The Outlaws #2 - Meet the Gang

Today was one of the highlights of the trip - the annual get-together of Nikki's family on her Mum's side. Her Auntie Sue having died almost two years ago, this shindig now consists of her Uncle John, his three kids and their wives/partners and their kids, together with the four of us.

We drove down to Dunchurch to meet up with everyone at the Dun Cow for a welcoming drink and then hot-footed it across the road to the Huntsman Carvery. In previous years we have been a bit nomadic in our choice of eatery but having eaten here last year everyone agreed we should return as the quality of food is second to none.

Fairly unimposing from the outside, inside the restaurant is familiar and welcoming, and dominated by the excellent purpose-built carvery station. The four kids were very excited to be given a table to themselves, while the eleven adults were even more excited to be able to eat in peace. The menu is a delight. Regular readers will know of my love for curry, but there is rarely a chance for me to indulge in this passion while Nikki's folks are here. They won't touch it, hating even the smell. So I was very pleased to be able to start with Huntsman Chicken Madras - chopped breast of chicken in a creamy madras sauce served on a bed of lettuce. Then it was off to the carvery, where I was disappointed this year to find only a small piece of rather well-done rib of beef remaining.

I asked if it were possible to have the beef a little more on the pink side. To my horror the chef told me they didn't do rare beef any more as no-one ever asked for it! He then went on to say that they would do it if I called beforehand to give them some notice. And finally, seeing the disappointment on my face, he relented, fetched another roast out of the oven and said "let's see how this is doing - although it's only been in two hours so I shouldn't really be serving it."

Could that be the reason they don't serve rare beef any more? Some horrendous attack by the health and safety crew? He agreed with me that really it's the way beef should be served, and when he cut into the joint, it was perfect. Surprisingly, in view of the fact that "no-one ever asks for it," the entire queue behind me piped up with "I'll have some of that" - even the kids! So I ended up with 4 slices of beef, 4 of turkey, a dollop of mashed potato, a dollop of mashed swede, five large roast potatoes, a large spoonful of baby sprouts, a portion of stuffing and a helping of both home-made horseradish sauce and cranberry. It was like two meals in one really. Fabulous. The only downside was that Nikki, being further back in the queue than me, reached the carvery after he'd cut the pink beef so far into the middle that it was coming close to being raw and he had to put it back in the oven.

Normally after a main course that size I wouldn't have had a dessert but as it's included, most of the diners forced themselves to order one, even if only to take away. I opted for a banana split, which arrived with several inches of whipped cream on one split, several inches of whipped vanilla ice-cream on the other split and covered in nuts and chocolate sauce. I really thought my sides would split. The food was excellent, but oh! the pain!

We staggered back across the road for a farewell drink. The conversation had flowed at my end of the table and since one of John's sons and his family live in Stockport, we'd agreed that next year we should host the family meal in the Manchester area. It's only fair - we've been travelling down to Coventry for the last six years - but it'll be a challenge to find anywhere up to the standard of the Huntsman. Still, we've a year to experiment!