For a picturesque location that will give you a nice drive into the countryside, the Vicarage ticks all boxes on aesthetic. Cute and charming in design, the pub-come-restaurant-come-hotel is a great spot to visit and enjoy a typical Sunday lunch. Recently our editors did just that and sampled the menu to review for ourselves. Take a look at what we made of the popular Cheshire restaurant below.
Inside the Vicarage
There is a lovely, scenic tour you can take to get to the Vicarage, allowing you to take in the countryside and greenery as you make your way to the restaurants location in Holmes Chapel. There is plenty of space to park once you reach your destination, the car park itself is a pleasant space to take in the outdoors on the banks of the river Dane.
The building itself fits the scenery, a 17th century Grade II listed pub, full of country charm. The original building hosts the drinking and dining area, whilst the rear has been extended to accommodate hotel guests. There is a quintessential countryside feel as soon as you set foot into the pub entrance, with plenty of wood panelling, original wood beams in the ceiling and stone floors. Armchairs and couches surround a fireplace and table, which is piled with complementary magazines to read. The walk-through area features polo attire hung on the walls to give an authentic vibe to the venue, this leads way to the pub/dining area which has more armchairs and dining tables to sit at.
We opted to dine in the conservatory, this led on from the pub/restaurant dining space. Opposite to the warm and dim lighting inside, the conservatory was light and spacious. Homely would be the best way to describe decor throughout, particularly in the conservatory area.
On the way to the toilets inside there is also a glass panel in the floor, allowing guests a peak into the underground wine cellar. Little details like this make the restaurant an intriguing and welcoming place to be.
Plentiful bread starters
There are plenty of appetising choices to choose from on the menu. For starters, there are plenty of comforting bread options. We shared a platter of garlic ciabatta bread topped with cheese and rocket. Crisp on the outside and soft and chewy on the inside, the bread is filling and delicious, perfect to share.
Our second choice was the king prawn pil pil, which was both buttery and garlicy in taste. The prawns were well-cooked and went well with the bread, which soaked up the flavour for a tasty result.
Traditional roast mains
As our visit was on a Sunday, it would be rude not to try a traditional roast dinner, with beef being the meat of choice. The beef was well cooked (you can select your preference with the waiting staff) and came accompanied with veg, roasties, a Yorkshire pudding and celeriac puree for added flavour. The roast was rich flavour and was a generous portion. Not for everyone, the celeriac puree wasn’t to our preference but was something different which did add something unique to this dish.
Second option was the pan roasted pork loin, this came served with vegetables and potatoes and like the roast, a Yorkshire pudding. The pork was extremely thick, this gave it a chewy texture that was rich in taste. All dishes came with the red wine jus gravy but the pork loin could have done with another ladle or two. Overall, the mains were worth the journey and combined with the homely atmosphere of the venue it gave us a comfortable feel that made us want to take our time and enjoy the experience.
Classic desserts
Last on the agenda was dessert and we opted for classic dishes. The first choice was the brownie, topped with milk ice-cream and topped with chocolate crumbs. Served warm, the brownie allows the ice-cream to slowly melt, this creates a mixture of textures and flavours that goes perfectly.
The final choice was the ice-cream and cookie combination. You can choose three flavours to try, we opted for two cookie dough and one strawberry shortcake. Locally sourced from a dairy farm, the ice-cream was truly delicious and the strawberry in particular gave us an explosion of flavour that we wished we had more of. Accompanying the ice-cream with a cookie proved to be a good idea, as the crisp shell of the cookie meshed well with the soft ice-cream.
