The Anglers Arms, Haverthwaite

Food review-wise, this is my least favourite time of year.

The school holidays are well under way and in eating establishments around the area, everywhere you look there seems to be a child chomping open-mouthed on chips. Add the fact that this is Vickers Fortnight – the traditional shipyard holiday which, while officially defunct, many families still observe – and finding somewhere quiet to eat is quite a challenge.

On Tuesday evening, we managed it, however. We had called in for a drink to the Swan at Newby Bridge, which was heaving with chip-eating, loud, juniors.

The cacophony in the bar would have been enough to put us off, if we had been intending to eat there – which, as it happens, we hadn't.

En route, we had called in to a pub which neither of us had set for in the for the proverbial donkeys': The Anglers Arms at Haverthwaite.

At 6.30pm, it was busy with family groups having meals. We booked for an hour or so hence, and took our leave. Upon our return at the appointed hour, we got our wish for a quiet meal: the place was completely empty.

People sure eat early in these parts. The friendly waitress assured us it had been busy earlier – which we knew anyway. No matter: we had the pick of the tables, so settled at a table for two by the main bay window.

In the 30 years or so since I last set foot in the Anglers, it seems to have changed not one jot. It's your traditional dining pub, with red-patterned carpet, brasses, overhead lights and not a great deal of atmosphere. Particularly when you're the only people in there.

To start, we shared deep-fried Camembert at a fairly hefty £6.45, although when it came it was very tasty, if nothing at all out of the ordinary. Standard pub grub, garnished with a standard pub side salad.

For mains, Gordon chose a lamb Henry (why it's called that, I've never known), while I went for another pub classic: gammon egg and chips.

It was a miserable, wet, typical summer evening for Cumbria, so we were in the mood for hearty food. And we certainly got that.

Gordon's lamb was tender to a fault, falling off the bone and very well-cooked. It came served in a bowl with plenty of new potatoes and lots of unctuous sauce. The dish of vegetables which was served alongside was a little bland – and a long way from al dente – but perfectly acceptable.

My gammon was a generous affair, accompanied by two perfectly fried eggs (big tick for generosity on the eggs front), lovely onion rings and some off-puttingly pale chips which tasted a great deal better than they looked. A large side salad, with a big dollop of coleslaw was another generous – but unnecessary given the size of the serving – addition.

Service throughout was friendly and attentive by the two young ladies who had the privilege of dancing attendance upon us. It's worth a visit just for the two of them.

Gordon was coerced by me into having a pudding after all that – it wasn't difficult to persuade him. It rarely is.

Eschewing the standards (again) such as bread and butter pudding or sticky toffee pudding, he bravely chose a deep-fried Milky Way (£3.95) which led me to wonder if there is any chocolate-covered confectionery a pub chef will not consider throwing into the deep fat fryer.

Somewhere, I feel sure, there is a pub with deep-fried Viscount biscuits or deep-fried Lion bars on its dessert menu.

Having previously endured the far from pleasant culinary experience of a deep-fried Mars Bar, I was determined not to make use of the extra set of cutlery the waitress brought, should I feel the desire to tickle my tastbuds with some battered Milky Way. It looked OK... So eventually I risked a nibble. And, you know what? It wasn't half bad.

With a drink each our meal came to a reasonable £42. The Anglers may not be the chicest pub in the area but it's been around forever so it's clearly getting something right. The food is good and hearty and the staff are great. It exceeded our expectations – even down to the deep-fried Milky Way.


By Louise Allonby


RATINGS

Food: 3

Service: 4

Value: 3

Atmosphere: 3

PROS

Plenty of parking

Traditional dishes

Family friendly

You couldn't get more pleasant staff

CONS

No apostrophe in Anglers

Overhead lighting jarring at night

Synthetic daffodils on tables