A Hampshire restaurant has been included among the 100 best local ones as part of the Good Food Guide 2023.

The Purefoy Arms in Preston Candover near Basingstoke was included in the list which was made after months of nominations, inspections and deliberations.

The awards were created 13 years ago to "celebrate the places that are the beating heart of communities around Britain".

The website adds: "This year, we received more than 37,000 nominations from diners advocating their beloved local haunts. It turned out to be the strongest field of contenders we’ve ever seen.

"So, alongside our national and regional winners, we are recognising an extended list of venues offering brilliant, creative, personal hospitality in all corners of Britain."

The full top 100 can be seen on the Good Food Guide website here.

What does the Good Food Guide say about The Purefoy Arms?

When discussing The Purefoy Arms the Good Food Guide said: "The Purefoy, which sits discreetly on the highway through an unsullied village to the south of Basingstoke's fleshpots, takes its role as a community hub seriously.

"Its dining area feels more pub than restaurant (notwithstanding the appearance of a tasting menu), with a working fireplace and walls in sober nautical blue." 

It is also well-received on Tripadvisor, earning a score of 4.5/5 from 293 reviews.

Dishes that were commended include sea bass with bacon and "silky fennel cream" as well as beetroot tart matched with apple sorbet.

Additionally, its dish of locally-sourced pork with celeriac, bacon and mash demonstrated to the Good Food Guide "a readiness to refine classic pub food without transforming it into something puzzling".

Meanwhile, for dessert "Chocolate délice with pistachio and yoghurt sorbet might await at the finish line".

It adds: "To drink, Hampshire ales and locally distilled gins line up alongside a wine list with some English representatives (including bottles from the nearby Danebury Vineyard)."