Hello readers! After a steady few weeks of recipes, here’s another review for you to peruse at your leisure, comment on and share. Personally, I believe there’s no greater British meal than a good old Sunday roast, especially a roast beef dinner. The French even refer to us as ‘les rosbifs’. Pretty inoffensive, I’m sure you’ll agree, as it’s a national dish to be proud of. There’s nothing more heart-warming than thick slices of succulent beef, lashings of gravy, fluffy Yorkshire puds and a crispy tatty.
Usually, I don’t tend to go out for Sunday lunch, as now I’m living back at home, Sundays are usually mum’s roast day. I’ll throw it out there, I have never had a roast that equals or betters my mum’s. She is the queen of the roast dinner. There is of course time for someone out there to prove me wrong! But, even mums are entitled to a day off now and again. So a few weeks ago we decided to go out for a family Sunday lunch.
Normally, we eat a Sunday roast in the evening, so it did feel odd to prepare myself for a good feed at lunch time. Nonetheless, I had a meagre breakfast and put on my Sunday best. Many pubs in Cumbria offer a Sunday lunch (I’m sure as this blog progresses, I will get to sample many) with varying menus and degrees of success.
This Sunday, we had decided to visit the Sandford Arms. We decided at the last minute where to go and chose it because of its close proximity. It had been several years since I had visited this pub. We used to go there for family get togethers and celebrations when I was younger. My mum had been to a party there over the Christmas period and had sung its praises and its extensive menu. We rang to book a table before we left, however this proved to be quite unnecessary, as it was quite quiet.
On arrival, we were served drinks and were told that the menu was on a board. There were several starters, including soup, garlic mushrooms and brie wedges. For mains, there was roast beef, roast lamb or vegetarian lasagne. There was also an assortment of deserts. I had expected a larger menu and we all commented on the small selection but on reflection, we wanted Sunday dinner, most people do on a Sunday, so really is there any need to have an extensive menu. Perhaps not.
We all decided to have roast beef. After a short wait of only about 15-20mins, we were shown to the dining room. It was quite quiet in the restaurant. There was only one other table of diners. While it was warm and reasonably comfortable, the dining area could perhaps do with a bit of refurbishment. It looked a little cafe-like through decoration, table setting and lay-out.
We were served our food and in appearance it looked very good. The plates were white, circular and contemporary and the beef was piled in layers. On the side, there was some creamy mashed potato, three roast potatoes and a giant Yorkshire pudding. The meat was covered with gravy. I must admit that these puddings looked like they hadn’t risen properly.
An appetising Sunday roast
The vegetable accompaniments were mashed carrot and swede, cabbage and garden peas. These came in a large dish with two compartments. There was certainly plenty for the four of us. On a picky note, maybe there should have been three compartments, so the peas weren’t hovering over both of the other accompaniments.
Plenty of vegetables!
So how did it taste? That’s the crucial question. And the answer is relatively good. The beef was tasty, maybe a little over cooked for my liking, but it was tasty and succulent. It was cut into thick pieces and there was plenty. The potatoes were crispy and well browned, but I thought the potato inside could have been fluffier. The mashed potato was one of my favourite parts. It was buttery and smooth and utterly delicious. The Yorkshire puddings were fine, but I don’t think they were put in fat that was piping hot, as they had deflated and spread out rather than rising upwards. I love peas so they were a hit and the carrot and swede was delightful. The gravy was also very good. The service was excellent and the waitress was polite and attentive.
All in all it was a good pub roast. It wasn’t perfect or knock-out incredible, but it was good value and tasty.
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