The Shropshire, Muxton

Star rating: ** Over previous years, The Shropshire at Muxton has always been one of my favourite haunts, writes James Shaw.

Indeed, I have great memories of attending weddings in its large marquee - a superb time was had by all.

And I had high hopes when I booked a table in their restaurant. It was a meal review that I genuinely wanted to go well.

Unfortunately, as my wife Claire and I discovered, the marquee disappeared some time ago - and so has much of the quality.

I should, perhaps, state that The Shropshire is, above all, a golf centre and as such, clearly concentrates on this side of the business.

But should this really be at the expense of service, quality and general standards in the restaurant?

On first impressions, our table was nicely laid out and care had clearly been taken to make us feel welcome. All of which made us both all the more puzzled as the meal consistently delivered below-par performance.

To begin our meal, I chose the chilli nachos - one of the few options still available - while Claire made her usual beeline for the vegetable soup.

Whenever most people order chilli nachos, one of the most basic ingredients is, obviously, chilli. Not on this occasion.

I was presented with a bowl full of nachos, along with a handful of grated cheese . . . all of which had been burnt to a crisp under the grill.

Once I had eaten the first thin layer of nachos and cheese (without the chilli), the rest was, literally, nachos. Not the greatest way to start a meal.

The waiter did protest that I had ordered simple cheesy nachos, but the menu sitting on the table told me a different story.

On the other side of the table, Claire was grappling with her vegetable soup.

This appeared to be a simple tin of tomatoes with a few other vegetables floating around in the juice.

Needless to say, neither us of finished our starters with any real enthusiasm for the rest of the meal.

It was while we waited for our main courses that Claire and I took in some of the atmosphere. Or lack of it.

Granted, we did visit on a midweek evening and no other diners were present, but the radio music really was intrusive.

We were positioned on the edge of the so-called 'restaurant' area with little privacy and as such, couldn't really relax.

For my main course I ordered the chicken escalope and to be fair, was given what I wanted, albeit with little flair or real flavour.

It tasted nice enough, but that was where my enjoyment came to a halt.

Anyone can cook a chicken escalope and it will usually taste fine, but there was little to differentiate it from something that could be ordered in a pub.

The vegetables, meanwhile, sat limply on the plate and were in no way inviting.

While I grappled with my main course, Claire was attempting to make her way through her Sunday roast, with all the trimmings.

The rather grand-sound title was, unfortunately, a little let down by reality.

Claire told me the meat didn't come close to matching "those roasts that mom makes", or even, surprisingly, those that I attempt on Sundays.

Clearly, some care had been taken in preparing the dish - I cannot dispute that - but there wasn't any real character, or taste.

I have no objections to anyone calling a dish a 'Sunday roast', but not when it so obviously doesn't come up to scratch.

The completion of the formalities that were our main courses gave us further chance to reflect on our surroundings.

Although there were no other diners present, it was a tad uncomfortable to have the staff waiting within metres to tend to our every need.

Granted, the service was efficient and the young lad on duty certainly tried hard, but it almost felt as if were being watched.

Anyway - back to our meals.

To complete the evening, I decided to choose the chocolate fudge cake, while Claire was keen on the creme brulee.

As ever, there was very little margin for the desserts to go wrong and they were, perhaps, the highlight of the meal - well, for me, anyway.

My cake was just as fresh as that served up at any other restaurant or similar eaterie in the local area. It wasn't especially tasty, but it ticked all the boxes and rescued at least some of the opinion that I am now writing down.

Claire's creme brulee, unfortunately, was not on a similar level.

Although we all accept that creme brulee is supposed to be cold inside, should it also be tasteless and bland? Harsh words, many may think, but Claire's well-formed sweet tooth does not often make mistakes.

The only high point that we could both agree on was the final bill, which came in at a reasonable £39.

At that point, we left - watched, it must be said, by most of the kitchen staff, who were clearly glad the night was over.

So were we.

ADDRESS

The Shropshire, Muxton, Telford

Telephone 01952 677800

MENU SAMPLE

Starters

Smoked haddock and prawns (£4.95); Warm tomato tartlet (£3.20)

Main courses

Sweet and sour chicken balls (£6.25); Lamb and rosemary casserole (£6.95)

Desserts

Home-made chocolate cheesecake (£3.25); Mint and chocolate truffito (£3.25)

ATMOSPHERE

We visited on a very quiet night and this certainly affected the general atmosphere.

SERVICE

The staff on duty certainly tried hard but it did, at times, feel as if we were being watched.

DISABLED FACILITIES

Much of the restaurant is on one level and there are toilets for the disabled.