The best pub in England and Wales has been named as the Stackpole Inn in Pembrokeshire.
Best pub gongs are handed out here, there and everywhere – but this one is significant, because it comes from prestigious Bristol-based travel guide Sawdays, a specialist in finding special places to stay and eat.
The Stackpole Inn was declared the best overall pub in its 2018/19 awards, which also handed out gongs for best pub with rooms, best pub for seasonal and organic produce, best community pub, favourite newcomer and most authentic pub. Scroll down to discover the winners.
Best all-rounder: Stackpole Inn, Pembrokeshire
The best pub in England and Wales has been named as the Stackpole Inn in Pembrokeshire (pictured)
Sawdays said that the Stackpole Inn is ‘dreamy’ and somewhere ‘you won’t want to leave’
The Sawdays judges were simply bowled over by this stunning pub.
They said that it’s ‘a dreamy Pembrokeshire inn just a short walk from glorious Barafundle Bay’.
They added: ‘The food is tasty, the bedrooms are super, kids and dogs are welcomed. You won’t want to leave and it really wasn’t difficult to choose our best all-rounder.’
Best for local, seasonal and organic produce: The Holford Arms, Tetbury, Gloucestershire
The Holford Arms in Gloucestershire has been named the best pub in England and Wales for local and seasonal food – but the bedrooms are worth toasting, too, as this image shows
Sawdays said: ‘Owners Pete and Tor have a way with food, drink and atmosphere which makes them the clear winners in this category’
At the Holford Arms the bacon comes from free range pigs that the owners have reared themselves
Welcome to the inn where the owners’ apples are pressed for the juices served to customers – and the bacon comes from pigs they’ve reared themselves.
Sawdays said: ‘Owners Pete and Tor have a way with food, drink and atmosphere which makes them the clear winners in this category.’
And just look at that cosy bar room – and the superb bedrooms.
Best pubs with rooms: Swan Inn Swinbrook, Oxfordshire
The Swan has an awful lot going for it. According to Sawdays it has a ‘great pub vibe downstairs’ and is ‘bang on trend’
The bedrooms earned the pub a gong. Sawdays said it ’embodies the spirit of special’
The bar area is suitably creaky and cosy, with beams and wonky tables everywhere
The Swan has an awful lot going for it.
According to Sawdays it has a ‘great pub vibe downstairs’ and is ‘bang on trend’.
But it’s the bedrooms that earned this pub a gong.
Sawdays said: ‘It really embodies the Sawday’s spirit of special and we’re delighted to crown them our “pub with rooms” winners.’
Most authentic pub: The Three Tuns Freehouse, Great Bedwyn, Wiltshire
There’s no pretension at the Sawdays authentic pub of the year for 2018/19 (pictured)
The judges said of The Three Tuns in Wiltshire: ‘Excellent local ales, banging roasts, a boules pitch in the garden. This well-loved pub has a charmingly traditional feel’
There’s no pretension at the Sawdays authentic pub of the year for 2018/19.
The guide said: ‘Excellent local ales, banging roasts, a boules pitch in the garden. This well-loved pub has a charmingly traditional feel.’
And all are welcome, including dogs and children.
Best community Pub: The Abingdon Arms, Beckley, Oxfordshire
This is a pub to warm the coldest of hearts – because it was rescued by the locals and now it’s thriving
Sawdays said that owners Aimee and Joe have demonstrated ‘boundless creativity and courage in this challenging industry and the locals are lucky to have them’
This is a pub to warm the coldest of hearts – because it was rescued by the locals and now it’s thriving.
Sawdays says: ‘One of our favourite new finds: a thriving community pub with great food and a fabulous beer garden with views across Otmoor nature reserve.’
It added that owners Aimee and Joe have demonstrated ‘boundless creativity and courage in this challenging industry and the locals are lucky to have them’.
Favourite newcomer: The Litton, Somerset
The Litton, says Sawdays, ticks all its boxes. And those would be delicious food, cool bedrooms and a pretty village setting
Sawdays says: ‘Owner Sally has ‘poured everything into this happy inn which is loved by locals and passers-by’
There are 14 bedrooms at The Litton. Beds are big and comfy, baths and showers sparkle, says Sawdays
The Litton, says Sawdays, ticks all its boxes.
And those would be delicious food, cool bedrooms with big comfy beds and a pretty village setting.
Owner Sally has, it says, ‘poured everything into this happy inn which is loved by locals and passers-by.’