The Plough Inn, School Road, Trysull

A visit to The Plough Inn in Trysull brings back memories for our

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Haven't there been some bizarre crazes over the years? Spacehoppers for example. How did a large orange balloon with two handles ever find its way to the top of every child's Christmas list?

And then we have skateboards, essentially strips of plywood with plastic wheels attached to the bottom. Yet teenagers will spend hours hanging around supermarket car parks so they can fall off them. And don't get me started on Yo-Yos.

But let's not think for one moment that youngsters have the monopoly on strange fads. Because, when it comes to odd ways of passing the time, Citizen's Band radio had to be up there with the best. What was it that made a grown man drive his car to the top of a remote hill, install a mini space station on the roof, and then sit around for the next two hours in the driving rain yakking to complete strangers about rubber ducks and smokey bears?

I only bring this up because these are my abiding memories from the last time I visited this establishment. While the children played football on the large green in the middle of the car park, the big kids would sit in their cars around the perimeter, nursing a pint of shandy for two hours, endlessly wittering away in a language incomprehensible to anybody who has not made an appearance in Mork & Mindy.

As you've probably gathered, it's been a while since I was last at The Plough, something I was quite eager to put right after receiving a flood of letters and emails earlier this year. Mostly positive, such as the ones from Sue Wood, Chris and Graham Curtis, and Phil and Sandra, but John Smith was less impressed, and I decided it was about time I found out for myself.

The CB fans may have gone, but the large grassed area still dominates the car park just as it did 30 years ago, although I'm not sure that the tired looking children's play equipment represents an improvement. There is a distinctive wooden outbuilding, which looks slightly like a fortification, and there is a small courtyard area furnished with tables.

If the outside appearance is a little underwhelming, the interior is in a different class. The period beams and floor tiles are balanced perfectly by the modern bar and the thick, quality carpets in the dining area. The soft lighting from the table lamps created just the right atmosphere, managing to simultaneously appear warm and homely.

It is a local's local, where everybody seemed to know each other, and looking forward to battling it out in the Thursday night quiz. It caters well for beer lovers, with a choice of Cock-a-Hoop, and Banks's – both bitter and mild – on offer. They seem to look after their ale, and I would say that the mild was one of the best pints of Banks's I have enjoyed for a while.

The polite young waiter apologised in advance for the state of the crumpled, smudged paper specials menu. The main menu, a slightly garish red and black laminated affair, offers a range of pub favourites, with giant steaks being the speciality. If a 16oz T-bone or a 12oz piece of rump is your thing, you will love it, but I was a little less ambitious, and decided to settle for a minted lamb shank instead.

And awkward client that I am, I asked if I could have my leek and mustard mash without, er, any leek, and it was encouraging that they were happy to do this – it shows that the food is being cooked from scratch, rather than prepared in advance.

My dining partner opted for the scampi and chips.

The lamb shank was quite tasty, if a little bony, and good value for £7.95. The mint gravy was pleasantly flavoured, and the mustard mash – leek free – was just right, lively without being too hot.

The sticky toffee meringue sounded delightful, but I was a little surprised to find it topped off with a coconut drizzle. Fine if you like coconut, but not really my thing. It was otherwise reasonably pleasant, and the large portion was good value at £3.85.

In fact there can be few complaints about any of the prices, the total bill was an extremely competitive £25.45. But the manner in which the bill had to be settled was another matter.

I was a little concerned when I was told that the pub did not accept debit or credit cards – it was only as I left that I spotted the small stickers saying payment must be either by cash, or by a personal cheque made payable to owner-chef Paul Nuttall.

Unprepared, I found myself with just £20 in my wallet, and there was a brief panic as I scrabbled around for the extra £5.45. Which brings us to the second problem. Once I had paid, the young man at the till told me he could not let me keep a copy of the bill or issue me with a receipt.

He did, after a brief discussion, agree to write down what we had eaten on a blank sheet of paper, but if you're a business customer I can't see this cutting much ice, either with your employers, or with the nice man from the Inland Revenue.

When I asked if it could be written on one of the headed notelets used for the bill, co-owner Andrew Tildesley interjected, telling me firmly: "We don't have a receipts facility."

That put me in my place. Sheepishly, I left with my tail between my legs, angry with myself for not being more insistent.

ADDRESS

The Plough Inn, School Road, Trysull, WV5 7HR

Phone: 01902 892254

MENU SAMPLE

STARTERS

Farmhouse pâté; Fanned honeydew melon with summer fruit coulis; Spicy samosas with a mint dip

MAIN COURSES

12oz rump steak; 16oz T-bone steak; Cottage pie; Steak and ale pie; Gammon

DESSERTS

Bread and butter pudding; Apple strudel; Tiramisu; Lemon blueberry torte

RIGHT OF REPLY:

Following this review of The Plough at Trysull, owners Paul Nutall and Andrew Tildesley have been in touch to take issue with some of the points made.

"Firstly I would like to say a big thank you for coming to dine with us at The Plough and how nice the photos look," says Paul. "As you commented about the tired play equipment, I can only comment that this is very popular with families and we receive so many comments to say how nice to come to a pub that caters for children.

"As to the underwhelming exterior, I wish to say that the exterior of the pub has never looked as good as it does now after investing time and a lot of money in redecoration of all the exterior walls and the effort spent in keeping all the plants, lawns and borders looking in tip-top condition.

"In the words of residents in the village 'Paul and Andrew take so much pride in looking after and presenting the pub at its best'."

With regard to the pub being unable to offer receipts, Paul says it is a problem that is being addressed. "We are investing in an all-new EPOS system that will issue a full printed receipt to the customer, at present we only have an old manual till."

In the review I observed that The Plough did not accept credit or debit cards, but Paul responds: "The debit/credit card payments issue has never really been a problem to us and we feel your comments to that were totally unjust. There are so many pubs around that do not take card payments and we have the notice on all the menus, doors and behind the bar."