Dines Out: The Sloop Inn

Warmer days inspire trips to the country and what could be more enticing than a decent pub lunch followed by a woodland walk. So with this plan Ms C & M drove me out to meet Ms H & O at the Sloop Inn, a short hop to their own little slice of Sussex woodland. I’m all too often disappointed by pub roasts but this was their bank holiday menu and a very stylish menu it was too.

Having made a batch of brownies to nosh the day before we all settled for a starter and a main. Two of us had the roquefort panacotta with an apple and caramelised walnut salad and apple gel. Well you wouldn’t get that in the Rover’s Return for sure but here it was a very good dish indeed, great flavours and a decent wibble to the cheese heart of the dish. Two of the girls chose the crab tart with crab sauce and we all spotted that the spiral of sauce had been inspired by a recent dish on Master Chef – or had it?! Any which way they loved it, and finally there was asparagus, a good portion, beautifully trimmed, cooked and dressed and topped with crisp ham shards in quantities that made their presence worth while. I’m rather bored by listed ingredients on dishes that arrive in microscopic quantities, all promise and no pay-off.

The quality of the tender meat and tenderness won my heart

So to our main courses, Ms C had a steak, she likes a steak and she liked this one, cooked exactly as she had asked. Ms M and Ms H chose the sea bream with potatoes and chorizo. I was tempted by that too and when I saw the beautifully presented dish, the crisp skin on the fish and the cubes of potato and sausage, amazingly un-oily, I was concerned that I had gone wrong. I had not, my lamb, pea and mint pie was fantastic. I would normally moan about a pie with no pastry underneath but the quality of the tender meat and tenderness won my heart as did the excellent mash and vibrant mix of green spring vegetables.

Ms O is Dutch and chose beef sausage with mash and she loved it, I don’t know why I felt the need to say that she is Dutch but whilst she walked the three dogs we all guessed that that was what she would choose – and we were right. Ms O likes her hearty food!

We drank good ale in good quantity and when the bill came we were pleasantly surprised by the very reasonable price of our meal. I want to return to the pub and to their lovely secret wood and very soon.

The Sloop Inn, Sloop Lane, Scaynes Hill, West Sussex. RH17 7NP
01444 831219
thesloopinn.com