The Shire Horse, Stafford 2013

The Shire Horse, Stafford
(Pub Food)
Friday // 19:30

Reviewer: Drew

The Shire Horse

1 Hurricane Close

Stafford

Staffordshire

ST16 1GZ

A member of the Chef & Brewer line, the Shire Horse is a short distance from Junction 14 of the M6. Built in 2002 it was designed to have all the old world pub charm, with several log fires and many rustic open beams. With an ample sized beer garden, it’s charm remains even in the heat of summer.





Restaurant: 79/100

Service: 27/30

The extremely friendly and bubbly staff were very attentive, coming to check we were happy with every course. Every time one of our drinks was down to a quarter full, they’d be over asking if we wanted any more. All staff presented a good working knowledge of the menu, only downside is we were originally given the wrong menu (but it was quickly rectified when we asked about it)

Decor: 15/20

Very nice oaken beams, and little oddities on the wall all adding up to a very charming old world pub feel. The venue had a very high standard of cleanliness. The main downsides were that where we were didn’t feel open and spacious, and the noise level was bit on the loud side - but we did have the last available seat in the pub, so they were very busy at the time.

Drinks: 18/20

Large selection of all the usual suspects you’d expect in a pub, but with the addition of a large wine list, local breweries on tap, a selection of non-alcoholic drinks, a coffee machine and a selection of herbal teas. Hard to find any real fault, only really lacking in mocktails.

Value for Money: 12/20

As another chain pub, there were plenty of special offers to be had to help bring down it’s higher than average price. Mid week you can get 3 courses for under £15, but even on a friday I got the deal of 3 courses for £17.95. However, it is still on the higher scale of the pricing spectrum, and without the deal would hit £20+.

Menu Selection: 7/10

All the burgers and steaks and usual pub favourites were accounted for, and several vegetarian options were available. With WIld boar, Pheasant, and Venison on the menu, there we some real delights to be found. No specific mentions of where the food was sourced from, however, and could have been more vegetarian friendly on the starters menu.





Starter: 64/100
Bubble and Squeak, with poached egg, crispy bacon, and hollandaise sauce (£3.79)

Taste: 18/30

Very enjoyable, the egg was poached perfectly, and the bacon was crisp without being overdone. There were however a couple of downsides. The Hollandaise was a little too thin and swamped the dish, overcoming some of the other flavours. Also potato cake was underseasoned and a touch undercooked for my taste, leaving it no real firmness.

Presentation: 13/25

Far too much sauce made the plate look a little sloppy, however the food was neatly stacked and the plate was nice and warm.

Wait Time: 19/25

From the moment of ordering it took 16 minutes to arrive, which is well within the bounds of acceptable.

Portion Size: 14/20

This dish was very filling, and more than ample for one person, with a good sizeable helping of potato cake for a base.





Main Course: 55/100
Wild boar, pork apple & sausage burger, with american mustard. (£11.49)

Taste: 14/30

Let’s go with the good first, shall we ? The onions rings were beautifully crisp and perfectly cooked. The chips with crisp but still fluffy inside, but could have done with a few more seconds in my opinion. The bun was lightly toasted with the cheese melted onto it’s roof, and the apple chutney was delicious. The downside ? The strength of the chutney completely and utterly overpowered the meat. Honestly, I could have been eating a veggie burger for all I was aware of it’s presence. Lets face it, the wild boar meat was the draw of this dish - when you can’t taste it, what’s the point ?

Presentation: 12/25

Neat and well presented on the wooden board and separated into its elements, leaving the top bun off to present it is a nice touch. Marked down because of the mustard spray around the sauce dish, and the burger construction was lacking - due the the rings of the sausage, half the meat fell out the side of the burger in the first bite, and this happend to both me and my fellow diner, so was clearly a flaw in the construction.

Wait Time: 15/25

The dish arrived 19 minutes after ordering, which is still slightly above average.

Portion Size: 14/20

Very filling, was absolutely stuffed after it. Plenty of sausage for your money and an ample side of chips, it was a good size portion for an adult.





Dessert: 87/100

Hot Chocolate Fudge Cake w/o ice cream  (£4.79)

Taste: 27/30

Now, this fine specimen of a cake was de-freaking-licious. Smooth chocolate and fudge was oozing out of it. It was hot and moist all the way through, and was frankly the finest fudge cake I have ever had the pleasure of devouring. And believe me - I devoured it. I was half a thought away from licking the plate.

Presentation: 21/25

The dash of extra fudge was a very nice addition to the presentation of the dish, and the sprinkle of the top added a bit of colour to bring the two elements together. The small jug of cream was given along with an explanation (I asked for it without), that they gave me a jug of it just in case I change my mind, but it did add an eye pleasing third article to the plate.

Wait Time: 24/25

Arrived in 9 minutes, which is a nearly flawless response.

Portion Size: 15/20

The slice of cake was huge! Of course, I didn’t let that dissuade me - the taste was so good it was gone in the blink of an eye. It left me feeling stuffed and satisfied afterwards.





Overall Score: 285/400 (71%)

A very good meal in a fine establishment. The main factor letting it down was the main course, which in some ways was very lacking. I would certainly come back again, if only for more of that fudge cake!