Bandon Arms, Bridgnorth
Rating **** Cathy Stanworth and her mum take a break from the shops with a bite to eat.
and her mum take a break from the shops with a bite to eat.
The old saying "If it ain't broke, don't fix it" could definitely be said of the Bandon Arms in Bridgnorth. Apparently it's been doing a "two for one" main meal offer for years, and going by my dining experience there the other week, this deal is still very much a winner.
I ate there on a Saturday lunchtime with my mum, after we spent a very enjoyable couple of hours in town visiting the market, shops and High Town antique centre. We couldn't fault a thing with the pub.
It was my mum's suggestion that we went there. She and my late father would regularly meet up there to dine with a group of their very good friends.
Having driven past it many times I knew it had quite a big car park, and, although it was a busy Saturday lunchtime, we still managed to get a parking space.
It's a big place, with plenty of tables inside. What struck me first on walking in was the massive specials board on the wall. This boasted 28 special dishes, and then there's another menu as well.
I had phoned the afternoon before to try and book a table for two, but was told by a friendly member of staff that they only took reservations on a lunchtime for tables of six or over. She assured me we'd be OK to simply walk in for a meal at around 1pm. And she was right.
I was impressed by the number of staff on duty – all dressed in the same black uniform. They were all busy, but none of them looked stressed. This was a well-oiled machine.
At the bar I ordered a glass of orange juice for mum (£1.85) and half a pint of cider for myself (£1.55) and had them put on our tab. I shortly returned to place our order there, as instructed.
After our time round the town – always enjoyable on a Saturday with the market atmosphere – we were both hungry, and I hoped we wouldn't be faced with a long wait for our meals.
We decided to skip the starters and order mains. Mum chose an 8oz sirloin steak off the menu, with half a grilled tomato, salad and chips (£11.95). I opted for one off the specials board – the Bandon steak, an 8oz sirloin steak with port and Stilton sauce, grilled tomato, salad and chips (£14 .50).
A smiling member of staff came over to bring us our cutlery and then just 20 minutes after ordering our dishes arrived.
Our plates were hot and our steaks beautifully char-grilled and cooked as ordered – medium. They were tasty, juicy and pink inside, and easy to cut and we both dived in.
The chips were perfect – thick, golden and brown, and there was plenty of them. The tomato was pleasant and the salad very fresh. My port and Stilton sauce was gorgeous and hadn't been skimped on. It was light and full of flavour, but not
too strong.
Our plates were promptly cleared and we turned back to the menu to check out the puds.
I finally decided on a Melt in the Middle Chocolate Pudding (a rich chocolate pudding with a "melting heart" – £3.55). This came with a choice of custard, cream or ice cream.
Mum fancied something light, so plumped for lemon and blackberry mousse, a beautiful light lemon mousse with a tasty lemon glaze and a dusting of icing sugar – and it "goes wonderfully with vanilla ice cream" (£3.55).
It was back up to the bar again to order them. I also ordered a latte (£1.70) for mum which the barman served to us straightaway.
Again there wasn't a huge wait before these were brought to our table by a polite and friendly member of staff.
I thoroughly enjoyed my pud. It was a big chocolate sponge pudding which was light and filled with a very moreish and plentiful warm chocolate sauce. They'd served it with chocolate ice cream, making it even more decadent. It couldn't help making quietly appreciative noises as I ate it.
Mum also gave the thumbs-up to her dessert. It was light, enjoyable and tasty and went perfectly with her vanilla ice cream. She was totally delighted with it.
Both being very satisfied with our day and lunch, we sat quietly for a few minutes before I went to the bar to pay. The bill should have come to £38.65, but because of the offer which deducts the cheaper second main course, it came to just £26.70. Brilliant.
We were having such a good day we decided to prolong it a little longer – surely there was time to visit the other antique centre next door before going home?
ADDRESS
Bandon Arms, 33 Mill Street, Bridgnorth WV15 5AG
Tel: 01746 763135
MENU SAMPLE
STARTERS
Mushrooms in creamy garlic sauce (£3.85); Little haddock kievs (£3.85); Cheesy nachos (£3.25)
MAIN COURSES
Beef and white stilton hotpot with mashed potatoes and seasonal vegetables (£9.95); Grilled pollock with crayfish and lemon served with new potatoes and seasonal vegetables (£9.45); Mediterranean vegetable tart with new potatoes and side salad (£8.95)
DESSERTS
Deep-dish apple pie (£2.95); Chocolate pot (£3.55); Irish cream cheesecake (£3.55)
SERVICE
Fast and efficient. Faultless and friendly.
ATMOSPHERE
Busy but smooth-running
DISABLED FACILITIES
Both toilets and access
