Restaurant Details

So I can imagine that some people, particularly of the younger generation who may prefer a modern interior and a bit of a ‘buzz’, might be put off by the Hob Green.

Located a five-minute drive from the Ripley roundabout, the Markington-based hotel and restaurant is housed in a quaint country house.

We were welcomed in to a reception hall and offered pre-dinner drinks in a cosy and traditionally decorated drawing room, complete with roaring fire. The dining room also has a traditional but very cosy feel to it, with a hushed, at times almost silent, atmosphere. It’s all a far cry from the trendy, music-infused eateries in our towns and cities – but that’s not a bad thing at all.

We spent a pleasant 20 minutes in the drawing room perusing the table d’hote dinner menu (£26.50 for three courses), which changes daily and on this occasion offered some tempting choices.

Starters included cream of yellow split pea and saffron soup with ribbons of prosciutto and galantine of pork prunes and pistachio nuts wrapped in streak bacon with plum coulis.

Among the main courses on offer were fanned supreme of duckling with Victoria plum and port sauce and grilled field mushroom with sun blushed tomatoes, fresh basil and buffalo mozzarella cheese.

Alongside the table d’hote menu on the day we visited was a ‘Fish on Friday’ menu (£26.50), and this offered starters such as home pickled salmon gravadlax with lemon and dill mascarpone cream and fresh dressed East Coast crab on a bed of pickled samphire.

The mains included baked fillet of sea bass with provencale sauce and grilled rainbow trout fillets with pea stem ginger and beurre noisette.

If you go on a Friday, you can choose dishes from both menus and this is what we did, opting for starters from the fish menu and mains from the table d’hote menu.

My starter of seared king scallops with pancetta, tarragon and cream was rich and tasty, with meaty and juicy scallops and a lovely, balanced sauce.

My partner chose the grilled Portuguese sardines in caper and anchovy butter on toasted ciabatta, again a perfectly balanced and delicious dish.

As a main course, I chose the medallions of pork fillet with black cherry and cognac butter sauce. The lightly breaded pork was tender and light, and the accompanying sauce was a great combination.

My partner chose the roast rack of lamb with orange and redcurrant sauce, a dish of strong but balanced flavours, again with lovely tender meat.

The main courses were served with a great selection of perfectly cooked vegetables from the Hob Green’s greenhouse – fine beans, orange glazed carrots and new and chateau potatoes. These were absolutely delicious.

There was no way we were going to forego dessert after tasting such impressive starters and mains. Tempting dishes were sticky toffee pudding, soft vanilla and strawberry meringue cake with coulis and dark chocolate bavarian cream with mango coulis.

Unable to make up my mind, I asked for a small portion of the tiramisu cheesecake with dark chocolate sauce alongside a taste of the poached pear with cider toffee parfait and saffron syrup. Both were divine.

My partner went for the cheese selection with homemade biscuits, apricot chutney and fig and raisin bread, which again was delicious.

Although I’m not sure I would bring a group of friends to the Hob Green for fear of creating too much noise, I would definitely visit again to try more of the fantastic food on offer, and could imagine no better place to spend an intimate and cosy evening dining out with a partner.

The Hob Green is also open for luncheon and Sunday lunch – but note that its tables for Sunday lunch are currently (mid-November) booked up until January.