The White Swan, Walton
One of the first questions we get asked by guests staying in the yurts or The Loft is; ‘where would you recommend for good food?’
We are actually really lucky in that we have some amazing restaurants and pubs very close by. Our local pub, The Bell Inn, is a great choice, but there are plenty of other options out there and we have decided to use the blog to provide you with a little bit more information about the options available and the places we would choose to go to ourselves.
We started by visiting The White Swan in Walton last Thursday, which is roughly 4 miles away from us in Anslow. To be honest The White Swan is one of our go to places. You know when you find somewhere comfortable and relaxed where you just KNOW you are going to get good food. Well this is one of those places, and I think you can tell it’s going to be good as soon as you get out of the car in the car park; descending the blossom covered steps down to the outside patio area covered in a magical fairy light canopy and on toward the entrance where you can find a converted barrel acting as a ‘pooch park’ providing fresh water for your furry friends (another bonus; they are dog friendly).
Opening the next set of double doors you walk into one of the restaurant areas where you are greeted by a lit raised woodburner in the centre of the entrance (check out the fire behind Niamh in the photo), which immediately creates a warm and cosy atmosphere. There are several seating areas: a large conservatory, a spacious upstairs room, a tucked away snug (behind the stairs) as well as seating in and around the bar area. We opted for the large comfy leather sofas in the bar area with butchers block table. A relaxed option perfect when you are with a toddler who refuses to sit still at a table.
First up was deciding on drinks, and this was no easy task as there is such a huge selection. Lot’s of cocktails and mocktails, plenty of real ales/lagers and ciders, all the spirits you can think of, a great wine selection but my favourite is the amazing choice of soft drinks. A coke or a lemonade is standard at a pub but it’s nice to be able to choose something a bit different and The Swan have certainly got that covered. I counted 43 options and that doesn't even include the cordials. Raspberry lemonade, apple and pear, basil tonic, elderflower and rose are just a few of the options. I opted for the homemade lemonade which came with a huge dollop of lemon sorbet on top, Niamh (2) had a cawston apple and mango carton (when she wasn’t stealing my lemonade) Ted chose a real ale and Charliie opted for a regular coke. All tastes covered thank you very much.
On to deciding what to eat, and the temptation here is to order waaaaay to much because, again, the choice is just fantastic and it all sounds so good.
We love the yakitori sticks, order the large ones for a main course or create a bespoke starter out of the little ones (ranging from £2-£4.50 per stick) the little ones also make a great main course with a few sides.
We were good this time and just ordered one each and teamed them with a side of the honey glazed chorizo sausage. We chose the panko Camembert with sticky red onion jam (me, £2), cod stick with mushy peas and tartare (Niamh, £2), Duck breast with sticky hoisin, mini pancake and cucumber (Ted, £4.30) and peppered fillet steak with chilli and bacon jam (Charliie, £4.50- she has expensive taste
We are actually really lucky in that we have some amazing restaurants and pubs very close by. Our local pub, The Bell Inn, is a great choice, but there are plenty of other options out there and we have decided to use the blog to provide you with a little bit more information about the options available and the places we would choose to go to ourselves.
We started by visiting The White Swan in Walton last Thursday, which is roughly 4 miles away from us in Anslow. To be honest The White Swan is one of our go to places. You know when you find somewhere comfortable and relaxed where you just KNOW you are going to get good food. Well this is one of those places, and I think you can tell it’s going to be good as soon as you get out of the car in the car park; descending the blossom covered steps down to the outside patio area covered in a magical fairy light canopy and on toward the entrance where you can find a converted barrel acting as a ‘pooch park’ providing fresh water for your furry friends (another bonus; they are dog friendly).
Opening the next set of double doors you walk into one of the restaurant areas where you are greeted by a lit raised woodburner in the centre of the entrance (check out the fire behind Niamh in the photo), which immediately creates a warm and cosy atmosphere. There are several seating areas: a large conservatory, a spacious upstairs room, a tucked away snug (behind the stairs) as well as seating in and around the bar area. We opted for the large comfy leather sofas in the bar area with butchers block table. A relaxed option perfect when you are with a toddler who refuses to sit still at a table.
First up was deciding on drinks, and this was no easy task as there is such a huge selection. Lot’s of cocktails and mocktails, plenty of real ales/lagers and ciders, all the spirits you can think of, a great wine selection but my favourite is the amazing choice of soft drinks. A coke or a lemonade is standard at a pub but it’s nice to be able to choose something a bit different and The Swan have certainly got that covered. I counted 43 options and that doesn't even include the cordials. Raspberry lemonade, apple and pear, basil tonic, elderflower and rose are just a few of the options. I opted for the homemade lemonade which came with a huge dollop of lemon sorbet on top, Niamh (2) had a cawston apple and mango carton (when she wasn’t stealing my lemonade) Ted chose a real ale and Charliie opted for a regular coke. All tastes covered thank you very much.
On to deciding what to eat, and the temptation here is to order waaaaay to much because, again, the choice is just fantastic and it all sounds so good.
We love the yakitori sticks, order the large ones for a main course or create a bespoke starter out of the little ones (ranging from £2-£4.50 per stick) the little ones also make a great main course with a few sides.
We were good this time and just ordered one each and teamed them with a side of the honey glazed chorizo sausage. We chose the panko Camembert with sticky red onion jam (me, £2), cod stick with mushy peas and tartare (Niamh, £2), Duck breast with sticky hoisin, mini pancake and cucumber (Ted, £4.30) and peppered fillet steak with chilli and bacon jam (Charliie, £4.50- she has expensive taste
