All’s rosy in the garden... centre
OUR tummies were rumbling after a walk in the late summer sun. It may have been September but as the sun shone beat down, if felt like, well August 2018.
The bees were buzzing, bare arms were out and the outside seating at Bradley Gardens ,between Crawcrook and Wylam, was full with people trying to make the most of what was left of the summer.
Mrs Eats and myself were given a seat in the conservatory, which given it was late afternoon, was still very busy.
The doors and windows were all open to give a much-needed cool breeze but that of course always leads to the potential for some unwanted guests – more on that later.
As we were seated, the waitress politely apologised that the beef roast was not available – much to my disappointment – because it had sold out.
That left us with a choice between chicken, pork, salmon fish cakes or cheddar and red onion tart.
As we mulled over our choice, the table next to us were given what must have been the last four beef dinners – damn those roadworks.
The bar had been set by the dinners we had just seen, and we opted for the pork and chicken and starters of prawn cocktail, and a melon and parma ham. They arrived in good time. The
prawn Car park..................... Kids allowed...................... Real ale..................................... Wine by the bottle........................ Credit cards..................................... Vegetarian food............................. Disabled toilets............................. cocktail, on a bed of iceberg lettuce, was loaded with juicy and succulent prawns. The sauce was rich and creamy and it was the perfect way to distract me from the beef dinner I would not be having.
Mrs E went for the ham. The melon was juicy, and a refreshing flavour to complement the ham but which for her was a tad chewy, and missing some flavouring. Perhaps paprika? However, I wolfed it down.
The mains came next – a chicken dinner with bacon, black pudding and a red wine sauce and a pork dinner in an apple glaze.
The chicken was cooked to perfection. The half portion fell apart as you cut into it and tasted superb, with a crispy skin. The wine sauce wasn’t overpowering and accompanied it just right even if the bacon and black pudding combo did seem weird to Mrs E.
My dinner arrived ... but now on to the issue of those open doors. Unfortunately, my meal arrived accompanied with a wasp taking a bath in my gravy. Of course, that is no one’s fault, and the staff got me a fresh plate.
The pork – roast loin of rare breed – was one of the best I’ve had. The apple glaze really took it to the next level. The meat was tender but juicy and I easily could have had seconds.
Both had crispy roasts, carrots and homemade Yorkshire puddings.
I was stuffed but the table next to me continued to set the bar. When I saw the waitress bring out a chocolate, pecan, banana and caramel sundae – I just had to have it.
There was no disappointment. The sundae rounded off a perfect meal. It was sweet yet rich, creamy and topped off with lovely bits of chocolate.
Mr Eats went for a small tub of locally sourced ice cream, having chosen chocolate from three options including vanilla and raspberry.
Then came the bill. Unfortunately it had an extra starter on it but again the staff sorted that out immediately and were apologetic for their mistake.
The price per head is a little more than your average pub grub but then the food is worth every penny of the £12.50 paid for the mains. The starters were spot on too, and at just under £30 per head, I’d say this is most certainly the definition of the old adage that “you pay for quality”.