Rafters in Nether Green serves up relaxed fine dining with a Sheffield accent

Some of Sheffield's best cooking happens away from the city centre bustle, and Rafters is a fine example. The restaurant sits on Oakbrook Road in the oak tree-lined suburb of Nether Green, where it describes itself as a relaxed 26-seater offering Sheffield hospitality with food cooked and served by a team that genuinely cares.

In the kitchen, head chef Dan Conlon creates the tasting menus with a keen focus on seasonality, locality and sustainability. The aim is to source as many top-quality ingredients as possible from the British Isles, and diners can choose a 6 course menu, a 10 course menu or the Kitchen Bench experience.

The MICHELIN Guide, which lists Rafters, describes a characterful, rustic-chic first-floor room with exposed beams and brickwork. Its inspectors highlight the real pride and enthusiasm poured into both the cooking and the service, and dishes built around high-quality produce such as Nordic halibut and Creedy Carver duck. The Kitchen Bench gives guests a ringside seat in front of the pass, and the wine list is arranged by style and character to make pairing easy.

A recent Kitchen Bench sample menu shows the kitchen's range, moving from smoked eel with Old Winchester through Orkney scallop with English sparkling to wild Scottish venison with Filey Bay whisky, before desserts such as English blackberry with sheep's yoghurt and sweet cicely. The Kitchen Bench menu is priced at £145 per person, with a wine pairing at around £90.

What makes Rafters feel so rooted in its city is the attention to local craft. Sheffield cutlery sits on bespoke solid oak tables, both made by Richard and Andrew Carr at Carrs Sheffield, while the steak knives are handmade by one of Sheffield's last remaining Little Mesters at Portland Works near Bramall Lane. As the restaurant puts it, "Please feel at home in our home."

The team's hospitality also stretches into the Peak District. Rafters at Riverside House is a 14-bedroom hotel, restaurant and bar on the River Wye in Ashford-in-the-Water, now headed up by the team behind the Nether Green restaurant.

Rafters serves dinner from Wednesday to Saturday, with lunch on Saturdays. Menus, gift ideas and reservations are on the Rafters website.