The Duck Inn was a bit of a chance find really, being slightly underwhelmed with our culinary…read moreoptions thus far on our short break, we found this place by the power of the internet, using the small window of opportunity when the Wi-Fi was actually strong enough! Set in the picturesque village of Stanhoe, the Duck Inn is a stone's throw from a large village pond, with resident swans and ducks. It has a largish gravelled car park, with ample spaces, and looks an impressive building from the outside. Inside was a well stocked bar, popular with the locals, and a variety of seating for dining, including a beer garden, and open air dining area covered by a more permanent roof. We had booked, which I would strongly advise you to do. We were seated in the main part of the Inn, which had lots of paintings by local artists adorning the walls, as well as beams punctuating the ceiling. This was more like it, although very busy, this was a great place to relax on a warm summer's evening.
Complimentary crusty bread while we perused the menu was a good start, as were the staff, friendly and efficient at all times, even though later on, it really did get very busy. The menu whilst not huge, had an interesting range of dishes and daily specials. We opted to skip the starters, although the Scotch Quail Eggs sounded lovely. Lots of dishes on offer for the mains like fillet of beef, courgette, pea and mint risotto, but we opted for the Caesar Salad and the Salmon Risotto. Although the dishes took a little while to arrive, they were worth the wait, the Caesar Salad had a beautiful flavour, the anchovies and pancetta, gave the dish a real punch, and the chicken breast was beautifully cooked, probably the best Caesar Salad I have ever eaten. The Salmon Risotto, was equally impressive, a perfectly piece of salmon, on a dill and fennel risotto, dotted with meaty prawns. As good a pair of main courses as we've had in a long time! Of course a dessert is almost compulsory, the triple chocolate brownies, with salted caramel, were every bit as good as they sound.
So impressed were we with the food and the surroundings, and realising they had accommodation we booked to stay over the next night, not cheap, but worth it. The room had a touch of elegance about it, a large bathroom, with a huge bath and a walk in shower. HDTV, good Wi-Fi (first time all holiday), tea and coffee making facilities and a large comfortable bed, which sadly was too short, odd! The main thing was though it was a relaxing space. We ate again in the restaurant the night we stayed, even busier on a Friday night, but a great atmosphere. We both went for Fish and Chips for main, with chunky chips and garden peas, with a side order of buttered greens. The Fish and Chips came in two sizes, my wife went for small (sensible choice), whilst I went for the large; shall we say a substantial portion! Just enough room for dessert, I had the Duck's Eton Mess, good but not great, and my wife had the rather wonderful Pecan and Treacle Tart.
After a decent nights sleep, the breakfast was also impressive, fruit juices and cereals aplenty, but no fresh fruit. The cooked part of the breakfast was excellent though, wonderful flavour of the sausages, bacon and eggs, clearly locally sourced. All in all a great stay, one place I'm sure we'll gravitate back to, next time we are in Norfolk.
