The White Lion - Selston

Fish & Chips, Zesty Lemonade Battered Fish with Chunky Chips, Tartar Sauce & Pea Purée £9

http://whitelionselston.co.uk/

You've heard me mention the White Lion often enough but usually referring to Brinsley, this time we have moved a couple of miles to Selston and a completely different establishment.

The White Lion has been in Selston for many years but closed a while ago. Earlier this year after a major refurbishment and under new management it re-opened.

It has a very up market looking website, the food and service look enticing and I was sure I had heard of chef Daniel Parker before though as I'm not certain I won't say here, but it all looked and sounded very promising.

We've taken to heading out for a drink and some bar food on a Friday night so as the weather was dry we decided to try out this new White Lion.

They have plenty of parking and a large garden area, a lawn with outdoor seating, a large covered area presumably for smokers though they had some leather seats under there and a family was sat eating there on this particular occasion and a gated play area - basic but adequate enough to keep the kids entertained while you have a drink.

The only downside is it's next to a busy road, but it's well fenced off and after a while you mostly   forgot about it. The upside to that is that if you don't drive or you just don't want to drive to the pub, the Rainbow 1 bus stops right at the garden gate and we did indeed see a couple get off the bus and come straight in for a drink and a meal.

They have a variety of menus and eating areas available. We ate outside, but there was a downstairs eating area just off from the bar and upstairs there's a 40 cover restaurant. Their Sunday dinners sound delicious and reasonably priced, they have a Gastro Menu, an A La Carte Menu, Dessert Menu - they all sound lovely but at £5 or £6 a head a bit on the pricey side. Tuesday is Steak Night and Sunday Curry night. As you would expect from this type of pub, most ingredients are locally sourced. They also have a Children's Menu and at the moment (May 14) children eat free. They have live music which is advertised on their website and a Quiz Night on a Sunday, which can be cancelled due to other events such as Whitsun Bank Holiday for a BBQ evening.

We decided to eat from the Gastro Menu - just one course each.

Tony had  Zesty Lemonade Battered Fish with Chunky Chips, Tartar Sauce & Pea Pureé £9 - he really enjoyed it, the batter was crispy with a lemony twang and he said the fish was chunky and succulent, the chips were really good, crisp on the outside, soft on the inside chunky chips, it was all served with a smooth pea pureé and a jar of tartar sauce. His only criticism was he could've eaten more chips.

Lauren had The White Lion Burger, 8oz Prime Beef Burger, Crispy Bacon, Melted Cheese, Tomato & French Fries £8. The burger was thick and juicy, real beef, meaty and filling. There were plenty of toppings and it was served in a delicious brioche bun with a good serving of fries. Luckily she couldn't manage it all so we got a sample!

Finally, I had Our Own Scampi, Panko Breaded Cod Cheeks, Pea Puree, Chunky Chips & Tartar Sauce £9. The cod cheeks were sweet and soft and juicy and the scampi was full of flavour, the panko gave them all a light, crispy coating which was a nice contrast to the soft fish. Again all served on the pea pureé which tasted like smooth mushy peas and with a basket of chunk chips. It was all really tasty but to me the price was for a meal, but the portion wasn't "meal" sized. Presentation wise it looked fantastic but I would have preferred the cod cheeks not to be in the pureé so they stayed crisp and personally I don't like things in separate servers, I prefer my chips on my plate and sauce on the side, but that's probably is just me!

Overall though we enjoyed our food and would return, I really want to try out a Sunday dinner.

 

The White Lion Burger, 8oz Prime Beef Burger, Crispy Bacon, Melted Cheese, Tomato & French Fries £8

Our Own Scampi, Panko Breaded Cod Cheeks, Pea Puree, Chunky Chips & Tartar Sauce £9