Despite a negative image in the media, pubs in most parts of the UK are offering more choice and better quality than ever, according to the Consumers Association.
The lobbying group has added no fewer than 117 pubs to the listings in 2005 edition of the Which? Pub Guide.
However, the guide has thrown down the gauntlet to England's second city, saying that none of the pubs surveyed in Birmingham made the grade.
The guide credits the huge improvement in the quality of pub food as one of the main ways the trade has raised its game.
Newly-listed pubs range from the Anchor & Hope gastropub in London, where diners usually outnumber drinkers, to the rural Boar's Head in Ardington, Oxfordshire where first-class food is offered in a traditional setting, with a dartboard in the corner and cask beer ales at the pumps.
Of the new entries, London has 17, bringing the total in the capital up to 67. Manchester has three newcomers, and Cardiff and Brighton, two.
Guide editor Andrew Turvil says: "Many people are sick of identikit mass market boozers with big-brand beers, loud music and staff who don't give a hoot. Real pubs are fighting back - and we've over 1,000 of the best in the guide."
However, he added: "The number of pubs serving good food is steadily increasing, but these are still the exception rather than the rule. It speaks volumes that in a city the size of Birmingham, we've yet to find one that makes the grade. There's still a long way to go."