TL;DR - Nice pub serving great food…read more Popped in here with my parents one day mid-week for lunch. It's been renovated recently and has a nice interior, and serves great food. I went for one of the burgers, my mum had a chicken burger and dad had chicken Kiev. Everything was really nice, but I had a bit of envy over my dad's meal - it wasn't one just of those reformed meat chicken Kievs, it was a huge piece of chicken properly stuffed with garlic and butter. It looked amazing! My burger was really nice too, as were the chips. A little off the beaten track, but if you're looking for a good meal this is a great place to come. There's a small car park to the rear, and staff advised us that if you're coming for a Sunday lunch you should book a table because it gets very busy. I can easily believe that because it was pretty busy just for a mid-week lunch.

Lovely people. The waitress chatted, actually listened, and asked follow up questions. The food was…read moregreat. Most of it locally sourced. I will be going again to that pub and highly recommend it to you.

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.

I found The Black Horse by chance! My car broke down on Long Lane, on the way to Chorley, and so I…read moretook respite in the classic country looking inn and had a lovely lunch. Today I returned for dinner, having meant to come back for dinner ever since I enjoyed that first lunch visit by chance. I'm surprised it's not already on Yelp as it's not new either. It's over 1000 years old. Yes you read that right. The Black Horse is believed to be one of the oldest serving taverns in the country, and was the second pub in the country to be granted a license back in 1577. Every corner and beam exudes the feeling of a classic English pub/tavern. It's comfortable, cosy, and welcoming, with dark wooden furniture, a roaring fire, and warmly lit side rooms. It's everything you would want in a proper English pub. As I don't drink, we were here for dinner, and were greeted warmly and given menus. The staff are friendly and familiar, it's their business and their baby, and they want to make sure people enjoy their visit. The menu has recently been updated and has some fantastic sounding options, as well as periodical specials. On this occasion, we chose the starters of black pudding scotch egg, and garlic flatbread. We were surprised. It's a pub, so you don't quite expect the artistic and pleasant presentation of the black pudding scotch egg, which was beautifully tempting to look at, and perfectly cooked with a lovely soft yolk. The mustard sauce was creamy with a gentle kick. The garlic flatbread was subtle on the garlic side, but lusciously buttery and fresh. The staff checked on us now and then to make sure everything was ok, even the chef herself at one point. Very enjoyable indeed. For our mains, we chose the cheese and onion pie, and the fish and chips, two classics of British pub food! The best bit? The chef came out and asked how I'd like the side of bread and butter cut with my fish and chips! We all know why too... preference... do you just want bread? Chip butties? It's all dependant on that cut! It was nice to be asked! Both were again presented pleasantly. The pie was unctuously cheesy in a perfectly crispy pastry, not a soggy bottom in sight! The mash you could tell from the moment it was placed on the table was proper home made mash, and the comforting thick gravy provided was perfect for flooding the lot! Wonderful! The fish and chips were equally good. The mushy peas were nice, and the tartare sauce was particularly good, however my praise is mainly on the fish, which was outstanding! The quality of the fish alone was excellent, and the batter was crunchy, crispy, golden perfection! For dessert we chose the sticky toffee pudding (it's a classic!) and from the specials menu, the jam roly poly. Both with custard. We're Northern. The sticky toffee pudding was deliciously rich whilst being super light and fluffy! The smell of the jam roly poly slapped in the face as soon as it arrived, whisking me back to nostalgic childhood sunday dinners. The taste was amazing, not just in flavour, but the crust on the pudding was just right, with the occasional chewy crunchy bit. Bloody marvellous! I'd come again just that jam roly pudding! Basically The Black Horse is everything you want from a proper old English pub. It's established, cosy, warm, welcoming, and offers great drinks, excellent food, and a thoroughly pleasant atmosphere. I recommend it thoroughly!

Wow ordered a ploughman's platter ( takeaway) what a fabulous feast more than enough for 3 of us ,…read morefantastic taste , great value , definitely ordering more , highly recommend

Fking fantastic food, reasonably priced, family owned English pub. Cannot recommend enough.read more

Friendliest pub in the area!…read more As an American with in-laws in Chorley, I visit the area often and spend my share of time in local pubs. The Spinner's on Cowling Brow is easily the friendliest I've been in. After a Sunday walk around Anglezarke with my son, we called in for a pint and a hot chocolate on the way home. The staff and clientele went out of their way to make us feel welcome, and we thoroughly enjoyed our stay. It's the first pub that my son has asked specifically to walk to again!

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.

This is a really nice pub for a meal, great location as it is situated by the side of the Leeds -…read moreLiverpool canal. Lots of places to sit outside to watch the world go by.

Food was just ok - Beef ale pie was a bit dry and premade looking and wife's enchilada was more…read morelasagne in a soggy tortilla which doth not an enchilada make. Atmosphere seemed a bit spaced out and uncozy but the staff were great - they made this two star experience a full star up to three!

Well this afternoon my partner and I decided to come here got a bite to eat. It's a beautiful day…read moreand we fancied a light meal outside. Initial impressions were that this place was quite nice until we were being seated. We checked that that they were offering a full menu and not just the carvery and then specified a preference to eat outside. It was at that point we were told that they don't serve food outside but we could take a carvery outside if we wanted. We were shown to our table that was quite frankly packed in like sardines and we may as well have just joined the people on the table next to us. So we walked out. If it's that much of a big deal, give me the sandwich and I'll walk it out myself!

The Rivington Pub & Grill (formerly The Ridgeway Arms) in Blackrod is a warm, cosy, and comfortable…read moretraditional English pub, with a large focus on dining. If you enter the Rivington from the car park, you would firstly think that you've walked into a the bar of a pleasant restaurant, complete with leather winged armchairs, candles, and historical photos of the area. If you walked into the Rivington from the other entrance, you would think that you've walked into a traditional and friendly pub, complete with a roaring fireplace, wood panelling, and comfortable chairs. Fortunately, both are true. Whether you're there for a pint, or there for your dinner, the warm and pleasantly decorated and furnished surroundings automatically make you feel relaxed and comfortable. The main dining area for the restaurant side of the pub is in a horseshoe shape, with open fireplaces on each end, and a raised seating area in the centre. The food offered has something for everyone, ranging from the traditional to the modern, but done superbly well, and in good portions. The head waiter told us how nothing is ever frozen, and everything is bought and created freshly, hence sometimes there can be a wait for your food, but frankly if you want good food created fresh, you should anticipate a bit of a wait. It only makes sense For starters, I had the Saddleback Ribs, which were in a delicious BBQ sauce, which was very much a home made sauce, rather than the thick ketchup-like BBQ sauce you seem to find everywhere today. The meat was so tender, that I was able to simply lift it up, and the bone fell out! Very tasty indeed! The serving staff here are friendly and helpful, but for many of them it seems English is not their first language. This isn't a criticism as much as an observation, and a note that a few times we had to say things a couple of times before they understood, as we were often asked "sorry, what was that?". My only criticism might be a one off, as we asked the head waiter for our bill, but it didn't arrive, and after 15 minutes we asked another waiter about it, but as we did so, we saw the head waiter walk in, see us, and have a moment of realisation, before he dashed off to the bar to collect our bill. Everyone forgets something now and then, but as soon as he realised, he was on it! Although there are many vegetarian dishes available, I do have to say that the Rivington's forté is their meat! All of their steaks are dry aged for 32 days hung on the bone, and all of their beef is from traditional breed cattle. My personal favourite dish here is the rare breed minute flash-steak, which is tender, juicy, and full of flavour (as were my dining companions' above dishes too!). My flash steak came a specific way, but for other meats you are asked how you want it cooked, and obviously which sauces and accompaniments you would like. Steaks cooked without a sauce get lightly drizzled with extra virgin olive oil and sea salt. I personally love their chips! Big, chunky, old fashioned chips. Proper comfort food! I feel I must point out that when asked what he thought of the Herdwick Lamb Chops, my father-in-law, who is a very difficult man to impress, declared them "excellent!", which frankly blew the rest of us away (my mother-in-law dropped her fork!). This is an old fashioned man who would usually say something was "not bad" or at most "not bad at all!", but to declare a food 'excellent' is something we've not heard before... so that's saying something! They offer a nice selection of after-dinner goodies, from teas and coffees to after-dinner tipples, but as beautiful as their desserts sound, I have yet only ever had their sticky toffee pudding, which is home-made and very light (not stodgy and heavy like you'd imagine) and served with vanilla ice cream and butterscotch sauce (my favourite!). It's not that I don't want to try their other desserts, but I can't resist their sticky toffee pudding whenever I'm given the choice!! Frankly I should go there one day and JUST have a couple of desserts! The Rivington Pub and Grill is superb basically, and if you've only ever been there when it was The Ridgeway, I emplore you to go along and give it a try! Maybe have one of their amazing sunday roast dinners. It's the sort of place you could go as a couple, with friends, your parents, or even the whole family. It's a good example of a traditional English dining pub done right! I look forward to my next visit.

If you are looking for a traditional cosy English pub then look no further!…read more The Rivington Pub and Grill, formerly the Ridgeway arms, is the perfect place for a quiet drink or tasty pub grub. The modern yet traditional interior with open log fires makes you feel right at home. The extensive menu has something for everyone and the prices are extremely reasonable for the quality of the food. There are truly no pubs like this around the local area, it's a gem! I am a regular customer!

A lovely little pub…read more Tucked away between a bridge and canal, it's a beautiful setting to visit an English pub. Beautiful decor and facade, it fits the bill for what an old English pub used to be. A wide variety of beers, liquor and food - I love visiting every time I get the chance to. Once called The Railway, over the years it has added more space, outdoor seating and, depending on the day and season, live music. It has a fantastic atmosphere, friendly staff and chatty locals. Again, a lovely little pub.

We stopped in at the Lock & Quay for a quick drink. It's beautifully lit on the outside at dusk,…read moreyou can tell this pub has been well taken care of. The staff is friendly, the beers are cold, and the atmosphere is friendly. I've been twice now, each time I've seen regulars and families coming through. Wish we lived closer...we'd be regulars, too!