I went here for my boyfriend's birthday this week, my first ever visit - and it was fantastic…read more The food was quite reasonably priced and really delicious! There was quite a wide variety of food available too - so loads of choice. Also had a tasty glass of wine :) The staff were lovely and really attentive - even though it seemed fairly busy. Very pleasant experience! Would definitely go again.

Used to go here about 12 year ago, as the food, service and prices were always spot on…read more Recently went back and I'm glad to say it is still spot on. Great traditional british food (and a good few ethnic dishes) on offer, nice pleasant staff, good prices. If what you want is a great Sunday Roast or more - go here and enjoy.

This is a regular haunt of ours, for a stop off on a walk/bike ride for a sandwich and a pint or…read morefor dinner. Always good quality pub food, great selection on the bar menu or the a la carte menu. You have to try the 'smokies' the taste is something else, the food is reasonably priced and the atmosphere of the Eagle and Child is welcoming and homely. A good selection of real ales and beers behind the bar as well as an extensive wine selection. If you are out this way then its worth the visit, or even a drive out. Look out for the beer festival held here annually.

Oh my lordy lord I'm home. This is the very village in which I grew up. Nothing happens here…read more Seriously, have a wander round Parbold on Google Street View. If you've got your preconceptions of rural countryside living from Emmerdale, think again. The most drama you get in Parbold is when someone's dog goes missing, there's a strange smell in the local shop or they put a new shelter up in the train station. I say home, it's a very long time since I've considered Parbold home. Since my parents emigrated to the Canaries I've taken to thinking of sunnier climes as my hometown, and Parbold's something of an anomaly. But many happy memories reside here, and considering the Brunette is still a Southport dweller we occasionally partake in drives here to see what's going on. You can't beat a bit of country fresh air and acres of farmland. As I've mentioned before, the Eagle and Child used to be run by friends who've fallen off the contact radar, except via the spying joy that is Facebook. Now it's been overtaken by the Ainscough branch, so I had to see what was going on. Now this place is a bit more like it. You know where everything's from, some from its farm shop next door and plenty of local produce including its own meat grown on Parbold farmland. It's a simple and small but thoroughly upmarket British menu, with starters including black pudding, potato and bacon salad, game salad, carrot and cumin (interesting twist) soup with carrot crisps and suchlike. You've got two veggie mains to choose from; a Thai style veg curry and a pasta with wild mushroom, both of which are inventive enough but don't feel in situ with the rest of the menu really... cornfed chicken, sautéed pork, Croston Hall pheasant (eww, I went to high school in Croston). But it's all really tasty stuff, and the sweet menu is equally traditional yet interesting with apple and rhubarb crumble, apple and mince strudel, bread and butter pudding, lemon and vanilla crème brulee and some great ice creams to choose from. You can't get more picturesque than Parbold, and I have to say they've done a sterling job. There wasn't a sign of any of my old friends there and I wouldn't trust most of them with cheese on toast so I imagine there's been a reshuffle. If you're in the area I'd say pop in for some nice grub.

The Five Ways is situated at a busy junction in Ormskirk. It is a large pub which looks attractive…read morefrom the outside. It has a large car park on site which never seems to get full, even on a Sunday. The interior of the pub looks expensive, well maintained, clean and tidy. The decor is homely and comfortable. When you enter you are asked to wait there to be seated, it took a minute for someone to come and see us but when they did we were quickly shown to a nice table, presented with our menus and our drinks order was taken. The pub is very spacious, with a lot of tables for diners, and comfier area's for people who are just there for a drink. When we were there the football was on, but this only resulted in a distant cheer (or boo) every now and then, and didn't disrupt our evening. The menu has a lot of choice. There is a carvery available 7 days a week but there are also many other options available. I went with my parents who are both pensioners, and as they were members of the pubs "Diamond Club" which is for the over 50's, they were able to get 2 courses for a mere £6.25. This includes the carvery which is usually £7.25. After agonising for a while I chose the "'Brown's of Kirkconnel' black pudding and bacon fritter. Topped with red onion chutney and a poached egg" for starters. This was possibly the best black pudding I have ever tasted. It was rich and succulent without being overly fatty. It was so delicious and just the right size for a starter. For my main course I chose the Ultimate Burger - "Hand pressed Farm Assured Saxon British beef burger and half chicken breast, topped with melted Taw Valley mature Cheddar, smoky chilli bourbon sauce and crispy onions. Served with hand cut potato wedges." This came on a trendy square plate and looked very impressive (and huge) when I was served it. This was simply divine. The burger was delicious and the bacon and chicken were cooked to perfection. The wedges were also delicious and very moreish. For pudding I had Gingerbread flavoured Penna cotta with a homemade honey wafer. I've never had Penna cotta before but I thought I'd give it a go. It was so delicious, creamy and indulgent. But at the same time it was light and refreshing. I was actually sad when I finished the desert as I wanted more! The service at Five Ways is excellent. You don't have to wait long for your starters to be served, and once the plates are taken away the main course is brought to you quickly. The same happened when we ordered our deserts. The staff are friendly and very helpful. They are happy to chat and crack a joke whilst taking your order. They keep an eye on you whilst you are eating, coming over to check everything is perfect with your food, and taking orders for further drinks. I had an excellent meal here. I had previously only had the carvery but I thought I'd try something else and I was glad I did as it was amazing. I can't fault this place at all.

I'm with Hex P. This place is tremendous. The decor is posh, I'd be delighted to have this…read moreluxurious wallpaper in my living room, and the ambience is spot on. The food is top notch, needless to say. The main problem here is that the carvery is so good it's a wrench to not have it and attempt something else. The stuffing balls are delightful, the Yorkshire puds are bigger than my head. And that's saying something. The herby potatoes are a revelation when compared to most other carveries. The desserts are utterly indulgent. Magnificent morsels. The chefs know a thing or two about cooking, no doubt. The Fiveways has the advantage of being close to the farming areas of Ormskirk and Burscough, so its produce is probably much fresher than a lot of other places. Restaurants that is, let alone pubs. Whenever I've been the service has been really quick and friendly. Like Hex P my mum's also a pensioner (sorry mum) and she's a member of the Diamond Club - any over 50's get two courses for £6.25, which is a real bargain considering the calibre of the food.

Wow. I love this place. Massive & varied menu (which the…read morekitchen seem to be able to cope with). Really prompt service (despite the restaurant being packed on a Saturday night). Food of the highest quality & perfectly cooked. Just had a wonderful 3 course meal. Both myself and the wife had the best fillet steak I've had in this country; they were about 2 inches thick and cooked to a perfect medium rare (not easy with a hunk of meat this large). If my stomach could take the abuse, I'd be here every night. The menu is so large I think you could select different combos each night for years. Even managed to accommodate a specials/ seasonal menu. Most reasonably priced lobster I've seen in a restaurant for some time. I have zero complaints about this place. You must Go Go Go.

Went here before Christmas for Saturday lunch on the suggestion of my vegan dining companion. She…read morehadn't been here before and may have picked up this claim on their website: "The local vegetarians and vegans, who regularly eat in both the Bar and Southwell's Restaurant, say we have the best selection of vegetarian and vegan dishes in the area." As a vegetarian myself, and having cycled past the Farmers Arms on many occasions, it seemed worth a go. We ate in the bar, but from a passing glance on the way in the restaurant looks very luxurious by any standards, let alone for a pub restaurant in these parts! The bar does the English pub ambience reasonably well, with a warm glow from the woodburning stove. Staff were friendly and welcoming throughout our visit. We both ordered some sort of curry from the six or so choices on the vegan/vegetarian menu. While my overall experience of Farmers Arms was OK, the food was definitely sub-standard. The curry itself, both my companion and I thought had a strange after-taste. I suggested at the time that this might come from some indian vegetable or herb, but it dawned on us later that a green potato was a likelier explanation. Which doesn't really surprise me, as the veg was a hodge-podge of roughly cut baby potatoes, julienne carrots, uncaramelised onions and nothing else outstanding. The curry sauce was thin and unappetising - even a scoop of a Patak's jarred curry sauce would have been a big improvement. Poppadom on top (OK) and by far the highlight of the meal was the food service chips served as part of my friend's half rice/half chips. Coffee after the meal for the lady was "bog standard" in her words. En route, we had passed from Fir Tree Farm Christmas Market into the farm shop and cafe itself. There don't seem to be menus on the tables these days at Fir Tree, only a short, daily changing blackboard menu. If it were all about a safe bet for wholesome sustenance, a bowl of soup at Fir Tree would wins hands down every time. But one needs to take a chance, and here is hoping that the next throw of the dice turns out a bit luckier! It wouldn't surprise me to read a good review of vegetarian food served especially from the restaurant at Farmers Arms. But I feel it somebody else's job to take a chance on that one!

The best pub in this featureless snobby, inbred area…read more The nearby Eagle and Child is a overrated, pretentious, snobbish dump serving overpriced substandard food to inbred snobby p**cks in Range Rovers. Choose this place instead.

Really impressed with our midweek lunch at the Saracens head…read more The pub building itself is quite old but has been fully refurbished inside into a comfortable pub and restaurant, more restaurant than pub. There are comfortable sofas and cushions in the front pub area and larger dining area in the middle. Casual, uncluttered and clean lines is the look. We were welcomed and shown to a table overlooking the Leeds - Liverpool canal which passes right outside. The lunch menu is quite extensive with options to cover all tastes. We started with baked camembert with red onion marmalade and shared between us. Well put together and the onion marmalade was the perfect accompaniment. I chose a main of steamed suet pudding of pheasant, partridge and wild mushrooms with garlic mash, red cabbage and cabernet jus. Just excellent. Great British food at its best. The pudding was more like a suet crust pie and the game and mushroom filling was very enjoyable and perfectly complemented by the smoked garlic mash and red cabbage with flavourful jus. I also sampled the roast chicken supreme with pancetta, white beans and colcannon potato cake. Again, really well thought out and prepared with good flavour combinations. Generous portion sizes, just what we wanted on a cold winter's day. Didn't make it to desert but next time... Service was friendly and efficient and prices reasonable for the high quality cooking. Couldn't fault it so a high rating from me and look forward to going back.

Sat outside this place and had a drink, however what I saw of it deserves 4*. A couple of people…read moresay near were having food and it looked excellent. Service was fast, prices were reasonable for drinks, interior decor was nice, staff were pleasant and it's well situated. Short and sweet. 4*.

Situated on a quiet country lane, The Robin Hood is a hidden gem of a restaurant…read more The food is all freshly prepared and there is really something to suit all tastes.We have never been disappointed, theonly thing i felt that let it down a bit is being seated upstairs, we were in a party of 8 and the seating area was at an akward angle. Other than that the food was well worth it. On this occasion it worked out roughly at £15 per head including drinks. Well worth a visit.

Good Farm family run restaurant / cafe situated on the moss passed Martin Mere. Large modern…read morecontemporary barn with plenty of tables and a good selection of simple but quality food. Very good staff. Has developed into a good day time destination for lunch after visiting the birds.

The Cafe at Cedar Farm is charming and homey. After walking around the farm and seeing the…read moregalleries and animals, we were ready for a good lunch. The Cafe didn't disappoint. We got homemade tomato soup with salad, cheese, and bread. The tomato soup was great but was a little odd with lots of bread in it. I didn't eat the bread bits but the soup was really good. The cheese was also really yummy and came with some British sour fruit spread stuff which I hadn't had before. When it came time for dessert, I had no clue what any of the items were on the menu as they were English desserts I'd never seen before... I finally decided on "Sticky Toffee Pudding" which turned out to be a very nice soft, warm gingerbread tasting cake with hot caramel syrup. My British friend with me got "Summer Pudding" which was soaked bread with berries. It was really good and overall a really great lunch.