Local Food Pub of the Year 2008: The Feathers Inn

The tiny Northumberland village of Hedley-On-The-Hill, near the slightly larger enclave of Stocksfield - itself some 20 minutes drive west of Newcastle - is a community in which the local pub plays a crucial role in binding local people together.

With no village shop, post office or pretty much any other form of amenity - Stocksfield has not even got a phone box - it is small wonder that the Feathers Inn, owned and run by Helen Greer and her partner and the pub's chef Rhian Cradock is very much in the centre of things.

A dedicated team of staff help the pair ensure the pub offers the local community a place to meet, drink and socialise.

Crucially, since buying the pub two years ago Helen and Rhian have built up a justifiably lauded reputation for producing great food using local ingredients.

Now more and more pubs rightfully use local producers and suppliers to create dishes that connect it to its market. But it was the opinion of the Publican Food & Drink Award judges that few manage to do so with such considered skill and care than the Feathers.

The pub's food reputation stems from the sterling work of Rhian. Still only in his mid-20s, he has been cooking professionally for more than a decade.

His skills in the kitchen come from years of experience working for the likes of Michelin-starred chef Richard Corrigan. Born not more than a few miles from the pub in which he now works, Rhian's passion for great, local food is palpable, yet he prefers to let his cooking do the talking.

Skilled in butchering and feathering, he gets his hands dirty. "We use everything on an animal, 'nose to tail'," he says, noting that some local farmers rear animals specifically for the pub.

Dishes such as the pub's homemade charcuterie; Rhian's famous black pudding - he takes a day a month out of his cooking schedule just to stir the red stuff - and roast teal illustrate the pub's food range.

Meat, fish, vegetables, game and even ales are supplied from farms, suppliers and producers located within a few miles - and in some cases a matter of a few yards - of the pub.

With the area supporting huge game moors, often a pub customer will pitch up to swap a surplus brace of partridge for a pint of locally-produced cask ale. Rhian then can add an unplanned and up-to-the-minute dimension to his menu.

And speaking of menus, each daily offering features a map of the county of Northumberland on the reverse highlighting the exact location of some 20 suppliers.

The judges were meanwhile impressed with the Feathers' pricing policy; main dishes averaged out at around a tenner a go, even top line dishes rarely nudging above £14.

"We're a pub where people meet to drink and eat," says Helen. "We don't want to price them out of the place."

Superb quality food and at a reasonable price; clearly a winning combination.