Appearances can be deceptive – and that is certainly true regarding the White House restaurant at Affcot.
I had passed this white cottage, opposite the Travellers’ Rest, many times on my trips up the A49 to Shrewsbury or wherever. I’d vaguely wondered where they put all the diners and even their cars.
But it’s not like that: the restaurant seats about 30, there’s a car park at the back and a delightful garden.
We arrived at the White House at 7pm on a Friday and already there were a few cars parked. We stopped for a while just looking at the views – on one side there’s the Longmynd and on the other Wenlock Edge.
The sun was just setting and although the weather was cold, it was pleasant enough to sit there for a few minutes.
Entrance to the restaurant is via the back and a short hallway leads you into the bar area. Here owner Sarah Hall took our coats and orders for drinks. We settled down with a glass of Chardonnay for me and a pint for Richard and studied the menus.
Sarah does all the front-of-house work while husband Ray is the chef.
There has been a White House restaurant on the site for about 25 years. Back in the 17th century, the cottage was a blacksmith’s shop, but now, of course, it has been renovated and enlarged by various owners.
But the best part of the evening was… the food. From a half dozen starters I chose the hake goujons in black pepper crumb with tartare sauce, and Richard had the crispy breaded prawns and sesame coated crab cakes with a sweet chilli mayonnaise.
Both were delicious – we did a little swapping and agreed on the tastiness and freshness of both. The dipping sauces were just right, not overpowering but with just enough flavour.
Then came the main courses. Richard went for the Marches Tornedos Rossini – a thick chunk of fillet steak topped with home-made pate.
I had a roast fillet of free range chicken “wrapped in Shropshire Hills prosciutto with a Rushbury Fidget cheese and leek stuffing” – brilliant.
The accompanying vegetables were served in the manner I always prefer. First a heater was placed on the table and then plates of very hot new and deep fried potatoes, along with a nice mix of broccoli, carrots, green beans, but not too much of them.
After our main courses we both began to feel distinctly full. I’m afraid that even in the interests of food research, I couldn’t manage a pudding.
Richard plumped (ahem) for the Baileys creme brulée with a red berry compote. He ate all this himself so I am unable to give my opinion, but there were murmurs of appreciation – so I assume it was very good indeed.
The main course menu usually offers lamb, pork, chicken, fish and a vegetarian option. All the ingredients are locally sourced whenever possible.
Finally we had filter coffees with cream and, a nice touch this, home-made truffles.
The service was efficient and unobtrusive throughout and the bill for the two meals, without drinks, came to about £50 – definitely good value for a meal to remember.
Forthcoming events at the White House:
St George’s Day lunch and dinner – Wednesday, April 23.
A Taste of Shropshire – Thursday, May 15.
Starters and Sweets – Thursday, June 5
Midsummer Supper – Tuesday, June 24.
