The extended Flock is on tour!!! We decided to hire a cottage in the picturesque Northumberland village of Alnmouth: me, The Man Bird, Fledge, Mummy Bird and Geordie Bird and Hot-Dog (the pooch). It’s quite a trek from the ‘Shire to Geordie-land, so we scouted out a venue to stop and have a bite of lunch at – obviously dog-friendly too, which was a first for us; normally he has his own ‘holiday’ at Nana’s.
His Nibs did a bit of research and came up with The Farmers Arms at Brompton-On-Swale, a venue that seemed to be exactly what we wanted: somewhere that allowed dogs in the bar area and that did a very tempting lunchtime menu. There is a nice sized car park, and we (and Fledge who was driving up in her own car) managed to snag ourselves prime spots just outside the main door and, no word of a lie, we have never had such a warm, sincere greeting – His Poochiness got an even more enthusiastic one (quickly followed by some treats!).
The Farmer’s Arms is deceptively spacious inside and very nicely decorated to create an inviting environment – even the ‘facilities’ were immaculate. Within a couple of minutes we’d got drinks in front of us, and menus to peruse. Mummy and I opted for Caesar salads: Chicken (£7.95)and fresh Tuna Steak (£8.75) respectively, Fledge had Fish Finger sandwich in a pretzel bun (£7.95, food of the Gods) and His Nibs had Chicken Parmesan (£12.95). The Man’s and Fledge’s came with salad and chips.
It was clear from the get-go that the whole team are team canine; our lad was getting tummy tickles, kisses and treats left, right and blooming centre...and it wasn’t just his royal Poochiness; every dog that came through the door with their hoomans got the same treatment. Honestly, I think that furry boi would’ve jumped ship if he could! After the exhausting adoration of his news found famalam, his furriness laid down quietly under our booth table and awaited the arrival of our meals (which wasn’t long).
Chickadees eyes lit up when she spied her Fish Finger sanger, and to be fair, I could’ve smashed it too! Plump fish fingers with their familiar, comforting sweet edge were hitting her sweet spot. There were plenty of chunky, homemade chips as well and these were the stuff of spud legend with their pillowy soft inners and golden, crisp outers. The side salad was lovely and colourful, and gorgeously cool and crunchy. Unsurprisingly, His Nibs’ salad soon got divvied up between Mummy Bird and I, and most appreciative we were, too!
The Man Bird was only going to have ‘a small lunch’, but the Chicken Parmesan was anything but small! A large, succulent Chicken breast was smothered in melted cheese and was a taste sensation, leaving His Nibs smiling in happiness. Mummy Bird and I couldn’t get over the sheer amount of tangily-dressed lettuce in our Caesar salads; each one could’ve fed two people! There was a good amount of perfectly crunchy croutons (not piddly ones, either; they were a good size) and we both had good amounts of poultry or fish. The chicken breast was nice and moist and my fresh Tuna steak was beautifully pink in the centre and had a gently sweet flavour to it.
As we all munched away, there was a hush at our table, which is a sure sign of our enjoyment – something which we confirmed when our lovely servers checked back on us. We didn’t go for desserts, a) because we hadn’t got room and b) because we planned to have a lighter lunch. Having paid the bill (a very reasonable £63 for the four of us, including drinks), the pooch was treated to a final treat and we made our way back to the jalopies and carried on our journey northwards.
Hot Wings happily awarded to this fab North Yorkshire venue.
