Sawday's treasures

The latest edition of one of the industry's leading pub guides, Alastair Sawday's Pubs & Inns Guide is out today. Jo Bruce talks trends and top...

The latest edition of one of the industry's leading pub guides, Alastair Sawday's Pubs & Inns Guide is out today. Jo Bruce talks trends and top pubs with its editor David Hancock

In any branch of Waterstone's, you'll find shelves heaving with pub guides. Leaf through a random pick of them and you will soon realise there are pub guides... and there are pub guides.

Some guides make it hard to believe that their authors have undertaken more than a cursory inspection of listed pubs, while others are labours of love, complete with evocative descriptions of outstanding hostelries.

The question of whether a pub has paid for its entry goes to the heart of whether a guide proves reliable: generally, any exchange of cash means a less reliable source.

But Alastair Sawday's guide is the exception to the rule. Each of the 110 pubs with rooms featured in Sawday's new Pubs & Inns Guide paid to be inspected, but pubs failing to reach its exacting standards are excluded.

The other 790 pubs featured are inspected independently and only included if deemed "special places" by editor David Hancock and his inspecting team.

All pubs included in the guide's fourth edition have a good food offer, but may be special for other reasons; they may have a great beer range or wine list; they may be a long-established, historic pub, or feature superb views.

Within a year, the latest edition has found 100 more pubs worth mentioning. A total of 900 pubs are featured, with 650 pubs worth a full page or half-page mention and a further 250 included in the "Worth a Visit" section.

Also listed are pubs that stand out for a special reason - those best, for example, for offering a range of real ale, brewing their own beer, presenting an authentic identity, or having excellent cheese or seafood offerings.

Hancock warns that the line is too fine between some pubs and restaurants and says too many gastropubs are losing sight of their pubby roots, as tills tot up meals rather than pints.

"If most of the dining tables are covered in 'reserved' signs, you are greeted with a menu and asked whether you have booked, and the pristine bar is virtually devoid of

real-ale handpumps, you can be pretty sure your once-treasured boozer has metamorphosed into a restaurant."

Hancock adds that the best English and Welsh food pubs strike a balance between the identities of a restaurant/bistro and a pub.

He adds: "A pub is a pub when you find three or more (often local) real ales, a genuine, warm welcome for those popping in for a pint, and an easy-going, convivial atmosphere."

The clear improvement in the quality of wine served in pubs is another trend highlighted by Hancock. He explains: "A pub may only have a dozen wines on its list, but they're likely to have been chosen with care and blend the New World with the Old."

Community pubs feature strongly in the guide's entries. Threats affecting village pubs include the possibility of becoming "dormitory settlements" where locals don't tend to participate actively in the community.

"With the right licensee at the helm, these pubs can thrive and draw the community together by becoming meeting venues, post offices, shops and delicatessens," he says.

Hancock also highlights the move by chefs away from the last decade's Mediterranean and fusion fixation and revival of rustic British dishes on pub menus.

"Food once confined to below stairs has now become the trendiest thing on your plate.

"And these British-rustic delicacies tend to have simple, strong flavours that go rather well with a pint," he says.

l Alastair Sawday's Pubs & Inns of England & Wales costs £14.99. Visit

www.specialplacestostay.com for details.

Flavours in favour

David Hancock looks at what's in vogue in gastropub food

Bath chaps; faggots; black pudding; champ; oxtail & kidney pudding; smoked eel; potted ham with chutney; herring & potato salad; bubble & squeak; slow food; pan-fried; trio of chops; jus; sausages served with onion

marmalade and made from venison, wild boar or Cumberland pork; triple-cooked chips; bruschetta; polenta; pancetta;

carpaccio; duck confit; venison; salad leaves; old-fashioned root veg - beetroot, swede, parsnip, celeriac; pumpkin and squash; wild mushrooms; nursery

puddings; crème fraîche.