I was looking for Sunday roast. I had initially gone to another pub just up the street, but they had pork roast and I was craving beef. This place was close and had good reviews on Yelp.
First Impressions: Dirty, but not filty, in an old pub way. I might've appreciated this as a character boost, but it also looked like it could use a thorough cleaning. There are cobwebs throughout, the tables are actually sticky, and there was a layer of dust on everything not regularly used.
Tap selection was good and if I had been seeking a pint alone, I would have rated higher, but I was seeking food. They had a sandwich board out front advertising the beef roast, I don't exactly remember but it was about 9 pounds, which seems fair. Both my wife and I ordered the Roast.
It was a plentiful plate. The problem was that, while it was plentiful, everything except the gravy was tasteless. The gravy was actually good, but gravy alone cannot carry a meal. Also, and this might just be personal preference, but when I think of roasted beef, I think of tender chunks. This beef was sliced about 1/4" thick and was very hard to cut. I think the cutability of the meat was primarily a quality of beef, but it may have been cooked too fast, either way, inspiring the agressive use of cross grain cutting. The meat was also slightly undercooked, like prime rib, which is not how I envision roast beef. Also on the plate was potatoes, carrots, ect. As stated, they all looked attractive, but left my palate craving more flavor.
Kyle was behind the bar. He was perfectly polite, answered questions about the drink selections and gave samples off the taps. If I was rating just Kyle, I'd give 4 stars. If I was rating the beer, I'd give 4 or 5 stars. I am giving 2 stars, because the meal was entirely blah. read more