THE DISCERNING DINER

Claudia Blake has a takeaway Sunday lunch from the Fox Hall Inn at East Layton

n those far-off, golden days before Covid we dined at the Fox Hall Inn and were impressed by their flavoursome, attractively presented grub. Since lockdown, like many hard-pressed Dales eateries, they’ve been offering takeaways. So we decided to order a Sunday lunch to find out how their food has fared in this new era of click-and-collect.

The online ordering system was simple and efficient, although if there’s a way to look through the takeaway menu before reserving a time slot we didn’t find it. There was a choice of three starters and – if memory serves – four mains and two desserts.

For our starters we ordered a sausage roll and a Scotch egg. Not very adventurous options, you might suppose, but both proved to be excellent. I’ve never been a particular fan of sausage rolls, but this was one of the finest I’ve had – a big, bold package of light, flaky pastry, cram-packed with tasty sausage meat.

The Scotch egg too was eminently satisfactory: crisp on the outside, just the right amount of coating, and a perfectly cooked egg within. Both were served with a delightfully gloopy, sharpsweet, cinnamon-infused apple sauce.

For mains we chose a half roast chicken and – just to see whether vegetarians were getting a good deal – a nut roast.

They came accompanied by meat and veg gravies respectively, along with some lovely, light, fluffy Yorkshire puds and a mountain of side vegetables: roast potatoes, broccoli, leeks, zingy red cabbage and a slab of addictive cauliflower cheese. SUNDAE SPECIAL The half chicken proved to be half of a surprisingly generously proportioned bird, in fact the breast alone would probably have been quite sufficient for me. It was nicely cooked – super succulent and falling off the bone. The luscious, rich, glossy gravy that came with it was splendid. I might well order the whole meal over again just for that gravy.

Possibly because I’m not a vegetarian, the nut roast didn’t kindle quite the same outpouring of joy, but it was a perfectly respectable slice of meat-free nosh nonetheless. A decent amount of texture, chestnutty sweetness and lashings of meat-free gravy – job done! We rounded off our meal with two delightful desserts: flourless chocolate-and-almond brownie sundae with salted caramel and honeycomb, and rhubarb-and-custard Eton mess. It’s not easy making a dessert in a foil dish look attractive, but the folk at Fox Hall had pulled it off in both instances.

The sundae combined a whole range of different textures from crunchy to melting, and the brownie component of it packed a super-rich chocolatey punch. The Eton mess was luxuriously creamy, studded with admirably light little meringues and vibrant with gloriously pink sticks of rhubarb that balanced the sweetness perfectly.

Given that we had imagined we were too full to manage desserts at all, this was an uplifting conclusion to a very satisfactory meal. A big thumbs-up to the Fox Hall Inn – you’re ticking all the boxes and we’ll definitely be back soon. For more information about the Fox Hall Inn visit foxhallinn.co.uk or call 01325 718303.

WHAT TO EXPECT

Generous quantities of tasty food, cooked with flair.

PRACTICALITIES

Order online and collect from the bar at your chosen time slot. Reheat starters and mains once you’re home. Kids’ portions available.

PRESENTATION

Everything except gravies and sauces comes in neatly labelled aluminium foil trays.

THE BOTTOM LINE

Three courses each for two people cost us just under £40.

HELPING HAND

Staff will help you carry your packages to the car if required.

LOOK OUT!

You can enjoy spacious views across Holmedale from the car park.

SHOWROOMS NOW OPEN

Unit 7 Badger Court, Harmby Road, Leyburn DL8 5BF | 01969 625111 Unit 1-2 Brompton Business Park, Station Road, Brompton on Swale DL10 7SN | 01748 835111 www.hudspethfl ooring.co.uk | sales@hudspethfl ooring.co.uk We off er a free measuring service