THE ROMANCE is well and truly dead when a man stoops to using his menu as a rampart to shield his chips from wanton pilfering at the fair hand of his dearly beloved.

Over the years my partner has devised many subtle and not so subtle ways to avoid sharing his food or fend off a stray stab (into his plate) from my side of the table.

Not to fall into stereotypes but I cannot help but wonder whether his being a Scot has anything to do with it. He cherishes large portions and loathes the thought of parting with a single crumb. I sometimes half expect his face to wrinkle into a grimace before hissing ‘My precious’. Maybe it comes from latent resentment at having had to split everything three ways with his siblings. Nothing years of therapy won’t fix.

To this day this remains a sore subject in our relationship. Tapas are his only rare concession to this abhorrence of sharing.

So it was with Machiavellian pleasure that I reserved a table at the Kings Head Hotel in Cirencester. The hotel’s new menu dreamt up by recently-appointed executive chef Dave Watts was designed around the principle of sharing and conviviality. I had this on authority, having interviewed the man himself. He may have also mentioned that this was not mandatory in any way shape or form and that the idea was simply to treat the experience as a make-your-own tasting menu but what my partner didn’t know wouldn’t hurt me.

Stepping into the stunningly furnished dining room with a collection of Directoire-inspired paintings and vintage French advertisements, we were swiftly shown to our seats.

The drinks deposited in front of us, I broke the news. He was duty bound to share for journalistic reasons quite beyond my or his control. The review would be skewed otherwise.

He took it surprisingly well: I probably had the wine to thanks for only one mild eye roll.

The Kings Head’s food ethos is somewhat unorthodox. You won’t find starters and mains clearly set out on the menu. Instead dishes are divided into salads, meat, fish, vegetarian and side orders.

Every dish is also about two-third of the size of a plat de resistance to encourage diners to order a few, mix and match and, yes, share. You might think, like I did, that it is fairly reminiscent of tapas but, according to the chef it has absolutely nothing to do with Spanish bar snacking. If it had it would have saved me a world of trouble in the sharing department.

Strangely, I found myself drawn to the salad section – a very unusual occurrence. I often find that salads are a waste of money with a few leaves and sorry-looking vegetables vying for attention.

But the promise of squid won me over. We opted for the two-course menu (£18.95 each), which is served with rustic bread and a large knob of deliciously light whipped butter and a side (anchovies salad for me and a bowl of chips for him).

We settled on fired baby squid, pickled garlic and chicory to start. The first tender morsels promisingly melted in my mouth soon followed by a surprising kick from the chicory.

Then came grilled mackerel with outdoor rhubarb and pecan crumb. The acidity of the rhubarb, married with the sweetness of the pecan surprisingly complimented the bold taste of the fish and was the highlight of our meal.

Grilled skate followed served on a fragrant bed of sea vegetables and fregula slathered in brown shrimp butter.

Last but not least was a plate of indulgent Parmesan gnocchi with spring vegetables wild garlic nage.

We shared each dish evenly, passing each plate across enemy lines throughout the evening.

Our table eventually cleared away, our waiter was back with the promise of dessert. In a pudding frenzy I am ashamed to say, I cut off the poor man mid-sentence as he politely asked whether we might, perhaps, wish to, maybe, peruse the dessert menu.

The desserts, oddly, are not included in the two-course or three-course offer. But the cinnamon-infused carrot cake topped with creamy dollops of tangy lime icing and rich custard tart were certainly worth the extra £4.45 and £4.95 respectively.

By the end of the meal we had turned a new leaf. He had left his fort-building days behind and, for the first time in nearly seven years my fork never once strayed towards his bowl of chips.

The Kings Head Hotel is located at 24 Market Place, Cirencester, GL7 2NR. To make a reservation call 01285 700900.