The story
The Dog and Gun Inn at Skelton, CA11 9SE, in Penrith, cooks modern British food and holds one Michelin star for 2026. The Queen-Fryer family have run this dining pub since 2017, and the menu is built on Cumbrian ingredients cooked with care and a little technique.
Ben Queen-Fryer works alone at the stoves, and the kitchen's suppliers are mostly close by. Lamb comes from the next village of Ellonby, fish from the dock at Maryport, and cheese from Torpenhow. Lyth Valley damsons and Cartmel Valley venison come from further into the South Lakes. The AA has awarded the kitchen three rosettes for culinary excellence.
A yolk-yellow raviolo filled with pork is sauced with its own poaching milk, sage and garlic. The venison suet pudding is packed with tender, gamey meat and served with beetroot cooked in duck fat, mead gravy and thick chips. Dover sole comes with a butter sauce, and the dessert soufflé, made with Lyth Valley damsons, is served with frangipane ice cream.
A central bar divides the dining room, which has uneven ceiling beams and wheelback chairs. The drinks list starts with a couple of Cumbrian craft beers and fairly priced wines by the glass. Bottles range from Swiss varieties and Slovak Riesling to an orange wine from Alsace.
Recognition
Ambience
Details
History
High quality cooking
The Dog & Gun takes centre stage in the tranquil north Cumbrian village of Skelton. As befits its name, the place will welcome your canine companion (if you give notice), but perhaps leave the firearms at home. It's a welcoming dining space, divided by a central bar, with misshapen ceiling beams and wheelback chairs, and an approach to service considerate enough to turn down the Ed Sheeran when orders are being taken. Ben Queen-Fryer works in splendid isolation at the stoves, offering a style of high-gloss country cooking that puts the emphasis on substance as well as impressive technique. Pasta is spot-on, as in a yolk-yellow raviolo filled with pork, sauced with a reduction of the poaching milk with sage and garlic. A terrine of smoked Jersey Royals, or perhaps a cheesy soufflé, might be alternative starters, but do save room for the trencher-style main dishes – witness a stonking venison suet pudding packed with tender, gamey meat, served with a stick of beetroot done in duck fat, mead gravy and a side of the chunkiest chips. Dover sole is butter-sauced, while the veg option might be earthy cep risotto. Even the crumbly-topped dessert soufflé, made with the Lyth Valley's celebrated damsons and partnered with frangipane ice cream, is a hefty proposition – so that diners not opting for the chocolate millefeuille need not feel skimped. A couple of Cumbrian craft beers and sanely priced wines by the glass lead the drinks offering, with selections forsaking the beaten track for Swiss varietals, Slovak Riesling and an orange creation from Alsace.
3 Rosette Award for Culinary Excellence
Location
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