Derby doesn't try to be anything it isn't, and that's most of its charm. This is a working city that grew up around the railway and the river, and its pubs tend to follow suit: solid, unfussy, more interested in a well-kept pint than in the decor. The cathedral quarter has the oldest, prettiest streets, all narrow lanes and independent shopfronts, but head a few minutes in any direction and you're back among the redbrick terraces and old works buildings that make Derby what it is.
It's a compact place, easy to cross without a car, and that closeness is part of the appeal: everything worth finding sits within a short walk or a quick bus ride of the middle of town rather than scattered out across the county. Derby has never needed to borrow scenery from the Peak District to make its case. What's within reach on foot from the centre is plenty, pint by pint, without needing to chase it further out.
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