A COUNTRYSIDE restaurant and bar which serves as a base for its community has retained its title as Dining Pub of the Year for Wales in the 36th edition of the Good Pub Guide.

The Felin Fach Griffin, near Hay on Wye, is a seven-bedroomed inn nestled on the county's border between the Black Mountains and the Brecon Beacons.

The Griffin, hosted by Julie Bell, has been owned since 2000 by brothers Charles and Edmund Inkin through their company Eat, Drink, Sleep.

The pub follows the brothers’ belief in “the simple things done well”, a philosophy which was developed during their dairy farming childhood in neighbouring Monmouthshire and aims to support local producers, brewers and growers, as well as having its own kitchen garden.

The 2017 Good Pub Guide said that The Felin Fach Griffin was a 'highly thought-of dining pub with excellent food, a fine range of drinks and upbeat rustic décor; inviting bedrooms.'

Joint owner Edmund Inkin said: “I’m so happy for Julie and her team that they have retained this award as Wales’ leading dining pub. To make guests happy consistently year after year is not easy and it doesn’t happen without an enormous amount of thought and hard work from everyone.”

The Inkin brothers also own The Gurnard’s Head, near St Ives and The Old Coastguard, an iconic seaside hotel in nearby Mousehole.

The 2018 Good Pub Guide is an independent guide featuring more than 5,000 pubs. Entry is by selection only and is based on reviews by 2,000 of the guide’s readership.