The Clog & Billycock — Restaurant in England

My wife and I visited to eat recently on a Monday evening. I hadn't been here for about 20 years, since when it has been transformed to a smart, modern and elegant, relatively upmarket eating establishment. We hadn't booked but, as we were fairly early, we were able to dine, although it did become busier than we would've expected for a Monday.

The menu is not too long and initially we were surprised to see pub classics on the menu, albeit at not very classic prices; for example, beer-battered cod, chips, mushy peas and tartare sauce at £13.45, or sausages and mash, buttered greens and onion gravy at £11.95. Other dishes looked more "foodie" such as pan fried sea bass with a crab, lemon and dill potato cake, braised fennel and a watercress veloute at £16.95. There were VERY few vegetarian options on the menu (one starter and one main). We are not meat eaters but do eat seafood so we still had plenty of choice.

We didn't have too much time so reluctantly skipped the very interesting-looking starters. I went straight for the battered cod, my wife for the pan-fried sea bass.

We were surprised at the wait for our food,. Once it arrived, however, we realised that this was because the meals had very evidently been prepared with absolute perfectionism - we would have had time for starters after all.

What a treat our meals were. The beer-battered cod was perfect: a beautiful texture coated with a delicate and crispy batter, not a hint of grease. The chips were chunky, just slightly crisp outside and fluffy inside. The mushy peas were good and the tartare sauce was heavenly: perfectly balanced with firm, crunchy chopped pickles and capers, a hint of mustard and lemon, a delicate creaminess without being oily or salty.

My wife's sea bass was cooked just right and beautifully presented. The potato cake was substantial and with a satisfying texture, made with with pieces of potato rather than a mush, and well-balanced, delicate flavour of the seafood and dill. The fennel had not been overcooked, and the watercress sauce added colour and a spring freshness.

We will certainly return and, if the standard remains this high, we would rank it the best for miles around.I will update this...

Well what can we say. After reading so many positive reviews online, and hearing from many that it was highly recommended, we decided to book one of their 'party rooms' for 35 guests for our Wedding Day meal. We weren't disappointed in the slightest. The management were brilliant from the start, and saw to see our big day was special from beginning to end....Hasten to say, the afternoon was a complete success. The hospitality was amazing and the staff all very attentive. Rob the Manager was really lovely and totally brilliant in making sure the day went smoothly and everything was handled very professionally indeed. The food ?? Well it was ALL absolutely amazing!! ...totally top class!!! All our guests commented on the quality and how much they enjoyed it. So big thanks to Chef, credit where it's due....you did a 5* job. Thankyou to all the waitresses, they really were lovely girls and also the bar staff. In particular a huge thankyou to Patsy and Rob for what was a totally fabulous day which was had by all....it really was perfect! I would thoroughly recommend you to anyone thinking of holding their Wedding Meal here.... I am sure, like us, they would not be disappointed. Many Thanks...

We used to visit the Clog and Billycock when it was owned by Thwaites and we found the food to very good back then. Less so for the Thwaites ale which is terrible stuff. There was a fall in standards and we didn’t visit for a long time. We began revisiting again roughly a year and half ago and it’s back to being an excellent gastropub again but with the added benefit of getting rid of Thwaites and serving some very good ales. We visited once a week through January due to a fabulous idea by the pub to give out sealed envelopes throughout December where you could get a voucher inside for 25, 50 or 100% off the cost of your meal but the envelope could only be opened when you got your bill throughout January. It gave us something to look forward to every week and we thoroughly enjoyed it. I can confirm that the cheese and onion pie is absolutely delicious. Made for a big appetite. My good lady enjoyed the chicken burger most weeks. We have also given the Sunday roast a try and it is one of the best on the region. The gravy really is a wonderful creation and makes the whole meal for me. I’m very happy to say that the Clog is very much one of our favourite...