Food file - Pub Review
The General Tarleton Inn Ferrensby, nr Knaresborough.
I was expecting great things from the General Tarleton, the baby brother of the much-rated Angel Inn, as it was tipped as being one of the best gastropubs in Yorkshire. The pub looked warm and inviting from the outside - but that's as far as its charm went. No, I tell a lie, the open hearth and crackling log fire almost made it feel cosy - it's just a pity that it wasn't enough to melt the frosty atmosphere created by the staff.
As you might expect for a Sunday evening, it wasn't particularly busy, but the first waitress we encountered still chose to blank us and wipe down a table, whilst my companion and I loitered in the doorway in the hope we'd be shown to the table we'd booked for 8pm. By the time it came to order food I was beginning to feel like an uninvited guest at an exclusive party. The sour barman had already snubbed me while I was ordering drinks, then rudely pushed in front of us to remove items from the blackboard while we were trying to read the giant menu - well, really!
If it hadn't been for the homemade chips I'd spotted another diner munching, I would have left there and then. But the prospect of these and a chargrilled rib of beef served with a rocket and parmesan salad (£16.95) kept me rooted. Sadly my meal and that of my companion - two sausages and dry, lumpy mash with bland onion gravy (£7.95) - were distinctly average. My thinly-sliced steak was overcooked and the rocket and parmesan salad didn't contain a single rocket leaf or shaving of parmesan - the waitress looked at me like I was insane when I pointed this out! Well at least I had my chips to keep me going.
All I needed was some ketchup. But the waitress explained they'd run out of ketchup and proudly presented a bowl of mint sauce in its place. No, I didn't get it either! After foregoing a starter, I decided to round off the meal with the frangipan tart. It was delicious - at least the pastry chef was earning his keep!
Pub Chef rating (marks out of 10) Ambience: 5 Value for money: 5 Overall impression: 4 Flavour Factor: 6
