The best country pubs near Manchester and Liverpool

The Assheton Arms is a classic country pub – perfect for a stop off after a walk in the Ribble Valley. Given that its wine selection is so good, perhaps you should take advantage of the accommodation – many of the bedrooms have views of Pendle Hill – and turn lunch into a weekend getaway.

There’s a story behind the American and British flags that fly over the entrance to The Bells of Peover, a country dining pub in a village south of Knutsford.

Located in a Grade II Listed building from 1626, The Bridge is full of charm, whether you’re going for a weekend away or Sunday lunch. This hotel and restaurant sits on the banks of the River Bollin in the picturesque Cheshire village of Prestbury, and has been newly refurbished.

This historic coaching house serves adventurous British pub food in poetic configurations. The cooking at The Cartford Inn is by mushroom forager and head chef Chris Bury whose CV includes the Fat Duck and Claridges.

The Cholmondeley Arms, or ‘The Chum’ as it’s known, is a country estate pub that’s as welcoming for four-legged furry folks as it is for us mere two-legged types. Both Sawday’s and the Sunday Telegraph have recognised the pub as a top place to stay with your pup

The Church Inn is a gorgeous country pub with a big reputation. The food and drink lives up to its quaint chocolate box charm and draws in punters from all over Cheshire and Greater Manchester.

The Dysart Arms has roaring fires, antique prints, higgledy-piggledy bookshelves kind of look while being quite light and airy at the same time. There’s also a lovely beer garden overlooking the churchyard. It’s a good place to finish off a country walk – in fact, you can download a circular route from the pub’s website.

The Eagle & Child is famous for offering excellent Sunday lunches and award-winning pub grub in the hills above Manchester.

The Fishpool Inn is just on the edge of Delamere Forest. Walk up an appetite and then tuck in to hearty pub food. After all, it tastes better when you’ve earned it.

The Fox & Barrel is a traditional Cheshire country pub with seasonal food, a good wine list and some very good gin too. For the most part, it offers exactly what you’d expect and a bit more – cracking Sunday roasts, an open fire with snug seating, handpumps on the bar and tables on the terrace.

Cooking goes from strength to strength at the Freemasons at Wiswell in Lancashire’s Ribble Valley. Roaring fires, cast-iron fireplaces and pictures of fantastically proportioned livestock lend a cosy vibe to the renovated cottages which make up what’s been described as the original gastropub.

Full of character and history, The Golden Pheasant is a cosy village inn with real fires, dog-friendly sections inside, and large gardens with a children’s play area and views of the Cheshire countryside. There’s also award-winning JW Lees cask ales and seasonal home cooked food.

Reliably good dinners are served at The Higher Buck, a pub meets gastro eatery where respected local chef Michael Heathcote’s menu is a Ribble Valley favourite. It’s also a regular in Good Food Guides and was named in the Estrella Damm Top 50 Gastropubs in the UK list in 2021.

Holcombe Tap Bar & Kitchen, as it sometimes goes by the name of, is all about small plates. It’s also all about guest ales and gins, but that’s another story. It’s all about small plates that look good, taste good and do a good job of lining your stomach so you can sample all those guest ales and gins.

It was the TV series The Trip starring Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon that made The Inn at Whitewell a celebrity in its own right. The setting, an area of outstanding natural beauty, is still as bucolic as it was in the show. And the food from long-serving head chef Jamie Cadman is still more than worth the car journey.

Humbly describing itself as a “community gastropub”, The Pack Horse is raking in the glowing reviews, including by food critics making a special trip up from That London – it’s even been named one of the Top 50 Gastropubs 2022 and it’s Michelin Guide listed.

The Parker’s Arms is a homely pub, serving and baking extraordinary, modern European food.

The Pheasant Inn is a cut above when it comes to country pubs. Enjoy a drink in the sunshine looking out at the rolling Peckforton Hills or take in the atmosphere of the pub itself which has been standing since the 17th century. It’s full of cosy nooks, exposed beams and country inn character.

The Red Lion’s location in Whitworth, Rochdale is semi rather than fully rural but in terms of character and style, you can’t get much more ‘country pub’ than this. It’s got the cobblestone square outside, the roaring fire inside, the sleepy dogs by the bar, the sturdy British cooking. It has the history too, dating from the 17th century.

In a little hamlet of cottages just outside Knutsford you’ll find The Roebuck Inn, an 18th-century pub that looks like it fell out of the pages of Country Living magazine. If you’re searching for for rustic, cosy dining with food that’s a level above, it won’t disappoint. 

Rescued from the rural pub doldrums a few years back, Dunham Massey’s The Rope & Anchor, close to Bowdon, Hale and Altrincham, now offers a full food menu and Sunday roast, a range of JW Lees cask ales and lagers, a big beer garden with play area, and The Barn function space.

There’s no shortage of ye olde pubs in Knutsford. The thatched roofed White Bear is the most ancient with a birth date of 1587, while the allegedly haunted Lord Eldon is another that’s seen 300-plus years of trade. The 17th century Rose & Crown is a relative newcomer in comparison but if it’s timber beams, latticed windows and cosy nooks you’re after, you’ll be more than happy here.

The Rum Fox is a new dining destination with all the charm of an old one, housed in the former village pub. The tap room keeps the feel of the local alive with a good range of ales and the clean decor is that of a posh inn but the food is more ambitious than any pub grub.

The Strawbury Duck is a traditional country pub near Entwistle reservoir with a solid reputation amongst Boltonians for its home-cooked food.

The Swan Inn is a beautiful whitewashed pub in the Cheshire countryside with a reputation for excellent fish and seafood despite its inland location. This refurbished gem has beer gardens front and back, some very nice rooms for an overnight stay and regular food events like tapas nights. There’s also an annual Victorian day in December which includes an eight course breakfast and a nine course dinner – fortunately they skip lunch.

The Swettenham Arms is in an idyllic location, right next to the Lovell Quinta Aboretum. The pub even has its own lavender field, wafting soothing floral notes over outdoor drinkers. The Swettenham Arms itself is pretty idyllic too, dating from the 1500s. With all that history, it’s no surprise that it claims to be haunted.

The White Hart at Lydgate is a rustic dining pub with an excellent reputation and wine list. Located 700 feet above sea level, where Saddleworth Moor starts, the restaurant is in an impressive former coaching house, and it’s a place for all: there’s a restaurant and brasserie with two AA rosettes, a pub, function areas and a boutique hotel.

Thought it’s only been open a short while (since March 2023 to be exact), The White Horse in Churton is no rookie when it comes to good quality country pub food. It’s from Gary Usher’s Elite Bistros, the team behind the award-winning, crowd-sourced Sticky Walnut, amongst others.

Some folk in the village still refer to The White Swan at Fence as The Mucky Duck and you can still order a pint of Timothy Taylor’s at its very pubby bar. But over recent years The Swan has established itself as a destination fine-dining spot thanks to young chef Tom Parker from up the road in Burnley.

The Windmill is a country pub with beautiful views and traditional British food that is definitely on the gastro end of the pub grub spectrum.