Reviewer’s rating: **** Andy Richardson is delighted with appetising meals served by friendly staff.

Inside The Combermere Arms, at Burleydam, near Whitchurch.

Before we get down to business, let’s sort out a few housekeeping rules. Across Shropshire, there are wonderful – and, some not so wonderful – venues for dining.

Most are easily defined as being either pubs or restaurants. A few, however, are more difficult to categorise. Take the Combermere Arms. It has a bar that offers a wide range of locally-produced ales, so some would view it as a pub. However, it also has a capacious dining area that is well serviced by a catering stuff who maintain reasonably high standards. So others, therefore, would view it as a restaurant.

When we visited on a Saturday afternoon for lunch, we enjoyed a high quality dining experience and so, quite confidently, we’ll recommend it to those of you who want to experience restaurant-style eating.

Frequent diners in Shropshire may be familiar with such venues as The Armoury, in Shrewsbury, which offers fine-ish dining in a pub-style environment, and the Combermere Arms is of a similar ilk.

It’s located at Burleydam, near Whitchurch, which seems to be miles and miles from anywhere. But despite being off the beaten track, on the road to Cheshire, it’s well worth the visit.

Each week, the Shropshire Star’s team of reviewers seek out hidden gems across the county, fearlessly and intrepidly venturing to far flung corners in pursuit of excellence. And, having eaten at the Combermere Arms, I’m convinced I’ve found one.

Pulling onto the car park – it’s so far from anywhere that it would be impossible to get there by any other means than car – we marvelled at the exterior. Well-tended gardens were laid out before a whitewashed old-fashioned exterior. The buildings actually date from the 1540s and the jumble of nooks, crannies and ante rooms were easy on the eye. The present owners have clearly helped to preserve the character of the building.

After that auspicious start, we approached and were delighted to see a number of discreet stickers on the porch window, advertising the venue’s credentials. It’s been listed in the Michelin Guide on four occasions, as well as a number of guides that rank good pubs. As we stepped inside, we marvelled at the cosy interior and were impressed by the way the venue’s heritage had been preserved.

The Combermere Arms has plenty of interesting history, in addition to its fair share of ghost stories. Two clergymen, for instance, were reported to have snared a troublesome ghost by trapping it in a bottle, which was later buried beneath the doorstep. On another occasion, a photograph taken in 1891 seemed to reveal the figure of a man which was reputedly the ghost of Lord Combermere, who died that year. While we didn’t experience any supernatural phenomena, we did enjoy supernatural food.

I arrived at the venue midway through a diet, which came to an abrupt stop as I perused the menu. It was filled with exceptional local produce and classic bistro-style dishes.

I started with an appetising pan fried pigeon breast with fig, watercress, walnuts and a honey mustard dressing. It was polished off in no time, though a more precise chef would have seasoned the pigeon better, cooked it a little less thoroughly and used a little less oil in the dressing.

My wife started with garlic wild mushrooms served on granary toast, which were devoured in an instant, much to her pleasure.

My main course was the braised shoulder of lamb with rosemary gravy, dauphinoise potatoes and broccoli, as well as a timbale of red cabbage. The meat had been lovingly cooked, so that the fat had rendered through the flesh giving it plenty of savoury taste and an unctuous, fall-apart texture. The sauce, though a little piquant, was a pleasant accompaniment while the dauphinoise were triumphant. They’d been cooked thoroughly, without too much cream or butter, and were infused with an appetising garlic flavour.

My wife opted for the samosa of curried potato, spinach and red pepper with a cucumber and red onion salad. Though the samosa’s pastry was a tad indelicate, the filling was well seasoned and busting with flavour.

A bowl of sorbet and ice cream ended my wife’s lunch while I opted for the gooseberry crumble with vanilla ice-cream. We were both entirely satisfied with our desserts. The crumble was a winner, with a sweet, crunchy topping sprinkled over whole, sweetened gooseberries then cooked to a golden brown. The ice-cream made a wonderful counterpoint to its heat, tart flavour and texture.

At the bar, having settled our great value £50 bill, we were asked whether we’d be likely to return. We answered in the affirmative. Though the cooking is a little imprecise, there’d been much to enjoy.

MENU SAMPLE

Starters

Roast pear and Cashel blue cheese tart with pinenuts (£4.95)

Minted lamb and apricot pie with redcurrant chutney (£5.45)

Main courses

Duck leg salad with hoi sin (£9.95)

Venison with colcannon (£15.95)

Sides

Dauphinoise potatoes (£2.90)

Desserts

Bakewell tart with custard (£5.25)

Vanilla creme brulee (£4.75)

ATMOSPHERE

Marvellous. There’s a buzz in the air at this friendly eaterie.

SERVICE

Young, enthusiastic staff are attentive and busy

DISABLED FACILITIES

Good facilities and helpful staff

Contact:

Combermere Arms, Burleydam, Whitchurch, SY3 4AT. Tel: 01948 871223