Crown & Anchor

I reckon less choice often leads to better food, and one of the pillars of my ideal pub would be just three or four changing meal options - with the proviso that all of them were top quality and freshly cooked on the day.

Until the arrival of my beery Utopia, however, we must live as best we can with the current state of pub fare.

On our visit to the recently refitted Crown & Anchor in West Bromwich last Tuesday night, my dining partner and I found a spotlessly clean and bustling pub full of happy diners.

We also found a menu bursting with options from spinach and ricotta pasta to king-size surf and turf platters - almost all with chips - which took me 15 minutes to plough my way through and left me with no clearer idea of what I wanted than when I started.

In the end, my dining partner opted for a £3.95 double barbecue stack with chips and salad, while I took advantage of the curry night deal of a spicy chicken balti, serving of rice, sliver of naan and assorted pickles plus a pint of Cobra lager for £4.99.

When our food turned up, about 25 minutes after it was ordered, it was piping hot and the portions were plentiful.

My dining partner was delighted with her massive burger.

Likewise, the my meal was probably the best pub curry I've ever had, and better than many an offering from a High Street balti house.

The rice was also perfectly cooked, although I'd have been happier with a whole naan bread rather than the half piece I was served.

All in all, though, we were happy enough with our meals which with an extra soft drink came with a combined price tag of £10.44.

We were also full enough that choosing one of the tasty treats off the pub's dessert menu was not required.

Most of the two or three dozen other diners in the pub seemed as least as happy as I was with the food, although how long our meals remain cherished memories is a different matter.

Maybe my ideal boozer would be a recipe for bankruptcy anyway.

By Jim Dunton

ADDRESS:

Hollyhedge Road, West Bromwich

Tel: 0121 567 0921