WHEN I asked for the menu and was told it was ‘Pie in the Sky’ it did take a second to realise this didn’t mean I was asking the impossible, rather that it was weekly pie night at The White Hart in Ashton Keynes.

Known as the ‘village of four crosses’ Ashton Keynes, even in the pitch black of winter, it is clear to see this is a very pretty village, sitting as it does on the edge of the Cotswold Water Park with the Thames flowing along beside High Road.

When the lease came up on the pub in 2011, three couples in the village decided it was too good an asset to the community to risk losing and so decided to collectively buy it. With more than 70 years of local knowledge between them, it was a good move.

It is clear to see this is very much a traditional watering hole that plays an integral role in village life.

The floor space is essentially open plan but divided into three areas, a small bar with games and tv, a main bar and a dining room.

There’s lots of bare wood and exposed brickwork and even early on in the evening there was a good vibe about the place with small groups of regulars huddled together, chatting and joking.

Staff couldn’t have been more welcoming or helpful. While I dithered and changed my mind, several times, they were only too willing to guide me through each dish with patience and expertise.

The pub serves up the sort of traditional fayre you would expect – beer battered fish and chips and burgers.

As it was ‘Pie in the Sky’ night it would have been churlish not to give it a go but not being a great fan of pies myself, I left that to my companion who opted for smoked salmon parmentier pie in a vermouth sauce with mash and peas.

As soon as the order was made I was having dish envy - the pie did sound really good. However, I went for The White Hart beef burger after agonising between that and the butterfly grilled chicken burger.

The barman helped swing it for me when he said he preferred the chicken option in the summer. Fair enough, I am not sure why but I was willing to believe there was some logic there.

Top marks for presentation though when the plates arrived. My burger came in a chunk of ciabatta, so much more preferable than a burger bun, I think. It had a slab of melted blue cheese on top of the meat and was already oozing over the edges.

The chips arrived in a small wire fish and chip shop-style frying basket.

I had asked for it to be cooked medium rare but was told it could only be cooked through – the tentacles of health and safety reaching into the depths of the countryside I guess – but it couldn’t have mattered less.

The beef was bursting with flavour and remained moist and tender despite being cooked longer than I would normally have wanted. I took this to be a testament of the quality of the meat.

It was all served up on a wooden chopping board with a handful of salad with dressing in the corner and a scrumptious homemade coleslaw, crunchy and fresh and devoid of the slime that goes with commercial varieties.

The filling in my friend’s salmon parmentier was delicious although she did say the pastry was a tad hard and dry but she was willing to overlook that given the abundance of flavour all round.

Starters included homemade soup, breaded Brie wedges and deep fried whitebait with Eton Mess, Banoffee pie and locally-made ice-cream to finish. It’s a simple, no frills menu but beautifully executed.

The new managers at the pub are Abi Erauw and Rob Bayley who took over in July this year and it was Rob who overheard me talking to the barman about the pub’s Gin Thirst Days which are held every Thursday from 6pm-10pm.

Here customers get to try a choice of around 15 gins on offer with a variety of fruits and tonics to mix and match.

It wasn’t long before Rob, sensing a willing audience, had nipped behind the bar and brought out a couple of fairly fancy looking bottles for me to sniff the corks. This is obviously a subject close to his heart and he is extremely knowledgeable on the subject.

Beer drinkers too are in for a treat here. The White Hart is cask-marque accredited and there is a choice on tap from Bombadier, Ramsbury and American Pale Ale.

With the last Sunday of every month being Open Mic night, steak nights on Wednesdays and coffee and cake during the day when the pub becomes a café, there is genuinely something for everyone in the village.

And with its close proximity to the water park it would be the perfect stop off to warm toes and paws after a nice brisk walk.