My travels last week took me to two quite different pubs, one in East Oxfordshire run by a professional pub company, the other in West Oxfordshire run by a builder who saved his village pub from the developers.

First however I’d like to mention another pub visit closer to my home. Having checked that dogs were welcome at this family-run establishment – which will remain nameless – my friend and I entered with the dog, then waited and waited and waited for someone to notice us. Those behind the bar were enjoying an intimate conversation, which they had no intention of finishing just because we had arrived. When we were finally served it was without enthusiasm. Actually, my friend and I felt like intruders. It was an uncomfortable feeling. The food we were served was over-priced, over-cooked pub grub that looked as if it had been thrown on to the plate from a great height. It tasted even worse than it looked. No one said goodbye when we left. Obviously we will never return. The experience depressed me, because with country pubs still continuing to close at the rate of 30 a week, those still in business need to be run professionally or they will become part of this wretched statistic too.

That said, fortunately there are people who still care about pubs and are doing all they can to ensure they remain open. I am talking about the Peach Pub Company which has just reopened a pub in Thame and renamed it the James Figg, after the famous 17th-century boxer who once lived in the building. I am also thinking of Richard Lait, a builder who decided to put something back into the community by restoring his village pub – The Swan, Ascott-under-Wychwood – and running it professionally.

On entering both the James Figg and the Swan, I was greeted immediately. Although the barmaid at the Swan was pouring a pint for someone else when I reached the bar, she looked up, gave me a warm friendly smile of acknowledgement and promised she wouldn’t be a moment. Frazer Sutherland, manager of the James Figg gave us a warm welcome too and acknowledged my dog by offering him a bowl of water and a pig’s ear to munch while we were having lunch.

The interesting thing about the James Figg is that although it has been refurbished stylishly, it is not being run as a gastro pub. Peach Pubs decided that what Thame needed was a simple, friendly pub with an enjoyable atmosphere where customers could drop in for a drink with friends or family and a quick bite to eat too. They want the James Figg to prove an attractive new watering-hole at the heart of a bustling market town.

On tap there are four well-kept real ales and Cotswold seasonal lagers. Frazer calls it a proper pub and a real place for real people. The menu is limited and the dishes are simple meals in keeping with the pubby theme. But because they are all prepared from the finest local ingredients by a chef who cares, they are as scrumptious as anything Peach Pubs serve in their other places which offer a more lavish menu.

We left for our walk round the nearby Cuttle Brook Nature Reserve feeling that all was right with the world.

We left the Swan to begin our walk along the Oxfordshire Way with the same warm feeling.

It took Richard Lait more than a year to refurbish the Swan. He put a lot of effort into ensuring it kept a country feel that would encourage the residents of the village to consider it their local. He feels very strongly that small villages need community shops and pubs to keep the village alive.

Several years ago he had been one of the Coln St Aldwyns residents who fought for their pub to remain open. It was partly due to his efforts that a new law was written into the statute books which decrees that if there is only one pub left in the village it can’t be redeveloped for housing.

The meal we were served at the Swan was superb – I enjoyed a home-cooked Thai curry and my friend tucked into an Arnold Bennett omelette (see recipe) which he declared absolutely delicious. The beer was good too. No wonder the Swan has received accolades from three national guides.

The interesting thing about Richard is that he has never run a pub before – he has, however, been a frequent customer at pubs, hotels and restaurants. He claims that because he knows what a customer expects when they walk into his establishment, no one will be disappointed. We certainly weren’t.

So two quite different pubs, one run by an award-winning pub company, the other by a builder. I’m confident both will be successful because they care about the customer.