We’ve recently culled a number of place from our “regular visit” list, as simply no longer performing well. But we keep coming back here because it ticks all the boxes on the “what do you want from a local restaurant” checklist. Lots of choice of food you really want to eat; local & seasonal ingredients and a kitchen that knows how to cook them; and served up by friendly and efficient staff. And, oh yes, very good value for money. Alongside their main carte ( I was tempted by the locally shot pigeon and Bambi), they run a midweek set menu, absolutely on the money at £21.95 for three courses. And, even here, there’s still plenty of choice, even though there’s only four items at each course.
So, that’ll be the bistro classic of ham hock terrine – a bit fridge cold but bags of flavour once it had thawed out a bit. It comes with a tangy carrot chutney, a handful of dressed leaves and two thick slices of bread. The bread also appears alongside the soup of the day – in this case, a well flavoured tomato one with a dice of vegetables and a drizzle of pesto floating on top.
For mains, there was a simply grilled fillet of haddock, topped with gremolata, creamed spinach and saute potatoes. Nice, light and just enough (so long as you hadn’t brought a big appetite with you). Twenty one day aged rump steak was flavoursome, as you’d expect from this cut, and accurately cooked as requested. It’s another simple dish coming with just fries, grilled mushroom and a very peppery mushroom sauce. Both of these did the job.
We often pass on desserts, even here where we know they’ll be decent enough. But this time, we ordered. There was an excellent version of rice pudding , thick and creamy. It’s accompanied by a little dish of prunes steeped in Armagnac. Treacle tart was OK – rich and not overly sweet – and came with a dollop of vanilla ice cream, which cut through it nicely. .
