The Cock & Magpies, Smethwick

Eating out . . . I should know better than most, that it can sometimes be a bit of a lottery,

There are places which, on paper, promise so much, and then fail to deliver. Yet sometimes I go somewhere with low expectations and find myself pleasantly surprised.

And then there are those little gems in the most unlikely of settings, which are sometimes discovered by accident or, more commonly, on the recommendation of our knowledgeable army of readers.

Well, eating out at the Cock & Magpies really did used to be a lottery. Not in the sense that the food was particularly variable, but in the literal sense. Back in 1995 it was one of only a handful of pubs in the UK to install a National Lottery machine.

It seems ironic really that it was a Harvester pub which elected to pilot the new form of gambling which seemed to captivate the nation in the mid 1990s. Ironic, because I would imagine most people come here because they know exactly what to expect - a standard menu, fixed prices, and a style of decor which is pretty much the same, be it Dorset or Dunfermline. Or indeed Smethwick.

Set behind the busy Hagley Road West, the pub is surrounded by a huge car park, broken up by some quite attractive shrubbery beds, and a small garden area at the front which was spoiled slightly by the rather grubby looking parasols.

A lot of thought has clearly gone into making it attractive to wheelchair users, with a wide covered ramp leading up to the entrance, which double up as a smoking area for about four or five nicotine fans when we arrived.

There was a not unreasonable 15-minute wait for a table, although finding a seat in the bar while we waited for our table was slightly more difficult. In the end, a young-ish lady enjoying a drink with a slightly older friend, kindly moved up a seat so we could both sit down.

The Harvester website boldly declares: "We have a sensational selection of wines, beers, seasonal drinks and soft drinks to compliment your food," but I think that might be over-egging the pudding a little. If you love lager or Tetley Smoothpour or Pedigree it's fine, but there is not much to appeal to the ale connoisseur. I decided to start with an orange juice, and have a glass of wine later.

Of course, everybody is looking to make their pennies go further at the moment, and Harvester is clearly looking to reap a slice of the value-for-money market. "We have cut all our main course prices" screams a sign in the main restaurant area, while a flyer urges customers to "come back soon for our best prices yet". If you eat before 6.30pm, there is a range of dishes for just £4.99, while children can eat for £3.95.

Inside, it is the familiar Harvester corporate-rustic look, with the weathered brickwork and exposed beams. It is generally quite smart, but some of the uniform branding - such as the price-cut sign - are a touch brash, and I don't see how sticking a couple of wheels on the side of the salad bar makes it into a "salad cart" - it just looks tacky.

While the interior decor could have been more imaginative, the aroma coming from the open kitchen was mouth-watering.

There was no shortage of choice on the menu, with six different spit-roasted chickens. Most of the main courses were priced well under £10, although I was surprised that the small, 6oz fillet was £12.99 - more per ounce than at a Vintage Inn, Harvester's upmarket sister chain.

I opted for a flame-grilled lamb steak with baby new potatoes, while my dining partner went for the Simply Chicken, a flame-grilled chicken breast for £5.99.

We were served by Ryan, a polite young man, probably in his early 20s, whose tall, slim frame and mop of fair hair made him look slightly like the England footballer Peter Crouch.

The meals came reasonably promptly, and were good, perhaps a little better than I thought they would be. My lamb was pleasantly tender, and there were generous portions of good potatoes, although I did think the tiny container of mint sauce, which seemed little bigger than a thimblefull, was a little stingy. My companion said her chicken breast was possibly the best she had had, praise indeed.

The names of some of the sweets made them sound more like children's cartoon strips than desserts - for example, I would suggest that a chocolate fudge cake sounds much more appetising than "Rocky Horror", and I'm not really sure that my honeycomb in ice cream with toffee and chocolate sauces really benefited from being billed as a Honeycomb Explosion.

You get a lot for your £3.49, a tall glass of soft, whipped ice cream, mixed with honeycomb pieces, but the toffee sauce made it sufficiently more-ish for me to manage it all. My companion opted for the lemon tart, which was well received.

The total bill came to £30.31, which was good value for two courses, coffee and drinks. But in which of the three categories mentioned at the start of the piece would I place the Cock & Magpies in? On balance, I would say it was a pleasant surprise. Let's be realistic. It isn't the sort of place that you will be raving about for years to come, and it probably isn't somewhere you will visit for a special occasion. But for a no-frills, middle-of-the-road, value-for money evening out, it does the job.

There was one area where it failed to live up to expectations, though. I could not see a lottery machine anywhere. A shame, really. I was feeling lucky.

ADDRESS

The Cock & Magpies, Hagley Road West, Smethwick, B67 5BD

Phone: 0121 429 1082

MENU SAMPLE

Starters

King prawn cocktail £3.4; Flame-grilled chicken wings with choice of barbecue or honey, lime and chilli sauce £3.49; Nachos served with guacamole, salsa, a trio of mozzarella, cheddar and Monterey Jack cheeses, jalapenos and sour cream £3.49 (£5.99 to share); Salmon and mozzarella fishcakes £3.49

Main courses

Half a spitroasted chicken with crisp seasoned chips and barbecue dips £6.99; Fish, chips and peas £6.99; Oriental duck with stir fried pak choi, sliced red onion, green beans, egg noodles and a Hoisin-style glaze £10.99; Two grilled bass sea fillets with a lemon and lime herb butter, served with buttered baby potatoes and green beans £10.99; 12oz rump steak served half a tomato, roasted mushroom, beer battered onion rings, garden peas and seasoned chips £10.99

Desserts

Bramley apple pie with custard £2.99; Rocky Horror - chocolate fudge cake topped with ice cream, cream and fudge pieces £2.99