Bingham

The Chesterfield at Bingham is a recently renovated pub/restaurant, which probably opened around eighteen months or so ago. Since that time it has quickly established itself as one of the nice eating places in the East Notts area. I have made several visits over the last few months, including dining about half a dozen times, and calling in for drinks on other occasions.

The restaurant's marketing tag line is "Quality, Fresh, Local" which is certainly appealing to me and indeed judging from how busy they are most nights, it appeals to an awful lot of people. the restaurant is well situated within the town, directly overlooking the Market Square.

The restoration itself has been sympathetic to the original age of the building, and it manages to blend old features and new styling very well. The use of the warm woods and seagrass carpeting and ground greens and neutral paints certainly appeal to my own sense of decor. It's also nice to see a pub/restaurant take the small matter of the wine list as an important factor, and there is a well stocked wine cellar within the restaurant part.

There is a small bar area as well although they do not serve food in there, everyone is served in the dining room area itself.

The core menu has not changed very much since my first visit for food, although there are always plenty of specials available every day and so we have managed to eat many different options from the menu. The first time we went my husband opted for a Goats cheese and tomato tart, (which is a regular favourite of mine), and I have to say it was the lightest and tastiest starter of its type I have ever eaten, it was simply delicious. On that occasion I opted for the Thai Fish cakes which were served with Black Sambuca Noodles - I just had to try them as they were so different. Scallops are on the menus most days, dressed or otherwise and myself and a friend have opted for those, and an old favourite of prawns in chili sauce can also be recommended. The starters are all between £5-6 except for the scallops which are nearer £8.

The main course selection is quite extensive, and is one of the reasons I like coming here, particuarly when we have guests. The menu has plenty of both meat and fish dishes as standard, again with lots of extras on the Specials of the day, and there are several vegetarian options in their "Not just for Vegetarians" section. We seem to have stuck to the fish and vegetarian options in the main, as many of the Specials sound too tempting to turn down. I feel the vegetarian options are a little more creative than many places too. A particular favourite of mine is fresh tagliatelle with roasted vegetables and pesto, and another is grilled haloumi with couscous and a sweet curry sauce. Hubby has had several fish dishes including sea bass and tuna

If it is meat you are after, then it is possible to select from duck, chicken, lamb or pork dishes as well as steaks and traditional pub fayre such as sausages and mash, home made burgers or steak and ale pie.

There are plenty of main courses under £10, including all the vegetarian options, but the fish specialities and fish are typically around £15 or so.

I enjoy good quality wine (life is too short to drink otherwise) and again the Chesterfield delivers. Most times we have a Chilean sauvignon blanc which is in their house wine selection and retails at £13.50 or £4.75 for a 250ml glass, although there are cheaper wines by the glass, and at least quality is guaranteed. A NZ sauvignon is around the £19 mark. I like this place as their staff are at least familiar with wine names and have been taught how to serve wine, a service not always seen in many modern pub/restaurants.

Sadly, we have only made it to the pudding stage once, which is always a tragedy as I so want to try their apple crumble with cinnamon, but I always feel that would be rather naughty. On the one time we did have pudding we opted for the Cheese Platter with Port - to share. The cheese is all locally produced cheese, from within a 50 mile radius and purchased from our local farm shop which is just two miles away, and I hope this is a trend that more restaurants will follow. The cheese platter with port is £8.50 and the cheese is ample for sharing - although you will need to order an extra glass of port...!

Service staff have always been friendly and attentive, and nothing is a problem. On the odd time when the kitchen has been very busy they are good at letting you know, not that it is a problem in good company and a good atmosphere and with good wine anyway.


One of the great offers that has been ongoing is that when you do dine, you get a voucher for your next midweek evening meal, entitling you to a free bottle of wine up to £15 providing you spend £25 or more on food between two. Obviously if you intend on having two courses, then this amount will be exceeded, and it is a great offer as it is £15 off any wine, not just some house wine they cannot shift..!
I certainly feel that the Chesterfield has ensured that pub food has moved forward, and while the menu is varied, they are a long long way away from the oh so typical High Street Pub food outlet with their quality and service. We have eaten many times there, and I would find it impossible to quote an average price for a meal for two but I would think it possible to eat three courses for around £20-25 a head average, plus wine and coffee.