We were lucky enough to be told about an Amazon voucher system, which offers a five-course taster menu for two at a huge discount on the menu’s £55 per person price. The old adage of ‘if it sounds too good to be true then it usually is’ certainly didn’t apply here.

As the name suggests, the restaurant is in the milking parlour of the old farmhouse but with a small modern addition to one end. With beams, thick walls and stone floor it also has a fireplace at both ends of the room with easy chairs where you can wait for your table.

There was no dithering over the menu, as the pre-ordained courses just rolled along. We were first brought a board with two small portions of slow cooked belly pork, with a tasty sticky sauce with pea shoots and peanuts giving it a certain crunch.

Without much of a wait along came course two. Home pickled beetroot with whipped goat’s cheese, nuts again and a toasted herby crumb. Picking our way through the various tastes we decided the combination complemented each other rather well. After this came smoked salmon, home cured on the premises and a sizeable portion.

The young waitress was very knowledgeable about the food and the ingredients and was delighted to tell us all about the hotel.

With the owners having recently taken it on, they are keen to grow as many vegetables as they could and had recently planted an orchard. They already had their own hives and were shortly to add pigs and chickens.

Our fourth course was headed ‘The Butcher’s Block’. This is changed daily and that night it was beef cheek. Again, a board was placed between us with a large piece of meat for us to share along with triple cooked chips and creamed spinach. The beef was tender and moist and it was a treat to have something less ordinary.

By now we felt like loosening our belts but more was to come in the way of a most delicious rich chocolate crème brulee with a home-made biscuit. Presented in what I thought was a smallish cup, it seemed to be never-ending and was an excellent way to end the meal.

The staff were lovely and the whole package was enjoyable and unpretentious. We were told the voucher system is still going strong and also to look out for other offers in the future. Our meal cost just £39.

Just one word: on arriving, don’t let the rather shabby car park put you off. It needs some attention to bring it up to the standard of the rest. A small point but one that instantly made me wonder what we might expect – first impressions count.

* Open 6.45-9pm during the week and  6-9.30pm at weekends. 

* Disabled access.