The Alma Inn

We did not stop in the hotel, but merely visited The Alama for a meal.It ticked all the boxes right from the moment when we walked through the door. The receptionist, (bearing in mind that this is a hotel as well as a pub/restaurant) went out of her way to show us to our pre-booked table. She offered to bring us drinks, but I preferred instead to select from the array of hand pulled real ales and having made my selection, the girl behind the bar insisted on bringing my drinks to the table, instead of me having to hang around whilst she pulled the beer. I was already thinking that this is a business that puts the customer first. We were joined by our friends, who again had super table service with pre-meal drinks and we all ordered our meals. There was a slight delay before the meals appeared, but more of this later. My wife and I selected brill. I had never eaten this fish before and it was beautiful cooked and well presented. We had the usually convivial evening with good food and good wine and we were fortunate to be joined in the bar by the head chef. I had enjoyed the meal so much that I went over to her (yes, the head chef is a woman) to express my appreciation of her culinary skills and she explained that they do not buy in partially pre-cooked or pre-prepared meals which are such a feature of modern day pub catering, but that they cook everything from scratch. This perhaps why there was a slight, but not untoward delay, in us having to wait for our meal. So, what more can you ask for? Excellent service from all of the staff. A good selection of beers and fine wines and food cooked to your requirements from scratch. I know what you are thinking. Food and service like this must cost a fortune. But that is not the case. Of course, you can eat cheaper and if you are hungry, MacDonald's will satisfy your needs, but if you want a dining experience and particularly if you enjoy fish, I can make no higher recommendation than visiting The Alma. For myself and my wife, this pub ticked all the boxes, from the quality of the service, to the friendliness of the staff and to the quality of the food. I live reasonably locally and I shall certainly be returning again. I do hope that when I do so, they continue to live up to the high standard of service that I have enjoyed today.