Pie and Mash

Prior to flying out to Berlin I was staying at The Thistle hotel close to Heathrow Terminal 5. I picked this hotel as it was convenient to the airport and they had autonomous pods that carried you from the hotel to the terminal. They also served dinner. When I looked over the menu there was a choice of things to have. For my starter I had the smoked haddock fish cake. After a disappointing chicken burger I had had the night before, I looked over the menu for my main course. I decided I would go with pie and ordered the steak and ale pie, with creamy mash potatoes, garden peas, carrots, and gravy.

pie and mash

The plate did look quite nice, and was well presented. The pie crust was a little soft for me, but the filling was meaty and tasty. The mash was quite creamy and the veg was cooked okay. The gravy was a little thin for me, and I could have done with more, but it did help make the dish.

Overall I had really quite low expectations for this dish, but in the end did enjoy the dish.

The hotel was convenient for Heathrow, but the food is pretty abysmal, especially for the amount you are charged. It is like poor quality pub food, but at hotel prices. I think if I need to stay at Heathrow again, I would probably choose a different hotel.

Hart’s Barn

I was recommended to visit the Tearoom at Hart’s Barn in Gloucestershire so when I was passing it recently around lunchtime, I thought, why not, let’s go in for lunch.

We pride ourselves on offering excellent quality and service within the beautiful and tranquil setting of the Forest. We are the premier venue in the Forest for enjoying traditional afternoon and cream teas.

We also have a lunch specials board which changes several times a week, featuring light snacks such as an asparagus & fresh cheese tart, to more substantial meals like stews & pies served with British seasonal vegetables whenever possible. All food is made fresh daily on the premises, with our menu being built around the availability of food & drink locally. We list our local suppliers in our menu, so you can see where the food & drink you’re enjoying comes from.

The main menu consists of typical tearoom fare, but they do have a board with daily specials and it from that I decided to make my choice.

My first choice wasn’t available as they had run out of baguettes, so went with the steak and ale pie.

As I waited I drank the coffee I ordered, and wasn’t that impressed, even though they had a proper coffee machine, my Americano wasn’t that good. Ah well, it’s a tearoom I should have had a pot of tea, must remember that.

My meal arrived in a reasonable time, the pie was in a pie dish topped with puff pastry, it was complemented with a portion of mashed potato, a jug of gravy and a decent additional portion of vegetables.

pie

The vegetables were nicely cooked, still some crunch, and the potato was also very nice. I liked the puff pastry and though the pie filling was not as hot as I think it should have been, it was very tender and full of flavour.

Overall I was pleased with the meal and enjoyed it. The service was friendly and efficient.