A few days ago my fella and I both woke late with raging hangovers (a whole different review!) and craving something filling for lunch. We decided a carvery was called for and Mark suddenly remembered the old Punchbowl pub in Quinton had been re-opened as a carvery. I wasn't convinced as remember the Punchbowl being a run down hole of a pub, but the cravings were getting stronger so in the finish my belly won out over anti-nostelgic feelings towards the building.
I can honestly say this place has changed big time. The shabby interior has been replaced by rows of smart light wood tables and leather dining chairs, while the neutral decor adds an airiness to the eating area.
There is a bar menu serving traditional pub food but I didn't really look too closely as I had my heart set on a carvery, but a quick glance told me the food is reasonably priced and looks interesting on paper.
The carvery is very good, I was starving when I arrived and you can smell the meatiness from the car park! The place is a little understaffed in my opinion, we hovered near the food for at least five minutes before someone arrived from behind the bar to see what we wanted. I would have thought it was obvious we wanted a carvery as we were stood drooling not 4 feet away from the food, but it took another five minutes for her to return with someone to carve the meats for us.
Anyway, once we had been served and seated I can honestly say the food was delicious. There was beef, turkey and lamb available - my fella had all three but I only wanted beef and turkey, both of which were cooked and carved to perfection. We were also given a fluffy Yorkshire pudding and small stuffing ball, the stuffing was a bit of a disappointmet and didn't have much flavour but the Yorkie was beautiful!
There isn't as large a selection of veg as I'd like, but what's there is wonderfully cooked and a delight to a veggie lover like me. I had a creamy cauliflower cheese, white cabbage, peas and carrots all of which were delicious and went beautifully with each other.
The potatoes were mash and roasters; the roast spuds were gorgeous, small cubes of deliciously roasted potato which squidged up a treat in the thick beefy gravy.
I didn't like the mash, they'd used some sort of soured cream to mash the potatoes and I found it horribly overpowering and didn't eat more than a mouthful. My fella enjoyed it though and ate my portion!
If I had to complain it would be about the lack of sauces on display; in my usual carveries there are bowls of cranberry, horseradish, apple and mint sauces but there's nothing in here. I thought afterwards I should have asked for some, but really it should have been on display for us to help ourselves.
You have to go around to the bar for drinks but we didn't have anything as this was literally a flying visit for a quick meal, the back home for a cup of coffee. The bar was nicely laid out though with comfortable seating and very glossy looking, there was a good array of pumps along the bar and a nicely stocked top shelf.
Disabled access isn't a problem, wide doorways and plenty of room between the table means wheelchair users can easily get inside. I noticed a high chair when I went to the very clean toilets so children are obviously welcome, in fact I'm sure I noticed a special kids menu in the pub too so the little ones are well catered for. read more