The Berkeley Arms, Worcester

Head down School Road towards St John's and you'll find yourself in the kind of local that actually feels like it belongs to the community rather than existing for Instagram. The Berkeley Arms has that comfortable, lived-in quality—sticky carpets and regulars who know the bar staff by name, the sort of place where you can nurse a pint without anyone making you feel rushed. It's the pub you'd hope to find round the corner, doing straightforward stuff well: proper cask ales, the kind of food that doesn't pretend to be anything other than what it is, and enough character that you'll want to come back.