Horseshoes, Dorrington

Reviewer's rating **** Sharon Walters enjoys her roast lunch as Hamilton and Vettel battled on the race track.

Some weeks ago I visited an eating establishment after being recommended by several readers on account of the food and service, and was left disappointed by the food but not the staff or service.

Just after that I went to another after a number of people wrote complaining, mainly about the staff and some about the food, however this time I came away with very good impressions about staff and food.

The Horseshoes at Dorrington provided an excellent Sunday lunch with generally excellent service.

It reopened earlier this year after extensive refurbishment and is now light and airy inside with a smart dining area and lounge and a bar area complete with dartboard and flat screen TV. A good mix for a village pub - comfort for diners and somewhere for locals to grab a pint and have a game of arrows.

Our welcome was warm and after ordering drinks we sat down in the bar and waited for menus, which came quickly.

When the waitress came back for our order she noticed we were more than a little interested in the Grand Prix on the TV. "You can eat here if you like, I'll lay the table up."

Perfect, only don't tell my son that, as he was never allowed a TV meal!

On Sunday you can have one course for £9.95, two for £11.95 or three for £13.95. Couple a bottle of the "quaff of the month" wine for £11.75 and I was very interested to see the quality.

To start I had pan-fried scallops with black pudding, capers and raisin vinaigrette. A small portion but more than adequate and delicious. My partner had baked French goat's cheese salad which, even though he was glued to Hamilton and Vettel, went down very quickly and was judged perfect.

Roast loin of pork with apple and vanilla compote was next for me. To my delight it came with a large and fluffy Yorkshire pudding - apparently all roasts get the Yorkie touch - which I had almost asked for as an extra.

As I've said so often before, pork can be ruined by overcooking or not cooking at the correct temperature. This was one of the best roast pork meals I have had in a long time. The meat was thickly cut, moist and tender with just enough fat to keep all the taste in. The compote was just tart enough and my only complaint was that there was no crackling.

Neil had roast Lamb Henry with mint sauce. He again didn't comment much, except on the quality, as he was too busy telling F1 drivers how they could improve!

Both dishes arrived complete with roast potatoes, squash roasted in foil and a ramekin filled with cauliflower cheese. Great, it meant the cheese sauce didn't run all over the plate.

On top of that, side dishes arrived with a selection of delicious vegetables including crisp broccoli and new potatoes.

It was at this point that the waitress appeared to forget we were there, leaving us with finished plates for quite a long time - we were tucked away in a corner in the bar - but that was probably for the best as the delay meant we could just about manage a pudding.

I had hot chocolate fondant with mixed berries and vanilla ice cream. Here my only real criticism about the food as I think the fondant was a little overcooked. But the fruit and ice cream were lovely.

Across the table came a lemon posset, Chantilly cream and lemon curd. Light and flavoursome and enjoyed as the race came to an end.

Other starters on the day we dined included leek and potato soup with fresh bread, sliced Scottish salmon grilled in cream cheese and chives, and ham and pineapple roulade. Mains included roast beef, oven-baked salmon and spinach and feta quiche and puddings mixed berry crumble with custard and vanilla panna cotta and mixed fruit coulis.

After arriving with apprehension we left very happy - especially as Hamilton had another a win to his tally.

ADDRESS

The Horseshoes at Dorrington, Main Road, Dorrington, Shrewsbury SY5 7JD

Tel: 01743 718305