Wonderful food at The Moorings Restaurant in Outwell made party-goer want to come back for more

My wife recently attended a works Christmas party at The Moorings Restaurant in Outwell and enjoyed the food there so much that when I suggested we eat out on Wednesday evening there was only one place she wanted to go!

Thirty minutes outside Lynn, the Fenland village probably isn’t a place frequented by many of us. Still, The Moorings – an independent restaurant attached to the Crown Lodge Hotel – makes the 18-mile journey one worth taking.

It was bitter and raining when we arrived but the evening soon changed to one of warmth and welcome as we entered The Moorings.

At 6.30pm there were a couple of groups of drinkers happily chatting and some businessmen staying at the hotel enjoying solitary meals. Pleasant Christmas music played quietly in the background.

Once shown to our seats we chose our drinks – a bitter shandy for me (£4.40) and a 175ml Pinot Grigio for Josi (£7) – while we perused the menu.

I choose to follow a vegan diet where possible so I’m always grateful to see a few choices on the menu for me and was happy to opt for the smoked tomato and basil soup (£8.50), which was thick and tangy and came with beautiful red pepper fritters. Josi plumped for the herb-scented pork and chestnut arancini ((£9.5) and said the gorgeous cranberry cream sauce complemented the tasty meatballs perfectly.

There was also a choice of salad, parfait and two prawn dishes.

For my main course, I opted for the sweet potato and red onion tart (£18.50) which was topped with sunflower and pumpkin seeds and came with a lovely red onion and new potato salad. It might sound like more of a summery dish but was a real winter warmer, with the tart full of flavours which seemed to expand with every bite.

Josi had loved the roasted cod loin at her work event but decided to go for the chargrilled chicken, which she said was moist and full of flavour. She enjoyed the fresh salad and described the garlic-sauteed potatoes and sticky bacon jam as ‘wonderful’

Other mains included venison, steak, risotto, pork, suet pudding, turkey, a festive burger, another vegetable tart, fish and chips, ribs, lasagne and a seafood medley.

Our servers had perfected the art of giving you just enough time between desserts – we never felt rushed nor were we left for too long – although long enough to make our minds up to go for one of the six desserts on offer!

There were no vegan options here but I made a rare trip into dairy and enjoyed a gorgeous sticky toffee pudding with custard (£9) while my wife tucked into a Christmas pudding (£9.50) – she said it was wonderful but warned the strong taste of brandy may be too much for some!

All in all, this was a wonderful meal at a lovely venue, with excellent service and good choices. Our bill was not cheap at £88.40 but we certainly got what we paid for.

Ratings out of five:

Food: We thought all three courses were superb. *****

Drinks: Our lager and wine were fine but there was no drinks menu. ***

Decor: Spacious but warm and welcoming. ****

Staff: Smart, polite and friendly. ****

Price: The food was wonderful, but priced accordingly. ***