Crown Inn Lixwm

It was Fathers Day and unfortunately we had not booked anywhere but decided last minute to see if we could find nice country pub for Sunday lunch. We headed towards Holywell, Brynford then towards Lixwm where we came across a quaint 17th century building which we drove straight past we then decided to turn round as it looked just like the traditional pub we were after. We were greeted by two very friendly waitresses that told us they were really busy but would squeeze us in. The pub itself is everything it looks from the outside a humble 17th century coaching house low beamed ceilings open stone fireplace, a superb range of cask ales and beers and bags of old world charm what more could you want on Father’s day.

There was five of us dining, the menu was a set menu with a varied choice of five starters, mains including vegetarian options and desserts. It was reasonably price at £8.95 for one course, £10.95 for two or £15 for three courses. Three of us had starters our son had Sweet Potato and Leek soup which was accompanied with a huge slab of crusty bread. The soup had a nice mellow flavour and was a contemporary alternative to traditional leek soup. Reg and I both choose the “patchwork Pâté” which is a local produce made in Ruthin the Pâté is all hand made in small batches using local ingredients, we were keen to sample this and were more than happy with our choice when it arrived on a rustic butchers block. The presentation was excellent and included individual ceramic pots of Pâté, butter, fresh rocket, onion marmalade and two small pieces of toasted Ciabatta. Reg had chosen the Chicken liver Pate which was by far the best Pâté I have ever tasted you can certainly see why this is Patchworks best seller and is served in many restaurants throughout North Wales. I sampled the Kiln Roast Salmon Pâté which instead of the cured fish be­ing engulfed in cold smoke it is hot smoke that is used. Effectively cooking the fish as it is smoked or as the name implies roasting it in a kiln. This imparts an almost meaty texture to the Pâté. The only small criticism we had was there wasn’t enough bread to mop up the delicious Pâté.

For our main course the majority choose roast topside of Beef with Yorkshire puddings I opted for 4 hour braised belly pork with buttered mash. The meals were served with a large platter of mixed seasonal vegetables, a large dish of braised red cabbage and carrot and suede mash. The selection of vegetables were abundant and really tasty especially the red cabbage which is one of my personal favourites. The roast beef was extremely tasty but they were all slightly jealous of the fact that I had buttery mash served with my extremely large melt in your mouth belly pork topped with crispy crackling.

For dessert we ordered Rhubarb, summer berry crumble with custard, A Lixwm mess, Sticky Toffee pudding with Toffee Sauce and ice cream and two Chocolate brownies with ice cream. All desserts were scrumptious and of good portions and completed the meal perfectly.

The Crown Inn prides itself on serving classic British food which is locally sourced and then cooked by chefs that are passionate about food and experimenting with different flavours, we are keen to revisit and sample some more mouth watering dishes of the regular menu very soon!