The Pinewood Hotel, Eden Restaurant - Slough

A brand new, purpose-built boutique hotel within easy reach of Heathrow, the M25 and M4, the Pinewood is not only a boon for business travellers, it also brings fine dining to a town not known for its serious restaurants.

The main gastronomic action focuses on the Eden Restaurant, where a wood-burning oven holds centre stage. Flexibility is the key, and the menu offers everything from 'make your own' grazing platters involving meze, charcuterie, cheeses and the like to 'cataplana' (a pot of mixed seafood in a rich Provençal sauce spiked with star anise).

Alternatively, go for one of the pizzas, a Lebanese salad or something more substantial such as herb-roasted rump of lamb with cumin-baked pumpkin and yoghurt dip or sea bass with courgette gratin and roasted vine tomatoes. Light snacks are served in the bar throughout the day, and you can even call in for afternoon tea.