The Rock Inn Waterrow attracts a number of famous visitors and it’s easy to see why, says CHARLOTTE SKIDMORE.
With an extensive and delicious-looking menu and a chalkboard full of specials, you really are spoilt for choice. It names Joss Stone and Jodie Kidd as regulars and Richard and Judy ‘popped in’ the week before we were there en route to Cornwall.
I over indulged a lot while I was there, on good food and good wine, using the excuse that it was my friend’s birthday to justify my rather gluttonous behaviour. And, my inability to choose was made easier by the fact that they run the same main menu at lunch time and in the evenings, with blackboard variations.
So, for lunch I plumped for a nicely cooked sirloin steak, with a lovely, creamy peppercorn sauce. It was served with a flat mushroom, tomato and, for a nice change, some green beans with a nice crunch. My dining partner mirrored my choice and we were each served a nice bowl of fries alongside, although hand cut chips would have been even better suited in my opinion.
The Rock Inn lies in a lovely secluded spot in a gorgeous Somerset valley, within easy reach of pretty Watchet, which is about 15 miles away, and about 25 minutes from the M5, so we headed out for a day of exploration before returning for dinner.
The bar and restaurant were packed on this particular weekend, though it was a bank holiday, but it wasn’t so full to make our dining experience uncomfortable. We were shown to a table in the corner of the bar, which was by a nice roaring fire. The restaurant looked lovely in the evening but I can’t comment much more on that part of the inn as we only had breakfast in there.
Our starters of scallops with chorizo were gorgeous with the strong flavour of the chorizo packing a punch and complementing the delicate texture of the scallops. I then opted for the chicken breast with creamed wild garlic, asparagus and truffle macaroni cheese. The sauce was lovely and the chicken succulent.
My dining partner had the roast belly of pork with pigs cheek, braised in cider juices, with grilled pork fillet. She loved all of it aside from the belly pork, naturally fatty, but a little too much oil had been used for our tastes. That was also true of the garlic mushrooms side for us.
The dessert – ‘wow’ was the exclamation from my dining partner when she saw the sticky toffee pudding, oozing with loveliness, that she would need to dive into. And yes it did taste as good as it looked! Make room for afters would be my main advice!
The accommodation
The beds were incredibly comfortable and we both enjoyed a good night’s sleep. A lot of money and care has gone into revamping the accommodation at the Rock Inn Waterrow. We stayed in the family room and there was a lovely double bed, as well as an extremely good day bed for us to sleep on. You can make yourself a cup of tea in the room and watch the flat screen television, with just the sound of wildlife in the trees opposite to be heard.
Some sort of in-room guide book to the main facilities, the area and history of the pub would be a lovely addition for the owners to think about.
The verdict Do visit for a getaway-from-it-all trip in a gorgeous setting and an extensive and ‘yummy’ looking menu. w
rockinnwaterrow.co.uk
