Wow, I can't believe it's been three years since the last review of this place. Hopefully that means it's being kept a secret...in which case I'm going to be found majorly guilty of breaking the silence.
On the recommendation of a friend who lives about half an hour from Ulverston, we reserved a table for four here and wandered down from Virginia House Hotel (http://www.yelp.co.uk/biz/virginia-house-hotel-ulverston) where we were staying.
From the outside it looks just like your typical whitewashed country pub. Though I'd hardly call Ulverston town centre bonefide 'countryside', the place still had an immediate charming effect on us as we approached.
Once inside you're met with a pub-sized 'shrine' to the town's most famous son. Photos, screen shots, figures and memorabilia from Laurel & Hardy's history on the screen are everywhere. It gets the set-up just right - managing not to look like an obsessive fan's homage to Stan, but just enough to pay tribute to his fame.
The sizeable bar has at least six handpulls on at any time. Most are from the local area but their range stretches further afield aswell. What was great was having the option of getting a tray of three thirds in case you couldn't choose between them.
The menu is pretty comprehensive and we saw the portion sizes were, well, sizeable, so opted for mains and desserts. I had the 10oz sirloin steak cooked medium rare and it was incredibly juicy. The stars on the plate were the onion rings though, beer-batter crispiness - sheer heaven. Lots of chunky chips and coleslaw with salad (you could opt for potatoes and veg instead) and then it was on to the puddings.
Ice cream flavours that we'd never heard of before. Coupled with sticky toffee pudding I had 'Thunder and Lightning' flavour. I'll keep what it was like a secret so you have to try it yourself ;)
Lovely, friendly staff, great ales and immense food. It certainly wasn't 'Another Fine Mess.' read more