The Red Lion
Church Lane Litton Derbyshire SK17 8QU
Ask a child to draw an old pub on an oak tree fringed green in a sleepy village and chances are this is what they'd come up with. Litton is one of the prettiest and least-known High Peak villages, and the Red Lion's been a pub since the late 1700s when it was converted from three farm cottages. Not much has changed inside – wonky stone floors, metre-deep walls and oak panelling remain in four cosy rooms, two of which have cracking open fires. You get the picture. A great choice of beer includes Absolution from the Abbeydale Brewery in Sheffield and Oakwells Barnsley Bitter. Pub grub classics come out of the kitchen: beef stew, ham & eggs, liver and bacon followed by treacle sponge and custard – honest cooking at down-to-earth prices, and all designed to line your stomach for the long walks you can take from the door. Worth visiting in June, when the weird and wonderful well dressing is on display. Thank heavens places like this still exist.
