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Pointers Inn - Newchurch **
new-entry
We (maddish mum and I) nearly left
having been told that the tiny restaurant was fully booked. I just happened
to ask the barmaid if we could eat in the bar. "Not a problem" we were
told.
We both had saute herring roes on
toast to start. The portions was huge, one between us would have been
enough. the roes were cooked to perfection, creamy in the middle and crispy
on the outside. For main course we had the pork fillet with creamy mustard
sauce ad the duck which was excellent. The pork fillet, to my mind the
most difficult meat to cook was a little on the dry side but very tasty. I
cannot help but feel that their menu of some forty dishes for just 30 or so
covers is too large. If the menu was halved there would still be a good
choice and a better chance of cooking skills moving closer to perfection.
Red Lion at Freshwater**+
It was a warm winter’s day when I visited this old pub next to Freshwater
church. Just arriving in the area makes you feel as if you have entered a
world of traditional village life. If a coach and horses drove past you
wouldn’t blink.
The friendly barman was eager to serve and patient to wait while we
sorted ourselves out. It took some time, as the menu offered several dishes
we wanted to try.
Wonderful country style dishes with various game and fresh fish
suggestions. Having absorbed the specialties, we looked at the more
traditional choices of cottage pie, lasagne and chips. There was something
for every taste.
Having placed our order we settled down in a sunny window seat. The pub
is broken up into little alcoves, giving a feeling of intimacy and privacy.
Soft wooden floors, scrubbed tables and gentle lighting was a bit like
cross- over dressing - an old fashioned farm house kitchen dressed up as a
trendy country pub. Food portions were generous. My dish of venison, pickled
walnut and ale pie was really a casserole with
a separately cooked pastry crust. This is a great idea if you like
your pastry light and crisp, but not if you like the flavour of the gravy to
seep into the pastry while it is cooking. I like it both ways, but the
pastry cooked separately is more practical for a pub with a good choice on
the menu. The flavour was natural, not that artificial taste you get from
packet mix gravy.
My companion chose the pheasant in brandy and cream sauce. Both the leg
and the breast were served coated in a delicious gamy sauce. Both dishes
came with perfectly cooked vegetables, including bright green cabbage,
carrot purée and new potatoes.
The blackboard menu of desserts were a mixture of traditional and slightly unusual. Bread and butter pudding, apple and forest fruit crumble.
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Bonchurch Inn - Bonchurch
*+
New-review
This is not just a step back in time
but a leap into another world. The small bar at Bonchurch Inn reeks of
nostalgia. Pubs when pubs were real pubs - not family eateries. Old men sat
around a crib table, ladies in felt hats with their glass of stout in an
atmosphere that is dark, quite and restful. The courtyard entrance tells a
different tale of Provincial France, where an ancient stone walled alley
leads to a hideaway known only to the locals.
The Inn is run by an Italian family
steeped in tradition. A few basic
dishes such as scampi and chips are available for those frightened of food.
Then a typical Anglo/Italian menu with little embellishment lists lasagne,
spaghetti bolognaise, pasta carbonara, and pizza.
There are certain dishes that I never
order unless I am confident they are genuinely home made and of some
quality, such a pizza. The pizza at Bonchurch Inn is a must. The base is
tender and freshly baked, not like the hard defrosted rubbish you get in
most places and the tomato and cheese topping is intensely flavoured. I took
the "Brawn" with me. He
had the Antipasto Platter,
packed with meat and other delicacies. Stick with the Italian dishes.
In the Winter
cuddle up in the tiny bar and on a hot summers day chill out in the
Courtyard. By the way beer comes from the barrel.
Where is it? - From Ventnor to
Shanklin turn right towards Bonchurch pond. Drive slowly or you will miss
it. it is on the right half way down the hill. If you get to the church you
have gone to far. |
Pub Specials Board
I cannot recommend all of the so called popular pubs
as I have found the cooking not up to scratch in many of them. Menu boards
offering fancy dishes that do not work, are badly cooked, contain inferior
ingredients and just to expensive for what they are offering. Also pubs
should not offer pastry based dishes if they have to be reheated in the
microwave - soggy pastry is simply not acceptable. So far I have
tested 15 pubs.
The list of my favourite
specials-boards begins below...
White Lion - Arreton. Excellent fish
pie
Red Lion - Freshwater. Superb selection of
vegetables, beautifully cooked.
Pointer Inn - Newchurch. great Herring
Roes on toast
Seaview Hotel Pub I ended up at the Seaview pub having
just left the most disgusting thing I have ever been served somewhere else. I won't say where it was as I only review good establishments but is was called "Arreton
Tomato Summer Pudding", It comprised of two small discs of
soggy, slimy, highly unpalatable cheap white bread, smeared with some tomato goo on a tiny bed of green leaves.
At £6.95 it was also a rip-off. I fared
better at the Seaview pub with a nicely cooked smoked salmon risotto. |
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