The Three Fish, Newport

takes his children to a family-friendly stop-off on a busy Shropshire route.

To an outsider, it may seem strange for a Beefeater to be called Three Fish, but the good folk of Newport will appreciate the nod to their town crest.

The fairly-recently opened grill alongside the busy A41 sits opposite a Travelodge and there's a temptation to dismiss new-builds like this as sterile, corporate affairs.

And to a degree, that homogenised feel looms large; the word-perfect greeting script, the glossy menus and stylised interior could probably be found in many a similar establishment anywhere in the country.

But that's not necessarily a bad thing, as long as the quality is maintained.

And the Three Fish did not disappoint, by providing decent family food at a reasonable price in comfortable surroundings.

At the end of a long journey south from frozen Lancashire, it offered a great Shropshire welcome home.

Nice use of panels and accessories lends the Three Fish a modern, clean feel, tinged in soft lighting, mercifully devoid of those stark spotlights which were all the rage ten years or so ago.

The staff (scripted or not) were friendly and efficient as they led me and my two terrors, sorry, little angels, to our seats during a fairly busy afternoon sitting. Being ten and 13, they're now too big for the childrens' menu so it was straight to the real deal for my pair as we settled into a nice little alcove, quite close to the serving area but cleverly positioned to still feel quite private and snug.

Our waitress was polite and arrived within a few minutes to take a drinks order while we checked out the main menu.

As you would expect from a modern venue, all the chic beers were on offer; Staropremen, Stella Artois, Beck's and Strongbow on draught, along with old favourites Tetley's and Guinness.

Bottled beers included more diverse Kopparberg Pear Cider, Crabbies Alcoholic Ginger Beer and uber cool Peroni Nastro Azzuro, a fine, crisp Italian beer which finally won the day, while the kids tucked into a couple of reasonably-priced J20's, on offer at £1.99. The food menu itself stuck largely to the mainstream, offering what many would condsider pub classics.

There was a healthy (if that's the right word) selection of burgers ranging from classic to Paprika Chicken (£8.25) and the 'ultimate' 9oz offering (£10.25)

However, by some strange coincidence all three of us opted for the 10oz Rump Steak at a reasonable £10.99.

We were then able to choose from normal or spicy chips, Jacket potato, Dauphinoise potatoes, extra salad, buttered potatoesor even Basmati rice.

We all plumped (and that IS the right word) for normal chips along with onion rings and a Bearnaise sauce, from a decent choice which also included Creamy Peppercorn & Brandy sauce, Bourbon & Black Barbecue, Black & Blue sauce (Stilton, Danish blue cheese and smoked bacon sauce) and the ever-present Piri Piri.

The waitress was back in good time with the drinks, to take the order and check how we each wanted them cooked.

We sat back and waited and within a fairly short period of time, the meals arrived, piping hot. I had worried that the wait had almost been too brief to cook my steak in the 'well done' style I had asked for, but it was perfect; crisp on the outside, while retaining the flavour and moisture in the middle.

Both children sat in silence for almost two minutes (an extremely rare occurrence!) tucking into their generous portions, which were filled out with 'bottomless chips'.

This is a deal whereby you can just keep refilling your chip portion until you've had enough – although in the event, none of us took up the option, having had our plates generously piled high in the first place.

In truth, I regretted not going for the spicy chips or even the Daupinoise potatoes, as mine were rather soggy and a bit bland – as was the Bearnaise sauce.

But this only slightly detracted from the quality of the steak and the overall experience. Unsurprisingly, my 'full to the brim' youngsters decided they wanted desserts after catching sight of some sugary delights.

They boy wolfed down a warm Belgian waffle with banana and ice cream (£4.50) while I had to help out my teenager with a choocolate fudge brownie sundae for two.

At a a bargain £5.99 this was huge and came crammed with ice cream, large brownie chunks and a rich chocolate sauce.

It was a fitting end to an enjoyable stop at a clean and friendly restaurant serving good food at a decent price, with the bill coming to just over £50 for all three of us, including drinks.

Both children are now planning return visits – it seems they're hooked on the Three Fish.

ADDRESS

The Three Fish, Stafford Road, Newport TF10 9BY

Tel: 01952 822981