What do you do when you go to the pub, only to find that it has shut down and is going to be turned into flats? We went to The Reservoir Inn in April, and had a lovely lunch. We had a pre-Christmas stroll around Thornton Reservoir this morning, with crisp winter skies presenting some good photo opportunities along the way.
As we knew the lovely pub was only a few minutes away, we decided to pop in for some lunch. Only to be greeted by a pub in darkness, and a planning application on the door. Another village pub that will no longer be a pub, just even more accommodation to attempt to satisfy a never ending demand.
So we needed emergency lunch. Just a few hundred yards back in the direction we came from sits Thornton Nurseries, a bit of a back to basics garden centre in a world of Dobbies and Wyevale who are hoovering up independent places faster than you can blink.
The cafe inside (just a small paved area with a counter and a few seats and tables) is very much along the lines of back to basics, with the simplest of menus from a bygone era. No superfood salads, smashed avocados or sriracha chicken wings here. Ham, cheese, tuna, bacon, sausage and not much else in a roll. Keep it simple is definitely the theme.
Sausage bap, brown sauce. Can’t get much simpler than that, or much cheaper. Did the job for me today, along with a good old fashioned can of ginger beer. Mrs MOFAD was less impressed with her lunch, but as an emergency food stop it was ok by me.