The Bell, Broad Hinton (From This Is Wiltshire)

The Bell, Broad Hinton

2:55pm Thursday 25th February 2010 in

• Skip social links
• Print
• Email
•  

WE HEADED out into the countryside in search of Sunday lunch at a pub a friend had recommended . . . and ate at a completely different one.

Well, my sense of taste has always been better than my sense of direction and with stomachs grumbling, son Tom and I decided to stop looking and start eating.

Luckily as we made this decision we were near to The Bell at Broad Hinton, where I’d enjoyed a meal from the main menu in the past.

It’s a nice looking establishment with flagstone floors and comfy furniture in the bar area, where you can also eat if you want to.

We sat there initially but were tactfully moved to the more formal dining area round the corner of the L-shaped room. It was suggested that it might get a bit loud later on when fans arrived to watch the Six Nations rugby on the big screen, rather than that we’d be in the way - which we would have been.

When we were settled we ordered two beef Sunday lunches at £9.95 for two courses - that was for either starter and main or main and dessert, so we did one of each. The starter was a butternut squash soup, which was good but I’d have liked an option. The main courses were good in parts - there were three slices of beef which were thick but rather too well cooked for my liking and a good selection of veg (broccoli, carrots and cauliflower). The let-down was the roast potatoes which were tough rather than crispy and I suspect had been reheated. However the parsnips were undoubtedly freshly roasted and were delicious as was the swede mash.

The dishes came with a Yorkshire pudding and a good gravy and the meal was finished off with a nice and gooey chocolate dessert and vanilla ice cream.

After that lot we were ready to go home and doze over the Sunday papers - and luckily we didn’t get lost on the way.

The Bell, Broad Hinton, SN4 9PF. On the A4361 between Wroughton and Avebury. Tel: 01793 731934 Sunday lunch served: noon to 2.30pm. Two courses £9.95, three courses £12.45