The White Lion
Main Street Great Longstone Derbyshire DE45 1TA
Greg & Libby Robinson run this charming village pub with enthusiasm, warmth and imagination; you think you're walking into one thing and you get another. It ticks all the cosy country pub boxes (beams, roaring fire, wood floors), and yet there's something unarguably contemporary going on in the kitchen. Admittedly the 'classics' menu doesn't bring any surprises (fish and chips, gammon, burgers), but check out the twice-baked souffle of tomato, basil & parmesan and black kedgeree with smoked haddock on the other. Their roast neck of lamb, rosemary bread pudding, sauted chorizo and butterbeans with redcurrant & port jus is just a faultless plate of food, and provides the requisite amount of ballast required prior to navigating nearby Monsal Dale. Or if you're going to indulge in a couple of pints of Robinson's well-kept Dizzy Blonde, afterwards.
