The Crown, Hodge Bower, Ironbridge

Star rating: **** JAMES SHAW and his family ended up with big smiles after a visit to an out-of-the-way pub

Whenever Claire and I decide to carry out a meal review, there is always a period of lengthy debate as we eye up the local eateries.

Of course, we have already reviewed many of the pubs in Telford, so about 50 per cent of our options go out of the window straight away.

And some, of course, we would not be welcome at anyway.

More often that not, the phrase "Ooh, I know a place" is met with disappointment as we realise the pub in question has stopped serving, is not open, has shut down, or has even burnt down.

But The Crown, in Hodge Bower, near Ironbridge, is a real jewel in the crown.

First of all, it is off the beaten track - so much, in fact, that we were about to go home when we stumbled upon it.

Once we stopped, however, we were taken in, hook line and sinker.

From the outside, The Crown looks huge and on dark evenings is lit beautifully by coloured lights.

The interior, on the other hand, is deceptively small and cosy - a little like the Tardis in reverse.

The eating area is set off from the bar, but is, perhaps, a little small - a busy Saturday afternoon would see it filled to the brim rather quickly.

Nevertheless, we were delighted with our surroundings.

To begin the meal, I decided to try the vegetable spring rolls, while Claire had the tomato soup and Louis pointed rather vaguely in the direction of the garlic bread.

My spring rolls were a nice way to start - they had a delightfully crisp coating and juicy vegetables inside.

The accompanying sauce added a delicious tang.

Claire was also impressed by her tomato soup, with chunky bread, which had the tiniest hint of spice and warmed up her tastebuds nicely.

Most of my attention,Imust admit, was focused on Louis' garlic bread, which by this time had been spread across all four corners of our table.

I have never been a huge fan of garlic, but on this occasion I was tempted - and boy, was I in for a treat.

As I say, Louis had clearly finished his starter, so I was left to scoop up the remaining chunks, all of which were heavily coated in cheese.

All three of us had started our meals with a real treat.

At this point, I must mention the service. From the moment we stepped inside, we were treated fantastically and although there was a busy hum from the bar area, we felt like the centre of attention.

Perhaps the only complaint would be the length of wait for our food.

It felt like we had waited well over 30 minutes for our starters to arrive and, perhaps, a similar amount of time for our main courses.

Bearing in mind there were no other diners, this was the main low point of the evening.

But once our main courses had arrived, it was smiles all round. A little naively, I ordered the brawn pie with black mash, which sounded like a real mix of different parts of a pig - I just didn't realise which parts.

People in the food trade will know which bits I am talking about, but I was in the dark, and to be honest, I am glad that was the case.

My pie was delicious and had the finest moist pastry I have tasted in quite some time.

The filling had a slightly unusual texture, but offered a lovely range of flavours. It was a few days later that I Googled the ingredients, by which time I had

decided that brawn pie was one of my new favourites.

And the black mash - which is normal mash with black pudding pieces - was a really tasty accompaniment.

Claire had decided to play a little more safely and ordered the chicken breast with bacon and cheese.

Sometimes, this option can be a little bland and it can be hard to tell the difference from one pub's offerings to the other.

It is, after all, just chicken with bacon and cheese.

On this occasion, however, the chef had really done his work and produced a main course with a lovely mix of dark, smoky flavours.

Even the chips seemed to haveadistinctive flavour of their own.

And, of course, Louis took a keen interest in those chips as he finished his chicken nuggets.

The one thing that struck us about The Crown was the fact that it has the potential to be a real big hitter on the local eating scene and benefits from a location that is delightful as the food itself.

Indeed, the biggest disappointment - apart from the wait - was the fact that it will be some time before we can review it again.

Contact

The Crown, 10 Hodge Bower, near Ironbridge, Telford, TF8 7QG

Tel: 01952 434072

MENU SAMPLE

STARTERS:

• Vegetable samosas - £3.95

• Japanese star prawns - £3.95

MAINS:

• Shropshire Blue melt - £8.95

• Rump steak - £9.95

DESSERTS:

• Toffee crunch pie - £3.95

• Sticky toffee pudding - £3.95

SERVICE:

• It was welcoming and staff made us feel like the centre of attention, although the meals took a little while to arrive.

ATMOSPHERE:

• Very jovial and full of regulars - like a pub should be.

DISABLED FACILITIES:

• Most of the pub is on one level.