The Clarence Bury

The Clarence an excellent place to come, bright welcoming and polite and courteous staff, smiling all time whilst there the food good choice but the 3 small courses for £15 a bargain and have great choice on real ales which happily let you sample to find the one that suits your preference. A thoroughly enjoyable experience happily would return

I found myself in Bury on Sunday, at lunchtime and plan A was closed. I was close to Silver Street so thought I'd see if the hype was deserved. Overall, it's good and an improvement on chain pub meals. But then you don't pay these prices in chain pubs. Atmosphere is spot on. Rat pack music in the background, a real fire and leather seats in the snug. There was no room in the main restaurant. This does mean that it can be hard to catch the eye of the staff if they're not there to serve other tables. A good choice of ales and gins, including a good range of locals of each. I'm congenitally unable to make decisions on the weekend, so when there was the choice of having a slice of each to avoid choosing between lamb or beef, it was a no-brainer. Whilst waiting, a bottle of tap water was brought, unbidden. Good touch. First minor niggle, the plate on which it was served was warm, at best if not cool so it's contents chilled quickly. Those contents were stacked, not spread which aesthetically does nothing for me but also doesn't aid keeping warm. It did have their name on, as did other crockery, which is a nice touch. The lamb was practically faultless. A healthy thickness, easy to cut and tasty. It could have been pinker for my taste but that would have been a bonus if delivered. The beef was more disappointing. Sliced much thinner so no chance of any pinker but also more resistant to slicing and one mouthful beyond me to chew because of gristle. The sides were decent enough but nothing to lift the spirits as salt crust on the potatoes or herbs in the carrots would have done. The all important gravy was good and I was on the point of asking for more when I found a lake hidden under the Yorkshire batter. The apple crumble praised by other reviews isn't part of the Sunday lunch set meal, shame. So I opted for lemon meringue with raspberry ripple ice cream. What I had was served in a sundae glass, laden with cream with two meringue discs on top and a few shards within. Tasty and palate cleansing because of raspberry and lemon curd. Nothing to stop me coming back but it could have been so much more for the price.

What a difference. I remember this pub being the first one I was ever served in back when it was an awful boozer. It is a great place for drinks downstairs and the floors above serve some great food. Service was prompt and friendly. Steak was slightly over cooked. It was still medium and very tasty. Hot dog and burger were very good.