Cheshire Cheese, Doseley, Telford

Reviewer's rating ***

Sophie Bignall has difficulty finding fault after a warm welcome at the inn with excellent food.

Some pubs will never get a five-star rating. In fact, even a four-star rating may be beyond some I have reviewed in Telford recently. Some might say even a three-star rating is generous.

But the crucial difference between some of these places is whether they know they deserve it or not.

Let me explain.

The Cheshire Cheese in Doseley is a perfect example.

Yes, it may be a little frayed around the edges and it's not terribly quiet, but the people inside are very happy with their lot.

The owners haven't tried to make it something that it isn't, and that is exactly what Claire and I loved about it.

In fact, he became the star of the show.

We managed to find a corner away from the bar, but still felt part of the proceedings, thanks to the staff behind the bar.

One girl in particular was clearly heavily pregnant, but battled on regardless and made us feel very, very welcome.

The menu seemed to be a little limited, but it featured exactly what we wanted, and I'm sorry for the cliche - honest pub grub.

I decided to go for an 8oz rump steak, topped with Stilton, while Claire had gammon with pineapple.

Louis gave a cursory glance at the children's menu and immediately pointed to the chicken nugget meal. No messing.

My steak was superb - it was juicy, flavoursome and really benefited from the deliciously sharp Stilton topping

The only criticism perhaps, is the fact that is was only 8oz in size, and once I had polished it off, I wanted more.

The accompanying chips and vegetables were lovely - especially the peas - but as with many of my favourite meals, they paled into insignificance.

Claire's gammon steak was of a similar rating. She sometimes complains of fatty lumps when choosing gammon, but thankfully, there were virtually none.

Gammon served from "pub grub" menus (sorry again for the cliche) can sometimes be a hit and miss affair, but on this occasion, they hit the bullseye.

The steak wasn't terribly thick, but there was still plenty of juices flowing when she cut into to it for the first time.

Like my meal, the chips were a simple side option that gained little attention.

Louis, meanwhile, seemed to be having the time of his life with the chicken nugget meal.

He couldn't give a definitive thumbs-up, but at least he ate the majority without flinging bits of chicken across the room.

Once we had finished our main courses, it was time to take stock of our surroundings.

Like I said at the beginning, the beauty of the Cheshire Cheese is its simplicity.

The bar area is just yards from the dining room, which in itself seems to double as a games room during the evening.

There is a stairway leading to the bar, but with a separate dining room for those who want to eat in quiet.

Thankfully, we chose to enjoy the happy atmosphere of a Saturday afternoon spent watching football results on television.

To finish the meal, I went for my traditional chocolate fudgecake, while Claire had homemade bread pudding.

Louis, meanwhile, was handed his very own dish of ice cream, complete with a wafer cone - or poking weapon, as he calls them.

My fudgecake, served with ice cream, had a lovely thick coating of chocolate, below which was a moist sponge filling.

Claire's bread pudding was another triumph of home cooking, with lots of juicy fruit pieces and lashings of custard.

And finally, Louis was a model of quiet. I'm sorry, but any dessert that keeps him in one place is a winner in my mind.

So would we return to the Cheshire Cheese?

Of course we would - not for a romantic night out, of course, but on a Saturday afternoon - it provides the prefect tonic to three rumbling tums.

And at a shade over £25, the price was right as well.

Menu sample

Sunday lunch menu:

One course - £4.95

Two courses - £6.95

Three courses - £8.95

Starters:

Home-made soup, prawn cocktail

Main course:

Sunday lunch. Others available on request

Desserts:

Spotted dick, rhubarb crumble

Service:

The staff were friendly and efficient, and nothing seemed to be too much trouble

Atmosphere:

Lively and cheerful, although the corner we found allowed privacy when we wanted it.

Disabled facilities:

The main dining room is on the ground floor.

Contact:

Cheshire Cheese, Doseley Road, Doseley, Telford TF4 3BB