One benefit of ‘pottering’ in the car is that you can make interesting discoveries.

On an overcast day, we found ourselves driving through Langford Budville and noticed a pleasant looking pub called ‘The Martlet Inn’. Discovering, to their credit in such times, that they open all week, and being ever adventurous, we returned the day after to try it out.

Entering through the enclosed courtyard garden, we found an inviting bar which retains an ‘Olde Worlde’ feeling (including a table reserved for the Grumpy Old Men’s Club!) and, as one of its dining spaces, a comfortable, light room like a lovely conservatory.

The menu was good, too. From a well-designed set of starters, Flossy chose delicately flavoured Dill & Vodka Cured Sea Trout, which was accompanied by beetroot, caraway crispbread and some horseradish crème fraiche, while I plumped for the Cauliflower Bhajis: large florets with a mild, bhaji-style coating and a smooth coconut & lime dhal. One floret was maybe a tad too al dente but we couldn’t complain – it all tasted good!

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The mains selection was even more impressive. Along with a section containing more à la carte type dishes, there was a Bar Menu, several lunchtime-only ciabattas and – particularly nice to see – a choice of ‘Smaller Portions’ that was not the kids’ menu.

Flossy’s lentil burger was tasty and augmented by some fine chips, while my Chicken Saltimbocca (three trimmed breast portions wrapped in sage and Parma ham) was testament to some genuine chef skills.

Somerset County Gazette:

You probably know it’s notoriously difficult to retain the moisture in a chicken breast, so to find that all three were juicy and cooked to perfection was a real treat. Accompanied by sweet potato gratin, curly kale and madeira jus, the whole plate was very enjoyable.

Though Flossy was full by now, I squeezed in some deliciously rich, dark chocolate tart with blood orange sorbet as a perfect counterbalance - purely for research purposes, you understand..!

I can’t say it was cheap – what is these days? – but it was good. The owners also have ‘The Bear’ in Wiveliscombe (where we once witnessed them trying a new dish for quality control) and ‘The Lamb & Flag’ on Blagdon Hill, both of which we highly recommend, and I reckon you could do a lot worse than to seek out ‘The Martlet Inn’ – or the others - for a well-earned treat.