BH thought that we had been to the play before, but search reveals nothing in the blogs, so it was either not noticed properly or more than ten years ago. Whenever, I had completely forgotten what it was about and was reduced to asking wikipedia, which, as usual, came up with a good story. We have a lot to thank Mr. Wales for - recently in the news in connection with the launch of wikinews, dubbed wikitribune. The phrase 'where angel fear to tread' springs to mind.
We arrived a little early so paid a rare visit to the next door 'Brewery Inn' of reference 3, in part to case the joint against going there to eat after the show. Red Label to be going on with.
The village hall turned out to be an old style village hall, complete with the interesting old style seats illustrated. Substantial seats, quite comfortable provided you did not lean back too hard. About forty of us there for this afternoon performance, which was decent, but we were a bit thin for the size of the place. Hopefully they did better for the evening performance. Tea and biscuits served from a hatch in the interval, with the sign saying 'to the bar' probably having more meaning by the evening.
Show not bad at all, although it lacked the slickness of a fully professional operation, with some of the material falling a little flat. The players appeared to be a mixture of amateur, fringe and semi-professional - with groups such as this perhaps providing a spring board for wannabees as well as an outlet for those content to be amateur. I expect we shall be back.
A bit early for dinner immediately after the show, and, as on the occasion noticed at reference 4, decided against soaking until tea time. So home to go out again later to pay what was my first visit to the nearby 'Jolly Cooper's under current management. A venture into high end pub dining on the edge of the common: would they succeed where other good men had failed?
I liked the arrangement with a nearly separate bar and dining room - with the dining room having once been the public bar complete with pool table, youth and a real fire - a practical fire from the days when fires were for real rather than bits of décor. And given that the room was an open roofed extension tacked onto an old building, probably needed in the winter. To the right of the illustration at reference 5. Staff friendly and efficient and we may have been served by a daughter of the house. Reasonably priced, reasonable wine.
For starter my eye was caught by haddock goujons, topical in the light of reference 6. Goujons which turned out to be a sort of cross between fish as in fish and chips and a fish finger, and I imagine they were bought in ready made from the pub grub wholesaler: decent if dull.
Next stop a lamb pie, which turned out to be a lamb pieces in a savoury gravy in a small pot with a flaky pastry lid. Decent, if not really what I would call a pie. But things got better as it was served with mashed potato and real cabbage, buttered, but not bad at all. A rare thing in any kind of restaurant these days.
For desert a chocolate confection in a verre de dégustation, mainly a sort of smooth brown chocolate goo topped with a dollop of slightly lumpy white goo, this last being a version of the Nutella of reference 7, which I had thought was a brown goo. I had been tempted to the confection by talk of praline, which I had thought was a soft chocolate filling, which I much prefer to hard or wet fillings, but it turned out to be a sprinkling of flaked and roasted - or roasted and flaked - almonds. A correct use of the word according to wikipedia, if a touch pedantic, and misleading in this context. I expect we have some television cook to blame. BH thought it was all rather good.
But I carp. We had a perfectly satisfactory meal and I expect we shall be back. A useful addition to the choice we have available in Epsom - not least because it is in easy walking range and is likely to include neighbourly chatter.
Reference 1: http://www.ashteadplayers.co.uk/.
Reference 2: http://www.apmh.org.uk/.
Reference 3: http://www.thebreweryinnashtead.co.uk/.
Reference 4: http://psmv3.blogspot.co.uk/2017/05/the-philanthropist.html.
Reference 5: http://jollycoopers.co.uk/.
Reference 6: http://psmv3.blogspot.co.uk/2017/04/jules.html.
Reference 7: https://www.nutella.com/en/uk.
No comments:
Post a Comment