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An ideal spot for a summertime lunch
Retford's Hop Pole is one of those venues that bright sunny days are made for.
For the Welham Road pub has all the right ingredients when it comes to choosing somewhere to enjoy some lunchtime or summer evening refreshment.
An inviting building on the outskirts of town on the road to Gainsborough, it offers a pleasant canalside location with plenty of room to enjoy a relaxing drink and meal either inside or out.
If the weather’s right, there is a large decked area with beer garden, and in addition a children’s play area with bouncy castle, making it a family friendly location.
Certainly when I visited on Saturday lunchtime, families and couples were taking advantage of the warmer weather to enjoy a drink outside in the sun.
The menu at the Hop Pole offers a wide variety of food for all tastes and appetites.
For those wanting more of a snack, there is a lighter bites selection of hot and cold sandwiches, jacket potatoes, and the chance to build your own burger (with a vegetable and chicken option also).
For a more substantial meal, the selection of starters and main dishes combines traditional favourites with less familiar pub fayre.
Starters include Thai cod and prawn fishcakes, goat’s cheese, spinach and red onion tart, prawn cocktail and chicken strips. There is also a choice of fajitas.
Main courses include cod with a pesto crust, smoked haddock, mozzarella and spring onion fishcakes, pork calvados, and beef stroganoff, alongside lasagne, beer battered cod, wholetail scampi and chilli con carne.
For meat lovers there is also a grill board, comprising a selection of steaks and sauces, mixed grill, gammon and chicken.
From the comprehensive choice I decided on the gammon (priced at 9.95), while my mum went for the smoked haddock fishcakes (7.95).
After not too long a wait, considering the number of diners, our meals arrived – on piping hot plates, always a plus point.
The gammon was served with mushrooms, tomato and onion rings and a generous serving of chips.
While the gammon was slightly overcooked, not a disaster for me as I prefer it to being underdone, it had a good flavour, so much so that I would have liked a bigger piece.
The nicely crispy onion rings and pile of chips however, made it a substantial meal.
The two generous sized fishcakes arrived on a mixed salad with lime and coriander dressing and new potatoes. While they were pleasant enough, they were not bursting with flavour and the dressing was not particularly strong. The salad was nice and crisp however, and the potatoes nicely cooked.
Both meals were satisfying enough for us, on this occasion, to decline a dessert.
For those wanting to dine out on a Sunday, there is a carvery from 12-6pm. There is also a Pensioners Special, priced 3.50, Monday to Friday from 12-3pm.
by Angus Henderson
Star rating H H H
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Weather for Worksop
Saturday 26 May 2012
Today
Sunny
Temperature: 10 C to 23 C
Wind Speed: 16 mph
Wind direction: East
Tomorrow
Sunny
Temperature: 11 C to 23 C
Wind Speed: 14 mph
Wind direction: East
