The Best Sunday Roasts In Central England
Published 19 November 2024

Some pub restaurants flatter to deceive, with fancy menus that don’t deliver. Others offer a short repertoire of dishes that transcend expectations. The Howard Arms is of this second happy breed – and some. A handsome and venerable Cotswold hostelry, it is well-used by locals who gather in the bar to sup pints of local ale. Up a few stairs is the restaurant, which provides decorum as well as conviviality (note the old pictures of country scenes, all fashionably decorated with allium seeds in November). 

Chef Chris Ellis (formerly at the Killingworth Castle) has produced a brief menu that has space for the classics (burgers, fish and chips) as well as more elaborate dishes. Choose the latter and you’re unlikely to be disappointed. For us, a thick chunk of pork belly set the tone: luscious fat, crisp skin and tender meat, accompanied by mouthwateringly tangy homemade brown sauce, plus crunchy rémoulade and a mound of flavoursome black pudding. To follow, a perfect, plate-filling lemon sole was cooked with split-second accuracy on the bone and matched with an abundance of potted shrimps, samphire and new potatoes in a pool of butter. Meat-based mains more than pass muster too, judging by an equally generous portion of juicy duck breast with Puy lentils and beetroot.

To round things off, an exemplary apple and blackberry crumble with custard was zesty, crunchy and creamy in all the right places. The concise wine list provides admirable back-up, service is informative and friendly, and prices are moderate for the Cotswolds. What’s more, Sunday lunch receives special acclaim for ‘melt in the mouth’ meat, a ‘great veggie option’ and (our favourite) ‘unlimited gravy’. How civilised.

‘Cherished as a community asset… where local produce, local stories and local pride meet under one roof,’ this sympathetically renovated, family-run pub with rooms also receives high praise for its mix of contemporary and traditional styles. Delightfully wonky wooden beams divide the high-ceilinged, open-plan dining room, with large stone fireplaces at either end, plus tartan banquettes and polished wooden tables; there’s a ‘wonderful beer garden’ too. The kitchen makes almost everything in-house, from the piccalilli and potato bread that accompany the ham hock terrine to the milk ice cream that goes with the hot chocolate mousse. The self-titled ‘classic’ menu majors on pies with buttery mash, fish and chips, pastas, salads, burgers and steaks, with a few upbeat additions including Cornish mussels with ‘nduja and Piccadilly tomatoes. To finish, try the selection of three locally sourced cheeses with home-baked lavroche bread. ‘Impeccable Sunday roasts’ get the thumbs-up, as does the impressive drinks selection with its short list of easy-drinking wines, local ales and enticing cocktails – not to mention the ‘cheeky Gun Dog gin’.

The beloved Old Wharf Inn has been ‘a staple part of Stourbridge’ since reopening its doors in 2019 following an extensive renovation. The name and the location overlooking the Stourbridge Canal basin might summon up nostalgic echoes of heavily laden barges and the Industrial Revolution, but the wooden-floored interior now has a stylish contemporary look. The menu offers an appealing blend of modern pub food and Mediterranean-accented flavours, and the kitchen is renowned for its mighty portions. Punchy snacks such as spicy devilled eggs open proceedings, ahead of, say, monkfish and ‘nduja stew or Devon White chicken leg with parsley sauce, pickled girolles and charred Evesham corn. For afters, affogato and sticky date pudding await. ‘Breakfast is great, but Sunday lunch is fantastic,’ declares one local fan, no doubt musing on the Aubrey Allen striploin of beef. Given that Stourbridge wine merchants Nickolls & Perks are co-owners of the pub, it’s no surprise that the compact list has been carefully curated; otherwise, four rotating hand-pulled ales please the beer brigade. ‘Efficient, welcoming staff’ are regularly mentioned in dispatches.

‘Consistency’ is a watchword at the handsome Olive Branch: ‘We first visited this pub 22 years ago and, in that time, have only ever experienced fabulous food, amazing service and a warm welcome,’ noted one ardent fan. A ‘justifiably proud’ early adopter of local sourcing, it's now one of Rutland’s shining stars, renowned for its community spirit and forward-thinking approach to food and drink. The kitchen delivers the pub classics with aplomb (including ‘the best English seafood platter ever’) while also creating ‘some truly diverse offerings’ ranging from beef tartare with smoked egg-yolk ‘jam’, pickled shallots and Marmite butter to roast hispi cabbage with yeast butter, truffle, herb emulsion and pink fir potatoes. For afters, the Eccles cake with Colston Bassett Stilton and Earl Grey is a must-have, or you might try chocolate torte with marmalade ice cream. Sunday lunch is a bonanza headlined by roast 28-day beef sirloin with horseradish hollandaise and a harvest festival of veg from the pub’s growing patch. To drink, top-notch regional ales vie with an ever-changing list of good-value wines.

‘We did a big walk around Kinder Reservoir, and to come here after for wine and some great food was bliss,’ noted one couple who sought refuge in the ever-welcoming Pack Horse (circa 1577). All-comers are greeted with a mix of friendly familiarity, genuine warmth and professionalism: ‘you can turn up in your tiara or your muddy walking boots’. In return, you’ll be treated to superb hospitality and cracking food based on sustainable supplies from local sources: meat butchered just four miles away, for example, might appear in a pie of beef shin, Guinness and mushrooms. Snack on a ‘Manchester egg’ (aka a black pudding Scotch egg) before tackling a smoked haddock fishcake with warm mussel tartare or a bacon chop with pease pudding, spring greens and cider. Sunday roasts ‘for two’ receive high praise for beef wing rib on the bone or pork shoulder chop – and if you still have room, gorge on one of the creamy desserts (gooseberry and sherry trifle, perhaps). Quality growers abound on the inspiring wine list, and the pub champions local breweries too.

Opened under new ownership at the end of 2023, this old red brick pub on a city-centre backstreet has a deceptively large and modern interior. For drinkers, there’s a bar and a cosy snug (along with high-quality real ales and cider on tap), while diners have various options: a section off the bar with round tables as well as seating for couples, a first-floor space (the Gallery) for private parties, and a bright ground-floor ‘Orangery’ overlooking the little urban garden.

Like the decor, the food is contemporary in style – a collection of small and large plates (available all-day on Fridays and Saturdays) served by enthusiastic young staff who also get an honourable mention from readers. There’s ambition here, both in the drinks selection (pairings from the well-thought-out wine list are offered with main courses) and the food, which incorporates fusion assemblies as well as pub food of the burger/meat-platter ilk.

Results can vary, with the stars at inspection being an expertly judged ‘small plate’ of three ox cheek tacos (tender meat and crunchy cucumber salsa, topped with a generous squiggle of spicy chermoula), and a moreish pudding of warm carrot and pecan cake with delectable ‘beurre noisette’ cream cheese and ice cream. Less accomplished was a ‘large plate’ of smoked tofu laksa (one of several diverting vegetarian options), where authentic Asian flavours were hard to discern among the general creaminess. A convivial hubbub and a groovy soundtrack of obscure 60s and 70s tunes (chosen by the staff) add to the vibe, and we've had abundant praise for the Sunday roasts.