We’ve had lunch here a number of times. As with other Brunning & Price places, the food is reliable and, whilst I’m sure there must be some corporate direction, individual chefs are allowed to develop their own menus.
Part of the corporate direction must be to have a braised lamb dish on the menu. I don’t think I’ve ever been into one of their places and not seen it in some form or another. Here, it was a generous serving of very long cooked meat, falling off the bone. Delicious in itself and enhanced with some lovely shredded leeks & greens and a well made slab of dauphinoise potato. The gravy was somewhat, erm, industrial, with nothing of the sparkle you might have hoped for from the advertised redcurrant and red wine. .
A ploughman’s featured local Staffordshire and Buxton Blue (both made by the Staffordshire Cheese Company, twenty miles away at Leek), as well as brie. It comes with all the “usuals” – a really good wholemeal bread, an indifferent white bloomer, apple, celery, grapes, chutney, pickled onion. And a small pork pie.
Very decent lunch, as always.
