The Lion in Malpas, a historic coaching inn in a Cheshire village, has been named Best Inn at the 2026 Great British Pub Awards. The pub beat five other finalists from across the country to win the title in the first year the awards have included a Best Inn category.
A New Category for 2026
The Best Inn category was introduced this year to recognise pubs that combine great food and hospitality with overnight accommodation. The Lion, which dates back 300 years, sits on the main road through Malpas and was praised by judges as a beautifully presented country inn delivering an “exceptional combination of food, drink, accommodation and hospitality, with sustainability, community and staff development firmly embedded in the business”.
The pub said in a statement: “There’s plenty to raise a glass to in Malpas this week after The Lion was crowned Best Inn at the 2026 Great British Pub Awards. And there was an extra reason to celebrate: Best Inn is a brand-new category for 2026, making The Lion its first-ever winner.”
What Makes The Lion Special
Often described as a “pub full of joy”, The Lion offers a welcoming bar, food, Sunday roasts, roaring fires, beautiful bedrooms and warm hospitality. Its food is celebrated with a “20-mile menu”, featuring seasonal ingredients and producers sourced within a 20-mile radius from the surrounding countryside. The pub also has 16 individually designed bedrooms, including a suite within an old bakery on the site.
The pub was given a new lease of life in 2018 when owners Si and Chrissy Lees Jones, together with Woody Barlow of Bear Inns, set about transforming the historic pub while “keeping everything that makes a great village pub special”. Following the extensive transformation, The Lion reopened in September 2020 with its bar and restaurant, 16 bedrooms and the Brereton Suite, a venue for small gatherings, celebrations and weddings.
Village Pride and Recognition
Woody Barlow, Founder and Director of Bear Inns, said: “Winning Best Inn is just brilliant. We have always wanted The Lion to be a pub full of joy and somewhere you can wander in for a pint, bring the dog after a walk, settle in for one of our Sunday roasts, have dinner with friends or stay for a whole weekend.”
He added: “So to be named the best inn in the country, and the first ever winner of this award, means an enormous amount to all of us. But this really belongs to Bethan Rose-Bailey and her team. They are the ones who bring The Lion to life every day and make people feel so welcome. And it belongs to Malpas too. We have incredible support from the village and our wider Cheshire community, and that is a huge part of what makes The Lion what it is. We’ll definitely be raising a glass or two to this one!”
Malpas itself has won awards in recent years, including being named one of The Sunday Times' Best Places to Live in the UK last year, partly thanks to its “excellent pubs” and village amenities. The village, close to the Shropshire and Wales borders, has also been named the “best secret village to live in the UK” by The Times and one of the best places to live in the UK by The Telegraph.
Malpas dates back to medieval times and was once a thriving market town, but retreated in scale to a village while neighbouring towns like Whitchurch expanded. Its train station closed in the 1950s, and its remote location is perhaps why it has fallen into the “best kept secret” category in recent years. The Lion is at 1 Old Hall Street, the main road through the village, around 35 minutes from Chester and an hour's drive from Manchester.
