What makes a winning barbie
The Ferryboat Inn, Helford Passage, Cornwall
Set on the banks of the Helford River, this St Austell Brewery tenanted pub is a popular port of call with sailors and families alike.
All fired up: Weather permitting, barbecue cooking takes place from Easter until at least September. During the summer, the barbecue is available from midday to 9pm when there is a demand.
On the menu: Not surprisingly, fish features highly on the menu, which includes mackerel, sardines and plaice, scallop kebabs and salmon and swordfish steaks. A range of traditional burgers, sausages and steaks is also available.
Best-selling barbecue dish: Sardines served in a variety of ways with different marinades.
For the kids? A home-made 100% beefburger is popular with old and young alike.
Barbecue offering: With some new equipment this year, the pub hopes to offer a full range of jacket potatoes and panini outside, as well as its barbecue menu. "We have a large terrace and tables and benches on the road. In addition, with disposable plates and cutlery, customers can enjoy their food on the beach," explains licensee Ron Brown.
Top barbecue tip: Be flexible with your menu. "We regularly change ours and it is demand-led. Sometimes people even catch their own fish from the river and, for a fee, we will cook it for them," adds Ron.
The Griffin Inn, Fletching, East Sussex
James Pullan, owner of the Griffin, explains his barbecue offering:
All fired up: Weather permitting, the barbecue and spit roast is available every weekend for Sunday lunch, from the end of April to September. In particularly fine weather it is also available on a Saturday.
On the menu: A wet slab displays the array of fish on the menu: yellow fin tuna, black bream, snapper, sardines and swordfish brochettes to name but a few. Spit-roast organic chicken, veal burgers and rib-eye steaks are also on offer.
Best-selling barbecue dish: Spit-roast organic chicken with lemon and pesto and whole, grilled sea bass slashed with sea salt and lime.
For the kids? All barbecue dishes can be served in children's portions. A range of home-made sausages and burgers is also available - the lamb and mint burgers are a favourite.
Barbecue offering: "The Griffin's barbecue is something of a food cabaret," says James. "It's very visual and the customers are involved." All the meat and fish is available to see. Customers choose from salads, such as couscous with roasted vegetables, or Jersey Royals with spring onions, then select which salsas or dressings they would like drizzled over the food. There is also a range of herb butters for the steaks. A pig spit cooks the chickens and suckling pigs, while the fish are cooked on the barbecue grill.
Top barbecue tip: Prepare your marinades and dressings 24 hours in advance so that you have plenty of time to marinate the meat. Light the barbecue very early so that the meat can be slowcooked right through on a nice even heat rather than being seared.
The Royal Oak, Kings Bromley, Staffordshire
The pub's chef/owner Mathew Shropshall shares his barbecue tips:
All fired up: "The barbie is lit as soon as there's a decent weather forecast," says Mathew.
"Unfortunately we can't market the fact that we have barbecues because if we prep all the food and then the weather is bad, we stand to lose a lot of money."
On the menu: T-bone steaks, lobsters, kebabs, king prawns, piri piri chicken. The menu changes regularly. "Our butcher has just returned from a trip to Australia and so is experimenting with lots of different meats at the moment," explains Mathew.
Best-selling barbecue dish: Lamb kofta kebab with fragrant rice, a tomato and onion salad and yoghurt and mint dip.
For the kids? Good-quality, home-made sausages and burgers supplied by a local butcher, Coates, in Alrewas.
Barbecue offering: "Our barbecue is huge, so we can more or less cook anything on it," says Mathew. "Our barbecue menu is customer-led and we have an area where we lay out the different salads and dressings for customers to help themselves."
Top barbecue tip: Always temperature-probe everything to make sure it is cooked properly. The quality of the food is dependent on the speed of cooking. If it's too fast, the outside will burn while the inside will be cold.
The Woolpack Inn, Fishbourne, West Sussex
A traditional family-run pub, we spoke to head chef Marcus O'Flanagan:
All fired up: "We aim to offer a barbecue from the beginning of May through to mid- September. It's mainly fired up for weekend lunchtimes but is also on offer weekday evenings if there's a demand."
On the menu: Marinated steaks, kebabs, whole fish, tiger prawns.
Best-selling barbecue dish: The mixed grill, consisting of a beef, pork, lamb and gammon steak, accompanied by an O'Hagans local speciality sausage and a selection of salads, breads and dips.
For the kids? Favourites are traditional burgers and sausages. "We serve a home-made beef and onion burger which is very popular."
Barbecue offering: A busy pub, the Woolpack makes the most of its large garden to attract the barbecue customers. It also offers a hog roast during the summer months.
Top barbecue tip: "Wherever possible use good-quality, locally-sourced produce."
