Sitting close to Offa’s Dyke footpath, this classic traditional country boozer also boasts lovely rustic views from its beer garden. Regular offerings at the bar include beers from Kingstone
Brewery in Tintern, Wye Valley Brewery, Tudor Brewery in Abergavenny, and The Celt Experience, which makes characterful organic ales and lagers. There are excellent ciders too, including tipples
from Weston’s of Much Marcle in Herefordshire and local boys Ty Gwyn in the Monnow valley. Wines are taken seriously too – the list from Bibendum is arranged by style, with helpful food-matching
suggestions. The advice is worth heeding, because the cooking is also a cut above the norm: seared scallops with cauliflower cream, deep-fried crispy cauliflower and smoked Welsh bacon might
precede homemade faggots, creamed mash, gravy and crushed buttered peas, with apple beignets and freshly made custard to finish.