Peterboat Review

April 21, 2015 by Rich - Foodie Reviewer

Peterboat Review

Clearly they meant business. I mean, just think of the trade and income they will loose by shutting the doors completely, isn’t this one of the most popular pubs in Old Leigh with locals and visitors alike. Yep, I am talking about the Peter Boat. I’m pretty certain the doors where only shut for a month or two but it seemed like ages! If you’ve read any of my earlier reviews you would have gathered, I spend a lot of time in Old Leigh. I walked past the Peter Boat on quite a few occasions during their refurbishment, and judging by the amount of work that appeared to be going on, I was anticipating wonderful things.

To be totally honest, despite my love of all things Leigh, the Peterboat has never been up there on my pub priority list. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a great location, however, I found the beer a little un-inspiring, and the décor, well, somewhat tired. I really felt it had been crying out for some attention for months if not years! At last! My prayers have been answered!

Just to add, I work in London, whenever I mention Leigh to colleagues who live out of town, the majority who have visited our lovely part of the country have fond memories of sitting outside where? Yep, the Peterboat! Not forgetting, the pub also plays host to, what I consider, the main stage at the annual folk Festival. The point I am trying to make here is, that any pub as popular and as well known as the Peter Boat does need to be looked after; it’s almost a local treasure.

Well I was itching to see how the pub had improved since the refurb, so as you’d expect, Lou and I needed little more persuasion; lets give the place a go! We decided to get down there for Sunday lunch. The sun was shining, and as we all know, when the sun is out, Old Leigh gets packed, so we’d better book. This can be done quite easily on line, which is nice! We did the usual (gosh we’re getting predictable!); a quick visit to the Mayflower to see what great ales they had on. I will save this for another review, but these guys know beer, very very well. If the Peterboat are to compete for the attention of ale lovers, they will need to have something special on offer. After a swift half in Mayflower we took the short stroll up to the Peterboat.

When we arrived, I decided to head straight for the bar and check out the ale offerings. Not bad, probably around 4 ales on the pumps, and a few sounded pretty interesting. We both opted for an ale called ‘The Trickster’. A hoppy citrusy number which hit the spot. Incase you where wondering, yes Lou does enjoy an ale! Trust me, a beer revolution has taken place over recent years, and its not just reserved for old men with large beards! Hipsters (who also favour the facial hair look) have entered the beer scene, in particular, craft beer, its now cool; no more ‘Beer for the men, white wine for ladies’ malarky! So come on girls, if you haven’t already, give it a go, you might like it! Just one other thing whilst we are on the subject of ale, if you are fan of craft ale get yourself up to Henry Burgers in Leigh, these guys are pioneering the local craft ale scene in my view, everything from breweries in East London to Hawaii and Japan! They have got it spot on, and are bringing a quite unique beer scene to Leigh. Anyway enough said about that, back to the matter in hand, the Peterboat! (I could chat about beer for hours!) We took a few sips of ale, and were seated at our table, near the window, with views across the estuary, perfect!

The menu is classic pub grub, and quite rightly so, we are in a pub after all. As we often do, we decided to share starters. That’s always Lou’s idea, she always asks me what I am ordering, I never really understand that question, how can my decision influence yours? After years of experience I know it’s easier just to agree and share, rather than argue! So ‘for the table’ we ordered salt and pepper calamari together with the duck liver pate. I often get nervous when ordering calamari at a restaurant, it can be done wrong so easily. However when this arrived at the table it looked great. I hate those uniform battered squid rings that are often served. This dish was far from it, the squid was obviously hand cut; the pieces were different shapes and sizes, covered in golden breadcrumbs, it tasted great. The Pate was equally good, it wasn’t advertised as homemade, but it really tasted it. It had such a strong flavour, and when spread on the accompanying Melba toasts together with the relish it was lovely.

For mains I decided to give their fish and chips a go, Lou decided on the Lamb Kleftico (Greek slow roasted lamb shoulder). I need to point out; the Pubs signature dish is local Cockle Chowder, served in a cob loaf, how nice does that sound? Thinking back, for the sake of this review, I should have ordered this, but I was in a fish and chips kinda mood. I guess I will just have to go back and try the chowder some other time; any excuse! The food arrived at the table and looked tasty, classic pub grub, just as you would expect. The fish and chips were good, piping hot, crispy batter, fresh fish what more can you ask for. Now on to the lamb; I am glad Lou ordered this, for the main reason, it was too much for her, which of course meant, there was plenty for me too! The lamb was so tender it just fell apart, together with the creamy mash and oregano infused sauce, it was wonderful. What else did we drink?? Well I enjoyed the Trickster ale so much I ordered another pint! Louisa was after a glass of wine, so a large Shiraz sorted that out, and tasty it was too, perfect with the lamb

Puddings! Well, as you probably know by now, I always struggle with pudding, not because I am anti-sweet things, not at all, give me anything with salted caramel; this can get me salivating just as much as a huge rare steak! But, I always enjoy my previous courses far too much that I forget to leave room, lightweight eh! Unfortunately today was no different, but there was one standout here, which I thought was a great touch, they serve Rossi’s ice cream! If a restaurant doesn’t make its own, then you gotta keep it local, and you don’t get more local than classic Rossi’s, full marks on that one Peterboat

Gosh, I have just realised I have got this far and no mention about service! After all, I do consider this nearly 90% of a whole dining experience! You wouldn’t like me when I’m Hangry, yes Hangry! A combination of hungry and angry often caused by bad service! The official definition being ‘A state of anger caused by lack of food; hunger causing a negative change in emotional state’ Thankfully I didn’t suffer any ‘Hangry’ experiences here, the service was good, very good. Clearly as part of the refurb, they have polished the service too! It just flowed! Everything from initially arriving at the bar, very helpful bar staff, right down to asking for the bill, equally great waiting staff. I don’t think I have ever seen so many attentive staff at a bar or in a restaurant at any one time. I couldn’t even see any of the many drinkers and diners sitting outside in the large car park area having any issues; it all just seemed to work. They also have a brigade of glass collector’s in high vis vests with ‘Peterboat Crew’ adorned on the reverse! My only criticism, all the bar staff wear garish blue Fosters T-shirts! Maybe it’s just me, I just don’t think there is any place in this world for bland Fosters! Why not advertise their wonderful ale on the T-shirts!

So, it was time to leave and take a nice sunny stroll in Old Leigh, and no doubt a cheeky pint in the Billet. The bill arrived, and only £45.75! That’s two courses and drinks folks, a bargain I thought! So, next time you find yourself wandering the cobbled paths of Old Leigh and need some good reasonable pub grub, why not try the ‘all new’ Peterboat, I honestly think the refurbishment has worked wonders!