Upmarket pub grub at a nautical inn (From Echo)

Upmarket pub grub at a nautical inn

9:40pm Wednesday 10th June 2009

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FANCYING a mid-week bite after an exhausting start to the week, the husband-in-waiting and I decided to branch out with a trip to Battlesbridge.

Tucked away in a pretty and peaceful corner of the village, looking on to the lock, the Barge Inn with its white wooden front looks very inviting.

We stepped in and took a seat at a quiet table, hidden in an intimate corner of the quaint pub.

The inn, in keeping with its location, has nautical white-washed walls and the tables are delicately placed in little alcoves, making for an even more intimate atmosphere.

Staff were friendly and left us in peace to view the impressive menu, which offers upmarket pub grub, ranging from steaks to sea bass.

The husband-in-waiting dived straight in and ordered the Japanese-style tempura prawns and squid served with rice.

When the generous helping of the fish turned up it looked deceptively heavily battered.

But its coating was light and crispy, and I managed to spirit away one of the prawns in seconds.

I fancied something a tad more summery so I chose the tian of avocado, mozarella, tomato and rocket.

The dish was tasty, perfectly complemented by a dash of balsamic on the plate, and left me ready to dive in to my mains.

The husband-in-waiting, seeing no reason to break with his dining traditions, chose the rib eye cutlet, a massive juicy lump of meat served with field mushrooms, Dijon mustard sauce and huge home-made chips.

He said the steak was one of the best he had eaten, and those were about the only words I got out of him while he devoured it.

Meanwhile my eyes lit up when I saw a dish with my favourite cheese – halloumi – on the menu. So I chose the chicken breast served on a bed of halloumi, roasted Mediterranean vegetables with a red pepper coulis.

I thoroughly enjoyed my main course, the red pepper coulis was a fantastic touch. My only complaint was the slices of halloumi needed to be a lot bigger to satisfy my unquenchable hunger for the Cypriot delicacy.

While I finished up comfortably full, the husband-in-waiting ended his meal with a sticky toffee pudding, served with a dollop of vanilla ice cream.

He seemed to be enjoying it, and it was disappearing too quickly for my liking, so I stared at him until he handed some over. It was absolute perfection and I was glad my intimidation tactic convinced the husband-in-waiting to surrender his last mouthful.

The Barge was a real discovery for us, both for the food and its pretty location, and we’ll definitely be heading back soon.

What we ate Tian of avocado £4.75 Tempura tiger prawns & squid £6.25 Rib eye cutlet £16.95 Chicken breast served with halloumi cheese and vegetables £11.95 Sticky toffee pudding £5.25 Total £55.15

Our verdict (Out of 5) Atmosphere 5 Food 4 Decor 4 Value 4 Service 4 Disabled access Yes

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