We soon fell into conversation with a regular, who recommended the corned beef hash "because the chef makes his own corned beef", and it was quite different to anything out of a tin. Clearly this was no run of the mill pub, even though it describes itself as doing traditional English pub grub.

The menu (which changes with the seasons) is full of winter comfort with local gammon with duck egg and chips, calves' liver with bubble and squeak, Beef Bourguignon, apple crumble, treacle tart. But the details of the home made food, and particularly the specials, show thought and effort beyond "pub grub". There is the intriguing confit trout, the fact that the grilled tomatoes are sprinkled with thyme, and the lure of an apple and almond tart, served with blackberries and an apple and calvados sorbet. We finally managed to make a choice, and were pleased with every course. The butternut squash and coriander soup was excellent and beautifully presented. As was the warm confit trout, served on a pea fritter and accompanied by (skinned) broad beans in a mint vinaigrette.

We had had the fish and chips heartily recommended to us, so tried that too. It turned out to be a substantial piece of haddock in a strikingly light, crisp, beer batter. What a pleasure. No soggy, white, uncooked gunk anywhere. The char grilled steak was very tasty, and cooked exactly as requested. The chips were "hand cut", jargon for "we use real potatoes, not extruded stuff" and the chips are on the chunky side.

We also like the range of the wine list and the flexibility provided by the number of wines available by the glass (with a choice of 2 sizes of glass) - four different reds and whites, a rose, a prosecco and a dessert wine were all on offer. It turned out that although the Blue Lion is a Greene King pub, so that its guest beers depend on Greene King, the wines and spirits are not tied but chosen with Paul Bowes of the local beer and wine shop Bacchanalia.

We had eaten so well that there didn't seem much room for pudding. Perhaps we could squeeze in some ice cream? This turned out to be an excellent idea as there was a very good and unusual choice of 12 sorts. These included coconut, which was smooth and not at all gritty, rich banana, stem ginger, strawberries and cream, honeycomb, and coffee which was a cracker!

This is a welcoming pub, where the staff are noticeably lively and cheerful. We were told, most enthusiastically, about the arrival of some rare breed, Rough Fell lambs into the field at the back, which will be visible from the kids' playground, but destined for the Easter menu. We will look out for them on our next visit, when we hope to lounge in the sun and try some of the dishes we had to pass up this time.