Crutherland House Hotel

The 2012 edition of The List's Eating & Drinking Guide is out now – only £5.95 (+p&p).

With excellent training in evidence, the front-of-house operation at Crutherland House is most heartening. The maitre d' is a charmer, proudly explaining MacDonald Hotels' go-ahead ethical sourcing policies: sustainable fish courtesy of the Loch Fyne seafood company, Scotch beef that is hung for 21 days, and free-range or even wild poultry. Of course none of this really matters if the food doesn’t live up to this promise, but happily it does. Golden-crusted fresh scallops with chanterelles and a cauliflower purée make a delightful starter. The ubiquitous chicken breast is given a refreshing makeover here, stuffed with the lightest fresh mushroom and spinach mousse, and enlivened by a lovely, mustardy, café au lait sauce and earthy potatoes bashed up with flavoursome tomato flesh and sheeny black olives. Carmelised duck breast and confit leg with chorizo and white bean cassoulet is less spectacular but still tasty, although might benefit more from a Toulouse sausage, as the menu indicated. Desserts all seem to involve ice-cream, but a raspberry creme brulee is rather lovely if a little under-fired. But Crutherland is driven by good intentions and excellent staff, and, for a hotel chain, is really rather impressive.

• High point: Wonderful staff, good cooking
• Low point: Desserts need more thought