I visited a thriving country pub near Bridgnorth rescued by the local community - here's what to expect from the food

There’s no point trying to go to the theatre in July or August, either, because everyone’s raving in some distant field at a festival, or else they’re on holiday.

It’s daft buying a Mother’s Day card in October, pointless trying to buy strawberries in December – unless you’re happy with the watery, imported variety – and there’s zero point trying to tune into Strictly in March – unless you want to watch re-runs.

There are seasons that seldom change.

The same is true in the restaurant game. On a Friday and Saturday evening, it’s tough getting a table at a place that’s worth its salt, unless you’ve booked in advance. That’s when they cash in, when they cover the losses that were accrued on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, by filling the floor with happy tables of diners.

It’s the same at certain times of year, too. November and December are busy, as people get ready to celebrate the holidays, while the start of the year is dead, with the sole exception of Valentine’s Day. Summer can be pretty lean, unless there’s a beer garden, as regulars head off on holiday and as those with kids get stuck at home.

Oh yes, and before we forget. Having explored the macro – we ought to focus in on the micro. There are certain times when it’s particularly busy. If you’re looking for a quiet lunch, don’t eat out at 1pm - go much later.

And if you want an intimate dinner, avoid anything between 7pm and 8pm, and either go earlier or later.

With that context in mind, we were expecting the quietest of lunches when we visited The Pheasant, at Neenton, Bridgnorth at 3pm on Monday. I mean, come on, 3pm on a Monday is no man’s land. Lunch has pretty much finished, dinner is several hours away, and Monday is the day when people are recovering from the weekend.

I know it was a Bank Holiday, so not as many people were at work, but, even so, the chances of the dining room being full were less than a hundred to one. But full it was, as diners of all ages – and a disproportionate number of retirees – filled the place as though it was Sunday lunch.

While we imagined we’d booked impossibly late, others arrived after us, keeping the venue’s four hard-working front of house staff busy through the afternoon.

And here’s the rub. Venues don’t get busy like that unless they’re doing something well.

And The Pheasant at Neenton has long been an exemplar of all good things pub-related.

Closed for almost nine years, the keen desire among the people of Neenton was to see the Pheasant Inn reopen.

Locals wanted to breathe life back into the village, which was the catalyst for the formation of Neenton Community Society (NCS), a charitable Community Benefit Society dedicated to the regeneration of the rural area.