Like pubs in times gone by, its toilets are remain outside - perhaps the perfect illustration of how Suffolk punches above its weight when it comes to food but perhaps lacks some of the pretensions of its Cotswolds counterparts!
... and on to Nottingham
Nottingham is another part of Britain which might surprise you with its restaurants. While visiting the DH Lawrence Birthplace Museum in nearby Eastwood, I discovered just how far the city had come from its gritty mining and industrial roots, with a strong selection of really excellent places to eat, all found in the city centre's busy and inviting web of pedestrian streets around the impressive Market Square – from the meticulously presented fixed-price menus at Cleaver & Wake to the cut-above tapas and Spanish cuisine with a twist at Iberico or the down-home brunch specials at the buzzy Bear. I stayed in the city's Lace Market district, where the Lace Market Hotel is just the ticket for a weekend break, with comfy boutique rooms and its own pub next door.
In Search of London's Best Schnitzel
Who doesn't love a schnitzel? Comfort food from the heart of Europe, made of breaded pork or veal (sometimes chicken), fried until it's crispy and served simply with a slice or two of lemon and a zesty potato salad. For some reason, the best places to eat schnitzel in London are among its grandest restaurants, so it was no hardship to spend some time finding the capital nest schnitzel, starting with the magnificent Delaunay at the Aldwych, where you can feast on a perfect chicken schnitzel or classic wiener schnitzel (with veal) for around 30 quid in the restaurant's beautiful interior. The giant German Gymnasium at Kings Cross offers a similar but slightly cheaper experience, and a terrific array of pork, chicken and wiener schnitzels, as does the equally elegant but more intimate Fischers on Marylebone High Street. Do what I did and opt for a Holstein Schnitzel, topped with a fried egg, capers and an anchovy or two. Other schnitzels are of course available – and one place to try them is Stoke Newington's Schnitzel Forever, where the food is not only a lot cheaper but the variety much greater. Not one for purists perhaps but your vegetarian and pescatarian friends will thank you for it!
Cool Places of the Month
It's Glamping Season, which means we have a brilliant selection of new glamping properties coming on stream – everything from the luxury paid and shepherds huts of Wolds Walk Glamping in East Yorkshire, the yurts at Cotna Eco Retreat in Cornwall to the high-luxury cabins, bell tents and shepherds huts of Kits Coty Glamping in Kent or the multiple waterside glamping options of Norfolk's Whitlingham Broad Glamping. One of our favourite glamping sites, Graig Wen in Wales, is offering 10% off in June. If you're getting together with friends, consider glamping at Talton Lodge in Warwickshire, which has fabulous facilities for groups. And if you can't decide whether to glamp or not, why not stay at West Lyn Farm in Devon, which offers both shepherds huts and B&B rooms?
Hot Deal of the Month
Not so much Deal of the Month as Deals! Get in quick and you'll get a significant saving at North Yorkshire's cut and quirky Roost Retreat for two this month, Likewise at the beautiful cottages of Cornwall's Olde House, where you can enjoy their pool, sauna and other facilities for 20% off till the end of June. Finally, if you fancy a bit of waterside luxury this summer, you should know that our friends at Storrs Hall are offering great discounts for slightly longer stays in their Lakeside and Boathouse rooms this summer, with 15% off if you stay for 5 nights. These are beautiful rooms in a glorious location – it would be rude not to!
