GIDLEIGH Park Hotel in Chagford has been named the best restaurant for food in the South West in the Sunday Times Food List.

The Devon eatery is second overall in this year's top 100, having ranked third in the 2011 list. Surrounded by ancient hills and woodland, celebrity chef Michael Caines' famous establishment has retained two Michelin stars for 14 years.

The restaurant has won a clutch of awards in recent years. In 2012 alone, the hotel has won hotel of the year and rural hotel of the year in the Food and Travel Magazine Reader awards, five red stars through the AA Inspectors' Choice, a customer award from Talees Best of Guide, and head sommelier Edouard Oger was awarded an Acorn award as one of 30 young achievers under 30.

Other honours include the 'winner of winners' at the 2011 Devon Tourism awards, Taste of the West South West restaurant of the year, and a gold award from Visit Britain.

The Sunday Times Food List ranks Britain's top 100 restaurants strictly by the quality of their food, and is compiled from marks and comments from real customers.  This year's list has been compiled from more than 75,000 individual reports. 

Now in its third year, the list is compiled in collaboration with Harden's, whose own restaurant guides base their ratings on the views of diners who eat out regularly. The list rankings are based on the food the restaurant serves, though the ratings for ambience are used in the event of a tie.

Karen Robinson, editor of the Sunday Times Food List said: 'The Sunday Times Food List is the ultimate taste test. It represents the views of the food-loving public rather than a clique of food critics or anonymous restaurant inspectors telling us where to go and spend our money.'