This was a very pleasant pub to visit and Sir Michael Parkinson, Lady Parkinson and their son Nick have turned the interior of this pub in to a highly elegant and comfortable dining venue. Conveniently positioned next to the B3204, a short distance from the M4, it’s well worth a value lunch if you are driving along the M4 and you can make it fit in with the journey.

The large whitebait with garlic mayonnaise was nice to have as an opener; the parfait that was shared was done well but the points rose with a very delicately and stylishly delivered steak with beautifully sweet and viscous red wine jus and the steak and kidney pie was just about as good as you can get technically and as this is a place where care is taken to detail, the petits fours were a welcome alternative to dessert as we were actually quite full.

The large whitebait with garlic mayonnaise was nice to have as an opener; the parfait that was shared was done well but the points rose with a very delicately and stylishly delivered steak with beautifully sweet and viscous red wine jus and the steak and kidney pie was just about as good as you can get technically and as this is a place where care is taken to detail, the petits fours were a welcome alternative to dessert as we were actually quite full.

It was a very pleasing lunch here, showing sound technical skill and a good return on flavours. The only negatives really are that it is so nice inside, it feels like a full blown restaurant and not a pub, which therefore makes the exterior a bit of a let down aesthetically and a surprise to not be more like a pub inside. The fact that one really does need a car for a meal here, also reduces drink possibilites for one at least. However, if it works with the journey, one will be pleased of the drop in.

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