The Crooked Billet, Henley

There are very good reasons why this pub, down a windy back lane in the unexpectedly rural hinterland between the great metropolises of Henley and Reading, tends to get packed to the gunnels with grub-seekers and metro-rural types, particularly at the weekend. It’s a very pretty place, for a start, typically quaint you could say, with a very smooth, very efficient, very charming team keeping things rolling along. There’s nothing too recherche about the longish Eurocentric menu, but there’s something on it for most tastes, including vegetarians, and it’s all very well cooked with a rustic, homely quality that doesn't lose sight of its surroundings, and is generously served. There is a model cheese board of local varieties and a roll-call of rich, rollicking puds to round things off.