Eating out can be about convenience, a treat, celebration or just because but sometimes a menu just doesn't quite live up to the occasion. I'm happy to report that was definitely not the case for our visit to The Celtic Arms, at Northop.
Having spent the morning playing tour guide around the city to my dad and aunt, with the walk around Chester's historic Walls generating quite an appetite, the pressure was on to chose an equally lovely venue for lunch.
I’VE discovered a culinary gem hidden among the bushes. The Wild Goose Lakeside Bar and Restaurant is set in 100 acres of beautiful parkland and lakes near Dodleston on the fringe of Chester.
‘Tis the season to indulge in a longer-than-usual work lunch. Any excuse to get out the office really. Myself and four colleagues had pre-booked a table online at nearby Woodworks Cafe, adviseable, as I’ve not been able to get a table on a drop-in basis a few times now, which is always a good sign.
With so much new quality TV to choose from these days, all just a scroll away, it’s easy to get overwhelmed. If I start a series, I want to see it out or there’s some sense of failure. I’ve already called time on The Walking Dead (it pained me but I didn’t want to end up hating it) and Game of Thrones (I’m just over it) but I know I’ll catch up eventually, years from now, welcoming them back into my living room like old friends.
‘HAVE you enjoyed your meal?’ has become a perfunctory question as your waiter or waitress gathers your dishes. It’s invariably delivered in a ritualistic tone expecting nothing else but an answer in the affirmative – and, for the most part, the answer is usually along the lines of ‘Yes, very nice - it was lovely’.
Pinning a friend down to dinner plans can prove quite a task these days, so when the stars aligned and an evening was available for two of us, I avoided the usual ‘where shall we go?’ shenanigans.
I knew I wanted to go the Olive Tree, in Chester. I’d only heard good things about it and another friend had just been for a birthday treat, raving about her first experience of Greek food.
Working at the weekend can be a demanding task and almost certainly works up an appetite. That’s why when I was on duty not so long ago, when I found myself in Chester, I had to make the right choice about where to eat.
WHEN presented with the chance to have a rare Sunday off there is only one thing to do – go out for a big feed. Knowing that I wouldn’t have to head into the office meant that a Sunday lunch was top of my list of priorities.
The name is a bit of a giveaway as to what you’d expect but it’s the tip of the iceberg to what you’ll discover
