The White House, Muxton

found good value at a well-known establishment.

When I mentioned to friends that I was dining at The White House, the jokes flooded in.

You know the sort of thing – "say hi to Obama" and "don't press any red buttons".

But could the White House in Muxton, Telford, be locally famous for anything else than sharing its name with the most well-known home in the world?

In terms of food, it has a rightful claim to fame. Well, in Shropshire it does.

The White House is, in fact a hotel, with an adjoining restaurant, known as Oscars and bar area.

When we arrived on a busy Saturday evening, the bar was already full with golf fans watching the The Open Championship on television.

It was noisy, but not too rowdy to make children feel out of place.

I do, however, have an opening grumble, however small.

A few of the fittings looked a little tired and near one of the windows, there was damage to the wall. It was minor, and I only noticed it by chance.

Clearly, the bar benefits from having a full-time restaurant kitchen next door, a fact borne out by the faultless presentation of our meals.

And that goes for the prices as well.

Claire and I chose from the 'two meals for £12 menu', while Louis did his usual chicken impression when he asked for nuggets.

I had the home-made spicy chilli, while Claire chose a barbecue chicken burger. Once again, without the barbecue sauce. Sigh.

Regular readers will have noticed that the majority of my previous reviews have lauded the food as being "wonderful", "superb" and "delicious".

It seems I keep on picking winners - and this was another to join the list.

The chilli far outstripped any of my own homemade attempts and to that matter, the majority of others I have tried in pubs and restaurants.

It was, perhaps, a little too mild for my liking, but I was still left entirely satisfied. The chilli itself was crammed full of meaty pieces and kidney beans, while the rice was very fluffy.

And the addition of cheese (just 50p extra) to my nachos was the icing on the cake.

Claire's chicken burger was covered with bacon and cheese. It came with just a tiny pot of sauce, as if to tempt her into to trying it for the first time.

Needless to say, it went untouched.

Anyway, her burger was, in fact, a juicy fillet of chicken breast, with no coating and a toasted bun.

It came with the usual complements of salad and chips.

You have to bear in mind that these were 'two for £12' meals, meaning that while they were filling enough, the dessert menu still had a major role to play.

To finish my meal, I chose apple crumble, while Claire had bread and butter pudding, with rum and raisin.

Typically enough, Louis chose strawberry ice cream.

The apple crumble didn't provide the greatest end to my meal. It was nice enough, but on a personal level, there was too much apple and not enough crumble. I suppose others would be delighted with that apple/crumble ratio, but it wasn't to my particular taste.

Claire's bread and butter, meanwhile, was another likeable dish, but without any real sparkle. It was moist and contained lots of fruit, but didn't really taste of rum and raisin.

Like I said at the start of this review, the presentation of the food really was faultless and typical of a decent restaurant.

Perhaps one of the highlights of our evening was that bit at the end – the bill.

Bearing in mind we had enjoyed a two-course meal, along with drinks (including Louis) the overall bill of just over £30 really was superb value.

Indeed, we had to check twice to reassure ourselves that the bar staff hadn't made a mistake.

ADDRESS

White House Hotel, Wellington Road, Muxton, Telford TF2 8NG

Tel: 01952 603603

Web: www.whitehouse-hotel.org.uk

MENU SAMPLE

STARTERS

Soup - £2.95; Cajun mushrooms - £3.95

MAINS

8oz rump steak - £9.95; Gammon - £8.95

DESSERTS

Home-made cheesecake - £4.50; Chocolate fudge cake - £4.50

ATMOSPHERE

Very lively, but nevertheless welcoming to families

SERVICE

No problems to report - prompt and polite

DISABLED FACILITIES

There is a disabled cubicle in the ladies' toilets