The Market Inn (Chesterfield)

I’ve been up in Chesterfield for work this week and I had two nights on my own in town.  I had asked the owner of the B&B where I should go for dinner and he suggested that if I wanted to go to a pub then I couldn’t go wrong with ‘the Market’. 

I took a wander down to the pub which is easy to find and unsurprisingly located in the market.  I did ask one lad on the way there if he knew of it but he’d never heard of it so I’m guessing it’s not overly popular with the younger drinking crowd in town.  However I’m not surprised by this as on my last visit to the town I noticed that there was a huge number of pubs in the town centre.  I think I saw every mainstream pub/club/bar chain that I know of!  They were all vying for the attention of the putters with 2 for 1 deals and free shots, not exactly where you would want to spend a nice evening.  My colleague had mentioned that Chesterfield in only second to Newcastle in terms of pubs per head in the town.  Having seen the pubs I was admittedly a bit sceptical about going to any of them. 

(not my pic)

Also being from the south coming up North is always a bit interesting.  I’d already been addressed as ‘Arright Duck’ that day so just wanted to get back to normality and hopefully have a good pint.  I was in for a treat!!

 

Upon entering the Market Inn I was greeted by the glorious site of 9, yes 9, handpumps on the bar.   Looking around the atmosphere was convivial with most of the tables full even though it was a Monday night.  I got a pint of the Sheffield Porter which was a decent porter, if a little to malty for my tastes.  I also ordered some food which I was just in time for as they stop orders at 7.30 (which seems quite early to me).  As soon as I ordered and sat down the bloke opposite me started telling me how good the food is and what I could look forward to so I was certainly hungry when it arrived.  I had the pie of the day, minced beef and onion with homemade chips and veg.  It was so so good!  The mince was real chunks of meat, shredded and was so soft and delicious.  The pie crust was also really good with the just the right level of crisp to soft and golden brown in colour.  If I had to be picky and I do as a reviewer, I’d question if the gravy was homemade, if it was fair play but I thought it was a bit rich for the pie in question.  This was overall a great dinner.  I washed it down with a pint of the Absolution from Abbeydale Brewery which was a nice one to finish on for desert as it was quite sweet. 

Having enjoyed my evening there I went back again on the Tuesday night.  There were still 7 taps I’d not had yet, Timothy Taylor, Abbott Ale, Darkstar Hophead, Ossain from Inveralmond Brewery in Scotland, Easy Rider from Kelham Brewery, Bullion from Nottingham Brewery and Westons Cider.  I chose the Bullion to start with and was really impressed by it.  It is a golden ale which was easy to drink and just the right amount of hops to give a nice aroma and slight bitter finish.  I’ll certainly look out for that again in the future.  Fish and chips were on the menu with mushy peas so decided to go for that.  It’s a good pub staple that when done right is very good.  The fish and chips was excellent!  Their chef, Paul did a really good job both in terms of taste and presentation.  The batter on the chips was perfect, as good as I’ve had anywhere and the chips were clearly homemade and very tasty.  The only recommendation I’d make would be to suggest homemade tartar sauce. 

I’ve eaten in a lot of pubs this year and had some good meals.  The best pub in terms of food probably being the Lord Poulett Arms which was the Dining pub of the year 2009.  The food at the Market Inn was exactly the kind of food I think should be served in pubs.  They have absolutely nailed the balance between good, locally produced food that is simple and put together very well at a reasonable cost.  I was so pleased to have found a pub doing food like this.  They are proof that simple pub menus with pub staples like sausage and mash, fish and chips and pies can be amazing food.  There is a real skill involved in this and I tip my cap to the chefs as they have done an outstanding job.

The beer was all very well kept and I enjoyed a few more pints there of the Darkstar and the Ossain. 

Lastly the pub in general seemed to be a good community pub and meeting place which was nice to see.  They won the regional CAMRA award for ‘Town pub of the year’ this year and I can see why.  I’d like to go back on a busier night to see what it is like.  I noticed they run all sorts of events such as music nights and food nights to attract customers which is always a good thing.  Check out their website blog or facebook for news. 

Overall I’m now looking forward to my next trip up to Chesterfield so I can go back!  

Task ahead

I realised the other week that despite my efforts so far I'm not going to finish all the pubs in 2011.  But I'm not going to give up.  I've decided that when I get the 2012 GPG I'll just add the new pubs and visit them too!!  Pleanty more good pubs to come!

The Bishops Finger

Back on the Boris bike (what a great way to get around London!) and heading over Blackfriars past the pub of the same name, and onwards towards Farringdon.  Today’s destination The Bishops Finger, located on the edge of Smithfield Market.  Smithfield Market is the largest meat market in the UK and the best time to see it is early in the morning before 7am.  If you do that make a day of it and have a huge fry up with the traders later on and finish your day at the Bishops Finger.  

A Shepards Neame pub, and an excellent example of one too!  With awenings outside covering some circular tables there is a sense of the Parisian cafe culture and the day I visited was warm so plenty of people were outside enjoying the evening.  The nice thing about the outside is that it is not on a busy road so you won’t get so much smog from London buses.  Inside there are some sofas on the left as you enter, and some of the higher tables in the middle make good use of the space around the bar.  The walls were nicely decorated with interesting pictures and items as well some Shepherd Neame advertising.  I quite like the Shepherd Neame advertising it’s pretty funny but not everyone likes it.  You have to see the funny side of it’s tongue in cheeky humour.  They had a load of bunting up in the pub as well so the Great Britain vib was in full effect.  

They have both been satisfied by a bishops finger.

 
All the beers were well kept and they had the full range of Shepherd Neame beers with several ales on tap and the lagers they have like Orangeboom which is a beer that has always held a place in my heart as it was (and still is) the lager served at my first rugby club. 

The other good thing about the evening was we had dinner at the pub too.  We all went for the sausages and mash which was pretty good.  They had a big list of different sausages to chose from.  Can’t go wrong with sausage and mash, good hearty pub food done well is always a winner.  It was a little bit pricey but not too bad.  

Overall a good pub well worth its place in the GPG.  I’ll go back again sometime.