Now I don’t know about you. But at this time of year there is nothing better than heading out to a cosy country pub, to sit by the fire and enjoy a festive feast. Which is exactly what I did a couple of weeks back when I was invited down to the opening of the newly refurbished Cowper Arms in Hertford.
Which if you’ve not been to before, is well worth a visit. It’s a great mix of chic country style and delicious food. It’s just gone through a refurb and I have to say, it looks beautiful. And not only that, but the food is pretty amazing too.
Now I was lucky enough to be invited down before it officially opened to experience the food and some pretty epic cocktails. To start with, we were treated to a huge sharing canape selection. Which included vegan falafel, baked brie, crab & lobster fishcakes and battered cod. And it was amazing! It was the kind of sharing platter that I would easily order again as a main meal.
But we didn’t stop there. Next up was the starters and my sister-in-law and I opted to share the Crispy Karaage Chicken and artisan bread and oils. Now the chicken was so amazing! It came with cucumber ribbons, a kale and cauliflower couscous salad and warm katsu sauce. And it might be my new favourite starters.
Moving on to the main meals, and I opted for my usual meal of choice, and that was a burger. But it wasn’t a regular burger. Oh no, this was a Wagyu beef burger – and it tasted just as good as you image it would do. It came with crispy onions, a tomato relish, fries and aioli, and was just a really great tasting burger. My sister in law opted for the spit-roasted chicken which came with a lemon & garlic confit, aioli and the same kale & cauliflower couscous that came with the starter. And becuase we didn’t have enough food (!). We also went for a side of the Classic Mac & Cheese and Tenderstem Broccoli, Asparagus & Green Beans in Soy glaze. Both of which were incredibly tasty.
Despite feasting on some incredible food, we still went ahead with pudding. After all, there is always room for pudding isn’t there? I went for the Vanilla Creme Brulee – which is one of my all time favourite puddings. While Emily went for a mini chocolate brownie and a hot chocolate.
I have to say, we both left the Cowper Arms feeling a lot fuller, but also in agreement that we couldn’t wait to go back and enjoy another meal. And some more cocktails. At the beautiful Cowper Arms.
You can find out more about the Cowper Arms on their website.