The Royal Oak, Clee Hill

Rating: *** After taking the rather unusual step of declaring itself “ugly” the Royal Oak on Clee Hill has been doing a roaring trade.

Visitors have been pouring through the doors to find out just what all the fuss is about, since owners Louise and Ricardo Randsley placed a sign outside stating: “We may be ugly but we are beautiful inside”.

And I was among those intrigued by the sign and keen to find out whether the pub really was an ugly duckling.

I will admit, from the outside the pub doesn’t look all too enticing. I have driven past it many times and not given it a second glance. But I am glad that I finally gave it a try.

Inside, the pub is rather pleasant. A roaring log-burner greets diners in the small but cosy dining room. The room is well lit with exposed beams and there are about eight or nine tables.

The dining room is accessed from one of two outside doors, and perhaps a sign on each, identifying which is the dining room and which is the bar, may help. However, it was not too much of a problem as myself and my lady friends were soon shown the way to the restaurant by a polite young waiter.

We sat next to the kitchen door and the smells wafting out set the taste buds tingling.

The menu was vast and included a number of tantalising dishes with a heavy Portuguese influence, which is Mr Randsley’s home country. There was everything from chicken, beef, pork to a wide variety of fish dishes, so something to suit all tastes. It was a pleasant change to have some unique dishes to try.

I was spoilt for choice, although one or two of my friends were longing for something a little more “traditional”. Fortunately the pub also provided a bar menu, which included the regular lasagne, chilli and pies.

For starters I opted for smoked salmon (£4.95), which was served on a bed of salad with a cream cheese and chive sauce. The dish was refreshing, not too heavy, and the sauce was full of flavour.

For the others it was garlic mushrooms (£3.50) and curried prawn pot (£5.95). My third friend just opted for a bread roll! Each dish was a fair portion and pleasantly displayed and we all left virtually clean plates.

For main course I chose the beef fillet on a bed of creamy Stilton mashed potato served with red wine, juniper and star anise sauce (£14.95). The beef was very tender and the sauce had a slight tang which was refreshing. I had opted for a salad to accompany it, but soon wished I’d gone for the veg as salad didn’t quite seem like the right accompaniment for this dish.

My friends ordered a lasagne (£6.95), chilli con carne (£6.95) and stuffed chicken with a white wine, cream and pesto sauce (£13.95). Each meal was a very generous size and well-presented. The chilli was a little runny for my one friend, although she devoured it none the less, the chicken was full of flavours. The salads and vegetable side orders were colourful, fresh, and served separately.

For desserts, there were just two of us who were able to squeeze one in. Although full I wanted to try the unusual array of options and I chose the arrozdoce, which was a Portuguese rice pudding with a lemon tang. It was really tasty and not overly filling.

My friend opted for the chocolate pot, which was a light chocolate mousse - perfect after a filling meal.

The wait for the starters seemed a little lengthy, and as we chatted over drinks strange gurgling sounds began to echo around the room!

However, once the starters had been served the rest of the meal flowed perfectly. The staff were very polite and courteous and keen to please and I was particularly impressed by Mr Randsley’s willingness to stand and talk us through each of the unusual desserts. He not only gave us a description of each of the traditional Portuguese puddings but enticed us with tales of their origins, which was most interesting.

Mrs Randsley is the chef at the pub, while Mr Randsley looks after front of house and it seems a perfect partnership. They made every effort to make us feel welcome and ensure we had an enjoyable evening.

Mrs Randsley said: “We really like it here and we hope that people can now start to look beyond the exterior and see that it is a really nice pub.”

I am now convinced that one should definitely not judge a book by its cover, because at the Royal Oak there is a lot more to discover when you scratch the surface.

A very pleasant evening.

ADDRESS:
The Royal Oak, Clee Hill
01584 890754

MENU SAMPLE
Starters
Squid with tomato, onion and white wine sauce (£6.75)

French onion soup (£4.75)

Main courses
Porco A Alentejana - pork and clams (£13.95), Escolar steak with teriyaki (£13.95)

Desserts (all £3.25)
Bread and butter pudding, Sticky toffee pudding

ATMOSPHERE
Cosy and pleasant

SERVICE
Polite and enthusiastic

DISABLED FACILITIES
Disabled entrance, toilets planned

SMOKING POLICY
Smoking in the games area, and no smoking in restaurant or front bar

By Sally Jones