The Punch bowl, Satley

In an aim to bring you more reviews from Durham, we have upped our visits to cute country pubs…. And everyone loves a country pub lunch don’t they? The Punch Bowl in Satley is 5 minutes from the A68 and 15 minutes drive from Durham City. We live quite close to Satley and always drive through but haven’t visited so just before Christmas, we took the time to visit. The village is quite remote and rural so please do bare that in mind when you decide to visit!

Parking ourselves in front of the huge open fire, we perused the menu and listened to the locals chatting at the bar. The Punch Bowl offers traditional meals, made fresh in house and it is just what you need on a cold day.

Paul had a bowl of Broth ( £3.50) to start and it was so fresh and filling. A generous portion of piping hot home made soup. What could be better? It was so tasty there’s no more words for it!

I chose the Prawn & Crayfish Cocktail with brandy Marie Rose sauce (£5.50) and again, a very generous portion. Prawns resting on crisp fresh salad and smothered in Marie Rose sauce. It was meant to be brandy sauce but I couldn’t pick that out. Not a problem! The prawns were fresh and plentiful. The cocktail was served with brown bread and butter. I was thoroughly satisfied after this tasty treat!

Paul opted for a traditional pub lunch stalwart – Mince & Dumpling (£8.50). Served with mash and veg, the dumpling was ginormous and perfectly crisp on top. The mince and gravy was very flavourful and again you could tell it had all been home made with love and not bought in. The gravy was nice and thick and the meal really would stick to your ribs on a cold day. Again a very generous portion which made it excellent value for money.

I carried on the prawn theme and had Scampi & Chips (£8.50) which came with a dressed salad. The scampi was average, that you’d expect from anywhere else but the chips were hand chipped, thick and cooked to perfection. The dressed salad lightened the meal. Chips are my favourite comfort food and I can’t resist a well cooked brown chip!

After our lunch we moved over to the bar and had another drink which were reasonably priced. We were thoroughly impressed with the meals. It is not a la carte, it is nothighbrow, but it is good, honest, home made food which I know a lot of people look for when looking for a pub meal.

Paul was so impressed with his Mince & Dumplings that he has been raving about The Punch Bowl to anyone who will listen. We can’t wait to go back and try the Sunday lunch.