August 2023. Piercebridge.
Never mind the George‘s status as one of our great coaching inns,
or the clock,
or the bedrooms (fine, a bargain at the price).
You’ll be wanting to know about the bar. Well, when it re-opened last year the handpumps were gone. So with my CAMRA Gold Card hat on it was a joy to see them back, and if you were after a “safe bet” for the cask you can look no further than Black Sheep, despite their recent struggles.
There’s a fancier function room at the rear, but the restaurant itself is pleasingly unfussy. Choose your own table, pick up your own menu, order at the bar if you want.
I ordered at the bar and asked for the Guinness last, a crime against bar staff. No-one died.
That menu is also pleasingly fuss-free. Just like the beers, it’s food you’ve heard of, (decently) priced as £11.95 not 11,9 or whatever.
And there’s gammon and chicken parmesan. You don’t expect parmo in a smart hotel, particularly on the “wrong” side of Darlington for this Teesside speciality. This was a chunky slice of gooey heaven.
And the Black Sheep Bitter was cool and rich, a 3.5 which would have guaranteed GBG entry if Darlo CAMRA wasn’t already awash with great beer.
As unfussy an evening meal as you’ll get, with the Doors rather than Dion as your soundtrack,
and a conversation about net run rates your only banter as the drinkers headed outside to the river.
Unexpectedly brilliant, though in the morning at Sam Turner’s Garden Centre cafe I couldn’t quite face the prospect of a second parmo at 10:30 in the morning.
But an 8 year old lad ahead of me in the queue had no such qualms.
retiredmartin 