It was late, it was dark it was cold.

I was tired, on the M4 and the miles behind me had been slow and annoying and difficult, and I was getting hungry and knew I had nothing in for tea.

As the lights of the Membury Service station radio tower came into view I made a decision: It’ll do for my dinner.

My second and third thoughts were: How do I get the Adver to pay for this and perhaps I set myself a challenge of actually eating well.

One of the essential qualifications for a reporter, along with shorthand and a thickish skin is an almost inexhaustible willingness to eat junk, probably in your car - before or after meetings, football matches, court cases, during stake-outs of celebs or criminals, but I didn’t want to do that and there’s not much mileage (pun intended) in reviewing the ambience of the front of your car as a dining experience.

I was glad that I was pulling into the westbound services because as I approached I saw it had a Harry Ramsdens.

Now, obviously when a famous place expands hugely, as far as services hundreds of miles from its origins then it might lose a little of what made it famous in the first place.

But with a choice of that or Burger King or KFC I figured I’d go with Harry.

The queue was shorter for a start, but the wait was a bit longer. That was fine, because my order (standard cod and chips, mushy peas and a later add-on of onion rings) was only started when I ordered.

So it’s fresh. I remember the days of hot food sitting for some time under the warming lamps, but this would be straight out of the fryer.

It was a wait, but not too long and there I was with my dinner. I’d have preferred it on a plate, but I think the outlet might have run out or it’s dishwasher was broken, as the woman taking orders checked with everyone whether a cardboard takeaway container was okay. And she didn’t offer the gravy or curry sauce mentioned on the menus. So a minor quibble or two.

But the fish was good - flaky, plenty of flavour and in an excellent crispy batter. The chips were very decent. Nothing to write poems about, but I had no complaints, and mushy peas were the vitamins and suitably nuclear green in colour.

The problem with dining alone is that I tend to eat quickly, and I inhaled my dinner rather than savour it. But I enjoyed it very much for the few seconds it was still on the plate.

It was cooked fresh and hot and I got to eat it with a knife and fork and it felt much more like dinner than simply refuelling.

You know some fancy restaurants invite you to take coffee in the lounge after your meal? It’s classy, and it also allows them to turn your table quicker, and I thought I’d try and approximate that by going to the Starbucks for dessert. Only one of the three units was open and I found myself behind a group of teenage girls on a school trip but eventually got my black coffee and two cookies, one chocolate chunk (not chips, you’ll note) and the other oat and raisin.

The oat one was the best. Both were very soft and chewy, but the oaty one had a very nice mixed-spice flavour particularly suited to a cold wet Autumn night.

So, I think the answer is yes. You can eat reasonably in a service station, and it is better than a pasty in the car.

I wouldn’t advise it every night, but I went into Membury tired and hungry and at a low ebb.

I came out full and satisfied and ready for the drive ahead.

Where: Membury Services (Westbound) Near J15 M4

Open: Services open 24 hours - food between 6am and 9pm

Our rating: 7/10

Food 7/10

Service 7/10

Ambience 4/10

Disabled access: Lifts and escalator to upper floor for Harry Ramsdens, ramp into Starbucks. Toilets are accessible

Parking: Ample and free for two hours