The Moorcock Inn, Sowerby Bridge

We went to the Moorcock Inn following a glowing review on the Guardian website; when Jay Rayner waxes lyrical about a place we tend to listen, especially when it is localish. And I would definitely agree that this little gastropub is worth a visit if you ever happen to find yourself a few miles outside of Halifax.

I have few pictures to share because we were seated in a dark corner of the dining room, rendering all the shots even worse than usual. And you people have seen the standard of photography on this blog: I do not have high standards. So here’s a picture of a gin, enjoyed in the pub garden pre dinner:

And some butter (very light, whipped texture, very salty, very good) and, er, a jug. That’s your lot I’m afraid.

The not-very-Unique-but-instead-rather-Ubiquitous-SP of the Moorcock is an emphasis on locally sourced and foraged food. Indeed, the waiter was almost apologetic about the fact that the sardines came from Cornwall (but apparently Cornish sardines are only in season for a short period and delicious enough to make it worth shipping them up to Yorkshire from the South coast). This is a trend that is not going away but, when handled well, makes for interesting and delicious combinations, so no complaints from me. Some of the dishes we ate for very lovely indeed: the aforementioned sardines with leeks and a redcurrant seed miso were a particular highlight. We also very much enjoyed a main course of confit chicken and lobster served with sweetcorn and a bread porridge.

My one issue was that the kitchen seemed to have something against texture. That chicken dish, for example, while incredibly tasty (the lobster, in particular, was handled brilliantly well) was crying out for something crunchy. As was the otherwise delicious dessert of raw milk ice cream with fig leaf and plums. The flavours were all balanced so well - I particularly loved the chef’s use of sour notes to make food sing - but there was nothing for my teeth to get in to. Except the crust on the sourdough bread which was excellent with the aforementioned butter.

Could just have been the particular selection of dishes we had on the day though - the menu changes, I believe, daily so perhaps someone was just in a particularly soft mood the night we were there. We both agreed that we would happily go back - not only was the food good but the whole meal was excellent value. We might need to investigate local taxi services next time though, so D can partake of the very interesting little wine flight.

The Moorcock Inn
Moorbottom Lane, Sowerby Bridge, West Yorkshire, HX6 3RP
01422 823103