Now they're cooking with gas (From Swindon Advertiser)

Now they're cooking with gas

4:17pm Thursday 13th October 2011 in Reviews

The Barbury INN Broad Hinton, SN4 9PF. Tel: 01793 731510. www.thebarburyinn.co.uk (website under development)

Food served: Mon to Fri noon to 2.30pm and 6.30pm to 9.30pm, Say and Sun noon to 9.30pm

It was second time lucky when MICHELLE TOMPKINS paid a return visit to a country pub

MY first visit to the Barbury Inn back in March was not entirely successful; less than a fortnight after it opened, I dragged the family out to Broad Hinton only to find we’d picked the one night when the gas was on the blink and we had the grand total of two dishes to choose from.

I vowed to return at a later date, once the owners had had the chance to smooth out any teething troubles, and that opportunity arose a couple of weeks ago when I took a friend for a birthday treat.

For a Tuesday lunchtime, the pub was surprising lively – not full by any stretch, but there were another couple of groups eating and that’s probably as much as any country pub can expect for a mid-week midday sitting The barman handed us no fewer than three separate menus – the regular one, a choice of specials and a light bites menu – and immediately set our indecisive minds in a spin. While I’d hoped for more than two dishes to choose from, being faced with 25 or more was agonising and we wasted at least 20 minutes trying to make a selection. In the end, we decided to restrict ourselves to that day’s specials – of which there were three for each course – and eventually managed to whittle it down.

There are two chefs at the helm at the Barbury Inn and both have influenced the menus. I went with a starter inspired by Spanish chef Ramon Muñoz - Spanish chicken croquettes with a spicy tomato dip and a very garlicky aioli (£5.50), while my friend chose one of head chef Nigel Harding’s dishes, Fowey mussels with saffron in filo pastry (£5.95).

Mine was tasty and very generous, with three large croquettes and plenty of dip alongside, but the mussels were the star dish, heaped prettily inside their pastry shell and oozing a thick saffron sauce.

For my main course, I stuck with the Spanish theme and went for a fillet of salmon, on a bed of crushed new potatoes, with olives, tomatoes and lemon (£12.95). The salmon was plump and perfectly pink, drizzled with a splash of olive oil, while the potatoes were dotted wth herbs. It wasn’t a fancy dish, but just what I like - honest, rustic food with plenty of flavour.

The birthday girl opted for beef bourguignonne (£12.95) with creamy mash. The silky, gamey sauce was packed with garlic mushrooms, baby onions and bacon lardons and looked amazing. It wasn’t huge but it was very rich, and she battled through valiantly. She looked positively queasy when she finished, but that wasn’t through any fault of the food.

Pudding was impossible – in fact, neither of us ate again for the rest of the day – but we both agreed we’d had a lot of food for our money. The bill, with a couple of soft drinks, came to a little under £40.

There are at least half a dozen other dishes I want to try on that extensive menu – a repeat visit is definitely on the cards.

• The Barbury Inn has a few events coming up in November, beginning with paella night on November 3, with a choice of three paellas and Spanish wines. On November 19, there’s a game tasting dinner with six courses at £35 per person. And on November 26, there’s a Spanish beer tasting night at £12 per person. Call to book for all events.