Tayleur Arms, Longdon on Tern

Reviewer's rating **** James Shaw forgoes his favourite cottage pie to try some different items on the menu.

Many of us have a 'signature dish' that we always order from a particular restaurant.

The usual suspect is steak - that popular 16oz monster sitting in the freezer, just waiting for your order. For me, the big favourite is a cottage pie from the Tayleur Arms in Longdon on Tern. It is probably my number one choice of all, with mountains of fluffy mash, gorgeous minced beef and gravy.

I only mention this at the start of this article because when Claire and I reviewed the Tayleur Arms, I decided to forego my top choice and look at bit further around the menu.

That took some time. The pub's website says it all, really. Before our visit, I spent a fair few minutes just trying to work out which menu to look at. Never mind what to actually eat.

Once we arrived at the pub, I eventually, chose the deep-fried brie and goat's cheese, while Claire decided to forego a starter. She wasn't feeling terribly hungry and instead went straight for a main course.

Young Louis, as ever, spied the children's menu with glee. Well, until he found something else to mess with.

He was delighted with his chicken nuggets, which according to the menu, were home made. Louis busied himself with his meal - Claire had to supervise, of course - while I made short work of my starter.

I often find that the real hero of brie is the accompaniment, and this was no exception.

Goodness me, the plum and spice chutney, which came with my starter, was fantastic.

Once I had finished my first course and joined Claire on Louis duty, it was time to take a look at our surroundings.

All parents will know how fraught the initial entrance into a pub can be - the first priority is, without exception, to find a child seat which you can plonk your two-year-old into. So with our youngster firmly in his place and Luca snoring away, we finally had time to explore the huge dining room, alongside a cosy bar.

The dining room is, perhaps, a little too big, especially if people want a romantic dinner for two. The bar, however, is perfect, with lots of little corners and secluded tables. Oh, and a superb open fire.

For us, the dining room had some real benefits and we were able to choose a table away from the other diners. I bet they got some peace and quiet.

For my main course, I ordered the beef Wellington, while Claire went for the hunter's chicken. My meal was nice enough, but it did struggle on a couple of minor points. The overall package was fantastic, although the pastry covering was a little bit too dry - I personally prefer beef Wellington casings to have a little bit of moisture.

The beef itself was no let-down, but it was joined by too many mushrooms. Nevertherless, it was tasty enough for me to finish the whole lot.

Claire's hunter's chicken arrived with no barbeque sauce (her request) and was a real joy. The cheese and bacon covering provided just enough distraction from the chicken breast, while at the same time not being too overbearing. And the chicken itself justified centre stage in the dish.

Both courses, which came with mountains of chips and vegetables, were large enough to kill off our appetites and steer us away from the desserts.

As I paid for our meal, I found some real innovations. Such as the computer at the bar, showing customers the website and giving an explanation behind the pub's name.

I have never, ever seen that at a pub before.

Actually, the question of the pub's name is something I have not yet had answered.

The Tayleur, so the website says, was a ship built in the 1850s, but there is no mention of a link to Shropshire.

How did that come about?

I will have to ask on my next visit.

ADDRESS

Tayleur Arms, Longdon Upon Tern, Telford TF6 6LJ

Tel: 01952 770335

Website: www.tayleurarms.co.uk

MENU SAMPLE

STARTERS

Creamy garlic mushrooms: £4.95; Hoi sin duck: £5.50

MAIN COURSES

Poached salmon fillet: £8.95; Homemade steak and ale pie: £8.45

DESSERTS

Toffee apple crumble: £4.95; Raspberry and white chocolate cheesecake: £4.95

ATMOSPHERE

The dining room was possibly a little too large for the few people who were eating, although I suspect it gets very busy at times.

SERVICE

Cannot be faulted - staff were efficient and knowledgeable.

DISABLED FACILITIES

There is a ramp at the entrance and toilets for the disabled are available.

***

Reader response

I read James Shaw's review of the Tayleur Arms with some interest and noted that he understands that the pub is named after a ship built in the 1850s. This is not quite the whole story but the ship connection is relevant.

The Tayleur family were a Shropshire family and held the manor of Longdon-on-Tern from the mid 13th until mid 17th centuries.

In approximately 1640 they moved to Rodington Hall.

During the 18th century the hall was occupied by one William Tayleur who had three sons; the youngest was Charles, who was born in 1785.

At this time William purchased Buntingsdale Hall in Market Drayton and this is where Charles grew up.

Charles later married the daughter of a Liverpool merchant and moved to Liverpool with his new wife. Charles made money by investing in shipping ventures and subsequently opened an iron foundry in Warrington where he produced sections for Thomas Telford to use in the construction of the Menai Bridge c.1825.

During the 1840s the foundry started to build paddle steamers and at the end of the decade it was extended to build ocean going vessels.

Probably the first of the larger ships to be built was a clipper type vessel with full rigging, it was completed in 1853 and could have been the biggest in the world at the time.

The vessel was chartered by the White Star Line and named after the owner of the foundry as RMS Tayleur.

The ship was sent on a maiden voyage carrying large numbers of passengers to Australia but was sunk off the Irish coast, a day and a half into the voyage, with heavy loss of life.

Nearly 60 years later the White Star Line commissioned another "largest ship in the world"and sent it on a maiden voyage to the United States, it was named RMS Titanic.

Mike Pinches

Market Drayton