The Coach and Horses - Shrewsbury

It's not unusual for me to wake up on a Sunday morning with the idea of going for a carvery somewhere for lunch.  In fact, it's a rather regular occurrence when I'm with friends, and this weekend was no exception.  As I was in Shrewsbury at the weekend, I thought it an ideal opportunity to indulge in this little habit of mine, and suggested to Ange and Steve (who had kindly consented to have me to stay) that it might be an idea to go for lunch before I headed home.  Having asked if they knew anywhere local that would do a nice carvery, we settled on the Coach and Horses and headed there.

The pub itself is a little away from the centre, so I thought that it would be fairly quiet at 12.30pm, but obviously its reputation had preceded it, and we arrived to be told it was fully booked, however instead of turning us away the bar manager was very accommodating and advised us (as we had arrived fairly early) that, if we were willing to wait half an hour, then we could have a table.  This was fine by us, and we took great delight in watching other people come in, only to be told that there wouldn't be a table for them for quite some time, and settled at the bar for a few pre-dinner drinks.

As we waited, my friend informed me that the Head Chef who was cooking that day, John Barton, had been a quarter-finalist in Master Chef - so naturally my expectations were set rather highly for the food, and I wasn't disappointed.  The meat was lovely and tender (I had the Turkey, and my companions the Lamb) and all the accompanying elements of a good carvery were well up to standard.
However... the pudding... well the pudding was something else!  Both myself and Ange had the Chocolate Torte, and the only words I can use to describe it are 'melt-in-the-mouth chocolaty goodness'.  It was light, fluffy, and did indeed melt in the mouth and was served with a choice of cream or ice cream - although I think that the dish would have been perfect served on its own.

I would definitely recommend this pub to others visiting/living in the Shrewsbury area, and even if you're not looking for a place to eat - this pub has a lovely atmosphere for a few drinks.  We found the staff really helpful and accommodating, and they were fantastic at getting us a table even though the restaurant was packed.
ST.

The Coach and Horses
Swan Hill, Shrewsbury SY1 1NF
01743 365 661
@Shrewscoach (twitter!)