Beverley Tickton Grange Hotel and Restaurant

Where: Tickton Grange Hotel, Tickton, near Beverley.

Call: 01964 543666.

Open: The Champagne Restaurant – lunch, noon-2pm; dinner, 7pm-9.30pm.

Accessibility: Ground level.

Vegetarian: Yes, option available.

Family friendly? Our group included two teens.

Parking: Ample space.

East Yorkshire coast crab meat, mango and coconut, cardamom yoghurt sorbet.

Textures of beetroot with smoked goat's cheese.

Pan fried duck breast, puy lentils, rhubarb and wild sorrel.

Barrel of beef sirloin, roast artichoke, spiced beef cheek and spring onion hash.

I t's your last meal with your nearest and dearest before leaving the country forever. You're emigrating to Australia, where Vegemite is considered to be an iconic food and barbecues are a treasured national tradition.

So, where would you dine out for the final time to treat your tastebuds to an English meal to remember?

This was the dilemma facing my auntie and uncle – and we couldn't let them down.

An excellent Yorkshire country restaurant was required and we knew just the place.

Beverley Tickton Grange Hotel And Restaurant holds the AA two-rosette award for cuisine and serves up tasty seasonal dishes using local produce.

The Georgian property is in a countryside setting and as we drove up the gravel drive, a plump pheasant strutted into view.

This was very much the English country scene we had in mind.

Pink spring blossom was fluttering around like confetti, adding to the sense of occasion.

Tickton Grange is a family-run venue and we were welcomed by the friendly owner, Paul Whymant, as soon as we arrived.

As it was a warm day we decided to sit outside in the sunshine for our pre-meal drinks.

When we had made our menu choices we were taken through to The Champagne Restaurant, where we had a circular table for ten by a sunlit window.

The lunch menu has the option of two courses for £19.50 or three courses for £23.50 per person.

There was a choice of five tempting starters but not everyone opted for one, insisting they must save room for the mouth-watering desserts.

I had no hesitation in ordering all three courses.

For my starter, I chose a delicious dish of East Yorkshire coast crab, with mango and coconut and a cardamom yoghurt sorbet.

My husband enjoyed smoked goat's cheese with textures of beetroot.

We had eight main dishes to choose from, including two simply cooked options.

The simply cooked pan fried rib eye steak, with big chips, confit tomatoes and beetroot ketchup was a popular choice with our male diners.

The other simply cooked option – Skipsea fresh fish, tarragon and potato with peas a la francaise, spring onion and lime salad – impressed two natives of the east coast.

I was very pleased with my choice – pan- fried duck breast, puy lentils, rhubarb and wild sorrel.

My husband said his dish – the barrel of beef sirloin, roast artichoke, spiced beef cheek and spring onion hash – was perfectly cooked.

The roulade of rabbit loin and leg, carrots, quails egg and piccalilli also went down well with another member of our group.

Everyone was tempted by the desserts and most of the ladies, myself included, could not resist the dark chocolate delice with salted butter caramel and pink praline.

It's not often that I'm defeated by a chocolate option but this was incredibly rich and I'm ashamed to admit I couldn't quite finish it.

I should have opted instead for the sweet little delicacies – a mini tour of the dessert options – as I'm always desperate to try everyone else's.

Coming at a £2.50 supplement, this includes the chocolate delice; the pistachio and walnut baklava; Yorkshire rhubarb; tonka bean ice-cream and rosewater sorbet.

The only one of our party without a sweet tooth opted for the Yorkshire cheese slate – this was a generous serving and would have satisfied several diners.

To finish, there was a selection of roasted coffees or leaf teas with handmade Tickton truffles and sweetmeats, at an extra cost of £3.50.

After suffering defeat on the chocolate course I rallied to tuck into the truffles – a temptation not to be resisted.

Our meal was English dining at its best – a fitting memory for our departing relatives to savour.

At a total cost of £248.20 – including wine, beer and soft drinks – we thought this was excellent value for a party of ten.

Type: A la carte.

Quality of food: Excellent.

Atmosphere: Welcoming country house hotel.

Service: Friendly and attentive.

Value for money: Excellent at £248.20 for ten including drinks..

Best for: Lovers of great cuisine.

Would you go again? Most definitely.