Walking. Gossip. Travel.

Category: UK

  • Norwich – Orford Plaice

    Norwich – Orford Plaice

    This was the final Christmas lunch of 2021 for James and I, at Orford Plaice which is a chip shop we’ve managed to walk by several hundred times and never quite gone in.

    It’s larger inside than I expected, there’s a downstairs eating area and there are a number of tables on the ground floor. The service was friendly and helpful, although we got their last pot of gravy (not something that we really ever buy, although it’s a personal favourite of mine with chips).

    Having chips on a proper plate is a bit decadent for us, or “it’s like being in a Wimpy” as James put it. The food was brought over after a few minutes, at which point they remembered they hadn’t prepared the gravy, but that didn’t take much longer. Our meal was chips alongside battered pigs in blankets. The chips were fine, complemented nicely by the gravy, although I thought that the pigs in blankets were a little generic and not really very interesting. Having written that though, I did like the battering of them, primarily as I like nearly anything that has been battered, it just adds taste and texture. The portion size was also reasonable, with everything at the appropriate hot temperature, although the plate itself was cold.

    Price-wise, this is somewhere between Grosvenor and Lucy’s, with the surroundings being reasonably comfortable. There’s meant to be a masks-on inside policy, but it was ignored by some and not questioned, but I’m not going to burden myself with getting concerned about that. I think I still prefer Lucy’s, their butchers sausages are a nice little treat. This venue has won some awards, which I’m slightly surprised about, but we’ve decided to revisit in the new year to test some more of their menu out. No point coming to any snap verdicts about the food quality….

  • Cambridge – Regal Pub

    Cambridge – Regal Pub

    I wasn’t going to write about the first pub that my friend Nathan and I visited in Cambridge last weekend, primarily as I thought that I already droned on about it before in another post. But I hadn’t so will now instead. It’s one of the largest pubs in the JD Wetherspoon estate, although it has since been surpassed with some even more substantial venues, not least the Royal Victoria Pavilion in Ramsgate. It’s also the only outlet that the chain have in the city since their other one, the Tivoli, burnt down in 2015 and they decided not to re-open it.

    We popped in for a quick bargain breakfast and I can’t really complain about the value. All to brand standard and to my expectations, as well as being brought out quickly. I’d quite like them to bring the half a tomato back, but I won’t lose any sleep over its disappearance.

    We had a couple of half pints as lunch-time approached, perfectly well kept and very keenly priced. They were the Fat Turkey from J Buckley Brewing in Wales and Citramas IPA from Hanlons Brewery in Devon, nothing exceptional, but something different as I don’t think I’ve had anything from those breweries before.

     

    These are photos I took a few years ago which show the size of the venue, which has the one big area that was once the main screen of the Regal Cinema from which the pub takes its name. There’s another area down a few steps, an outdoor terrace and there are also some quieter areas upstairs. The pub doesn’t take up the entirety of the building, as they share it with Picturehouse Cinemas who have some screens upstairs.

    The pub closed for four days in September 2021 for a refurbishment, but I’m not sure what they did during that relatively short time, but perhaps it was a replacement of the carpet or similar. A refurbishment a few years ago did put in a number of extra power points which was quite useful.

    Like most JD Wetherspoon outlets, the reviews are broadly positive with a heap of angry people complaining that their bacon was cold or similar. Usual small number of people who think it’s fine to insult bar staff, namely this:

    “Ordered our meal via the app. It turned up with no drinks. The waiter told us that drinks hadn’t been on the order and he was too busy to deal with it. He advised us to go to the bar and speak to them and they can add it to the the order. Spoke to bar person who was as thick as a brick who advised me that I hadn’t used the app correctly for the alcoholic drink and was told me that I entitled to a soft drink to which she didn’t even offer to get it. I know it is a Wetherspoons and not the savoy but it has Really poor service. Won’t be back”

    In short, a customer has just not selected a drink on the app and they go to the bar and call the staff member “as thick as a brick”. Nice….

    The environment in the pub is perhaps a little sterile and anonymous, but it’s a huge venue and it’s not going to be particularly easy to offer an attentive and engaging service to everyone. Anyway, for a quick and reliable breakfast, I’m entirely happy with the Regal as it was clean, the staff were friendly and the prices were very agreeable.

  • Cambridge – Calverley’s Brewery (2nd Visit)

    Cambridge – Calverley’s Brewery (2nd Visit)

    This was the final pub of the day when my friend Nathan and I had our little pub crawl around nine venues in Cambridge last weekend. It’s the slightly hard to find Calverley’s Brewery taproom, a location that I’ve visited before in 2019.

    Things have changed substantially since when I last visited, with the opening of this much larger taproom on site, all of which was stables until Calverley’s took over here in 2013. When I visited before, the arrangement was a little more parochial, with a much smaller space available for customers. There was something really rather lovely about feeling part of the brewing process back then as it’s a bit more detached in this larger room, but it’s great to see what progress has been made. There’s also a larger open-air section as well for the warmer months when sitting outside is a bit more viable.

    The beer menu. We did debate also ordering in one (well, more likely two) of the pizzas from Scott’s All Day who are located nearby, but we opted for a slightly cheaper option of a Sainsburys Meal Deal for the train journey home. The reviews on-line of the taproom are very positive and there are some ciders and soft drinks for the non-beer drinkers.

    I went for the Big Dawg, a very decent Double New England IPA, as well as the Big Porter, which was a little less decadent and rich tasting as I’d hoped. I liked the surroundings of this set-up though, with the service being friendly and attentive. The location was clean and organised, with a relaxed ambience. It’s not necessarily the easiest of venues to find, but the signage is improved from my last visit and I’m pleased that they’re doing well. For anyone needing a drink before catching a train from Cambridge railway station, this isn’t too far of a walk to make. Pleasingly, this is also still listed in the Good Beer Guide.

  • Bunwell – St. Michael and All Angels Church (Grave of Jack Montague Smith)

    Bunwell – St. Michael and All Angels Church (Grave of Jack Montague Smith)

    This is the churchyard of St. Michael and All Angels Church in Bunwell.

    Just before my friend Richard and I meandered out to look at some historic churches, I was watching a documentary on tunnelling under the German lines during the First World War. This was a successful tactic deployed primarily by the British military and the Royal Engineers, although they were helped by numerous other companies which included those from Canada, Australia and New Zealand amongst others.

    Which is why I thought that the grave of Jack Montague Smith looked interesting, he’s one of the three war dead who is buried in the churchyard. He was born in Bunwell on 2 November 1892 and was the son of George William Gates Smith and Mary Alice Smith, of The Laburnums, Bunwell. His father was a watchmaker and Jack had three brothers and two sisters at the time of the 1901 census.

    Jack was a member of the 1st Canadian Tunnelling Company, part of the Canadian Engineers. They were sent to France in early 1916 and worked on the Bluff area, in Flanders, until early 1917 when the Australians took over. Their role was primarily in tunnelling under enemy lines, a dangerous and difficult occupation.

    Jack was a sapper with service number 501337 and he signed up in Ontario in December 1915. There’s an obvious question of what Jack was doing in Canada, but it wasn’t uncommon for younger men to go and find employment there, so that’s my best guess. Unfortunately, as Jack’s surname is Smith, I can’t identify which of the many Jack Smiths it might have been on the passenger lists.

    After being sent to fight on the front line he was injured on 26 April 1916. He was admitted to the 51st Field Ambulance, which was a front line medical unit which treated those with injuries. He was evacuated back to the United Kingdom, being sent to the Yarrow Hospital in Broadstairs where Canadian troops were cared for. Sadly, Jack died of his injuries at the hospital on 1 June 1916 at the age of 23 years old. His body was then returned to Norfolk for burial at Bunwell on 2 June 1916.

  • Bunwell – St. Michael and All Angels Church

    Bunwell – St. Michael and All Angels Church

    Richard and I were on one of our meanders around churches in Norfolk, rather more challenging with it getting dark quite so early on in the day. This Grade I listed grand church is located a little outside of the rather spread out village of Bunwell and it was primarily built in the mid to late fifteenth century on the site of an earlier structure. It’s thought that the location of the church was chosen as it was the highest land in the area which was once home to an early stone cross.

    The tower dates from the early sixteenth century and there are six bells inside. The helpful history guide in the church notes that these are from 1699, 1699, 1732, 1732, 1832 and 1884 (the most recent, but a recast of a bell from 1612).

    The porch.

    Quite a small priest’s door.

    The end of the chancel, looking a little plain because of the rendering.

    I’ll stop my little tour of the exterior here to add in a news report from Easter Sunday in 1894, which doesn’t appear in the church’s history inside the building. What happened caused quite a sensation in the area, as there was an attempt to blow the church up (or at least badly damage it) with explosives. Fuses had been placed in the ground with gunpowder, but they had failed to ignite and so no damage was done. The police were bemused and said they weren’t sure that they would find the culprit.

    The story continues though, as the police arrested someone on some rather loose evidence, a Lambert Johnson who was aged 41 and who had done work on the church that he claimed that the previous rector hadn’t paid for. The trial ended in chaos, with the local newspaper reporting:

    “His Lordship said to the jury: You will find a verdict of not guilty. There is not a particle of evidence against the prisoner. I don’t hesitate to say that this is a most improper prosecution – one brought without the slightest conceivable grounds. It is too bad that this man should be five or six weeks in gaol awaiting trial”.

    Although if I’m being honest, Johnson does seem like a prime candidate here.

    Only one side of the chancel has the large perpendicular windows, this side is rather more barren. My knowledge of churches isn’t sufficient to say what has gone on here, nor what those three bits of stone on the left are supporting. The rendering has also made it difficult to see what is underneath.

    This former window or door has been uncovered, perhaps leading to another structure at some stage in the building’s history. If anyone knows, please do contact me….

    The porch way and I wasn’t expecting that we’d be able to get into the church. It was though open, which was something of a surprise. It was dark inside and we decided against finding the lights, but fortunately my phone in night mode actually made it look quite bright internally.

    This is a spacious church, but it was constructed without any aisles, which seems a little unusual for such a grand project.

    The choir seating, with these stalls first used at the memorial service for King Edward VII which was held on 29 May 1910.

    The pulpit, which is just over 100 years old, dating from a similar period to the choir stalls following a period of a very leaky roof damaging some of the interior.

    The chancel end.

    Looking back towards the church tower.

    That’s quite an impressive roof, stripped back and partly replaced in 1908 as it was leaking badly. The church then had to turn its attention to the tower, which was in “a very dangerous condition”.

    Above the North Door are the Royal Arms of Queen Anne.

    The font is from the fifteenth century.

    One of the old oak panelled chests which would have once stored important church documents.

    A really rather lovely church and it does the parish great credit that they’ve made an effort to open the building up. I also liked that they had produced a history of the church for visitors, it all felt really quite welcoming even though we didn’t see anyone during the visit. The churchyard, of which more in another post, is relatively large and has had at least two separate extensions added to it.

  • Cambridge – Blue Moon

    Cambridge – Blue Moon

    This is the sister pub to the Cambridge Blue and it’s listed in the Good Beer Guide, although I wasn’t aware of it until Nathan suggested that we pop in during our little pub crawl in the city. It was formerly known as the Man on the Moon but was changed to the Blue Moon to maintain some name continuity, but also to have a link to its sister venue.

    Decent selection of beers there across a range of beer styles, although it’s not the neatest written board that I’ve seen.

    It all felt modern and on-trend, aimed I think at a younger audience (as in students, not children) and it seems to be hitting that mark well since it won the Cambridge & District CAMRA Young Members pub of the year award in 2020.

    The Olla Coffee & Cinnamon Milk Stout from Ampersand Brew Co from Diss, this was a suitably decadent Christmas drink which was smooth and had a nice flavour of cinnamon. I haven’t seen the Salty Dog range of crisps before and they were complemented the stout well, although I would have preferred some Wotsits if I’m being honest.

    The Baron Broadbay from Howling Hops, this is a barrel aged whisky sour and there was no hiding from the Laphroaig Scotch Whisky taste. An interesting beer which I liked, but it didn’t take many prisoners. I think I needed a pork pie to go with this to balance out the flavours.

    I very much liked this pub, it had a relaxed and comfortable vibe, whilst also having a well balanced beer menu with numerous different styles. There’s usually a food menu of pizzas, there are frequent tap takeovers and the staff were friendly and keen to help. All really rather lovely and I’d happily come back here again. Definitely a worthy entrant into the Good Beer Guide.

  • Cambridge – Elm Tree

    Cambridge – Elm Tree

    I’m not sure that I’ve been to this pub in Cambridge before, but it’s been one of the ever-present locations in the Good Beer Guide over the last few decades. The pub is well-reviewed on-line, it’s a traditional real ale venue which has a loyal following of locals.

    There was a friendly welcome and the pub is small and quite cosy, with the staff being engaging and helpful. There was once a bar billiards table here, but that has long since gone, which must have been a relief for Nathan as he’d have been annoyed to lose in Cambridge.

    There’s a strong emphasis on Belgian beers and CAMRA note that the pub’s landlord has written a book about the subject. I’ve got little knowledge of Belgian beers, although maybe I’ll work on that in the future. In addition to the 100+ Belgian beers, there’s also a notable cider selection as well.

    The Party Party from Brewpoint Brewery, which seems to be the remnants of the Charles Wells set-up that has just constructed a new brewery site at Bedford. It’s a middle of the road real ale, with the crisps (which are vegan despite the flavour of Roast Rib of Beef) complementing it perfectly. This pub doesn’t serve food, but customers are allowed to bring sandwiches and the like in if they want.

    This pub didn’t have the craft beer options of some of the others that we visited, but the service was welcoming, the environment was comfortable and the beer was well-kept. I can see why this has persisted in the Good Beer Guide for so long and there were numerous real ales to choose from. This was also evidently one of those pubs that I felt someone could come in on their own and be made to feel welcome, always a key requirement of a pub in my view.

  • Cambridge – Pint Shop (2nd Visit)

    Cambridge – Pint Shop (2nd Visit)

    Pint Shop was the fourth pub on our little tour of Cambridge and it’s Good Beer Guide listed and I’ve visited before, so I’ll keep this post relatively brief.

    I’d say that this was the only pub of the nine that we visited where there was a complete absence of welcome either at the door or at the bar, with the service being a little terse and entirely unengaging. The pub wasn’t that busy, but there weren’t many seats available as the venue has a poor distinction between where drinkers and diners can sit.

    The beer list had a range of styles and numerous credible options, although nothing stood out as exceptional, but it’s certainly not a bad little selection. I’m not convinced that the bar staff had any idea about the beers, but if they did, they weren’t going to tell the customers.

    Some of the pub’s interior decor. I note a series of recent poor reviews commenting on the high prices of the menu and I’m in agreement with those, I’m struggling to see how they’re justifying main course prices of £20 whilst offering a minimal welcome to customers.

    I went for The Turtles All the Way Down from Duration Brewing, based in West Acre in Norfolk. Hoppy and refreshing, I’m not sure I can remember anything about it beyond that.

    The venue wasn’t the cleanest and I saw no evidence of staff cleaning anything, so the two probably go hand in hand. There was nothing of great concern about this pub, but it’s probably one that I’d skip on any future visits to Cambridge as it feels like a venue that is really only for diners and not those just wanting a drink. That was a situation which was less evident when I visited in 2020, but it was at that point much quieter.

  • Saxlingham Thorpe – Duke of Delhi (formerly The Mill Inn)

    Saxlingham Thorpe – Duke of Delhi (formerly The Mill Inn)

    After some meandering around some historic churches (although, not very many since it’s nearly winter solstice and it’s dark at what seems like mid-day) we thought that we’d get a little snack to reward our history research. I found a pub option that seemed suitable, but then we noticed on-line that they seemed to have a Sunday menu and it all seemed a bit complex. Given that, there was an Indian nearby, and I rarely turn down a chance to have my favourite cuisine, so the Duke of Delhi it was.

    This was until a few years ago the Mill Inn, a roadside pub which was previously known as the West End and had been trading since the 1850s. I’m not usually thrilled to see pubs turned into restaurants, but I really don’t see that there was much choice here. There’s a limited amount of residential properties nearby and since driving after drinking alcohol isn’t an option for customers, a pub’s trade would be limited. There was a friendly welcome offered when we entered, although we were the only customers which wasn’t perhaps surprising since we arrived one minute after they opened. We were enthusiastic (and, well, hungry as well).

    The staff member took the drinks order immediately after we were seated, which was perhaps a little swift, and he suggested Cobra. I wanted mango lassi really, but they didn’t have that, so I went for half a pint of Cobra. I don’t like that they sell half pints at disproportionately more than pints and although this is a restaurant and not a pub, so they won’t get an angry comment from CAMRA, it does slightly annoy me. Anyway, weak drinks choice from my perspective and annoying pricing policy aside, everything else was comfortable and organised in the restaurant so my first impressions were positive.

    Whilst I’m here, it is possible to do Indian food and craft beer as I’ve had that combination at the Indian Brewery in Snowhill, Birmingham a few months ago. Now that would be an exciting concept for Norfolk….

    I was quite happy with this choice of chutneys with the poppadoms, there was perhaps nothing exceptional, but they were entirely acceptable and I enjoyed them all.

    I went for the Murgh Jeera, a curry that was brought over sizzling away nicely, packed with the flavour of cumin and with a generous amount of chicken. I really liked this, there wasn’t the depth of flavour that would have surprised and delighted me, but the chicken was tender and full of flavour, with the curry sauce being tasty and rich. This felt a little Anglicised, but it was better than I expected and absolutely met my expectations. They didn’t have lemon rice, but the coconut rice made up for that.

    For the record, Richard had chicken passanda, which he said was enjoyable and generously portioned, although he marginally preferred the one that he had last week at Shapla Tandoori in Wymondham.

    All told, I liked this restaurant and felt that the service was attentive and polite, with the food being of a decent quality. The drinks pricing policy isn’t one that is unique to the Duke of Delhi, so I won’t mutter about that too much, although what is it with a lack of lassi options? That’d be much more exciting than Cobra. Anyway, all that to one side, I’d happily recommend the restaurant to others.

  • Cambridge – Brewdog

    Cambridge – Brewdog

    This was the next pub that my friend Nathan and I popped to after visiting the Maypole, and this is the centrally located Brewdog that I’ve visited before. I thought that this was one of the better bars in their chain when I visited before, with everything on this trip being well managed so I don’t have much need to change my view about that.

    There was a short wait whilst we were greeted at the front door, where customers are asked to wait. They were encouraging customers to order at the bar rather than using the app, so we did that. There was a decent selection of options, with a range of beer styles being listed there including sours and darker options.

    Although the downstairs area looked quite busy, the upstairs was anything but, so I found us a table with a plug so we could keep our phones charged. This is important when your rail tickets are on your phones…..

    This is the one third of the Carachino from Mad Squirrel Brewery, although it clearly isn’t, it was another Brewdog mispour. They’re managing to do this on around half of my visits, but I refuse to condemn their heavy handedness as it means more free beer….. As a drink, this was another beautifully decadent one, just suited to my tastes of an imperial stout (it weighs in with an ABV of 8%) with tastes of caramel. It was like drinking liquid Cadbury’s Caramel, although my comment about the rabbit from the advertising campaign was lost on Nathan. There was a full body, beautifully smooth taste of caramel and that rich flavour lingered beautifully. Sometimes these flavours can be dulled when drinking more than a third of a beer, but this one remained gorgeously decadent until the end. Very nice.

    Anyway, service in the bar was fine, it was clean and everything felt organised and well managed. No negatives and this remains one of my favourite Brewdog outlets in the chain.