Sunday Lunch At The Elm Tree In Heath
Published On Wednesday 12 Apr 2023 by Sticky Beak
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Mummy Bird has always thought of Bestie Bird (BB) as a second daughter, ever since we first met at college, many moons ago. When I happened to mention that BB was coming over for a visit, Mummy’s eyes lit up and she said “right, book a table then, and I’ll treat us all to Sunday Lunch”. Needing no second bidding, His Nibs got straight on it and asked you lovely lot for some suggestions; and, as always, you all came up with some cracking venues (even more for us to add to the ever-growing list of places to visit!), and we eventually plumped for The Elm Tree at Heath.
Heath is a lovely little village (we nearly bought a house there when we moved back to the ‘Shire) and The Elm Tree is the perfect example of a traditional pub at the heart of its community. The Elm Tree has a children’s play area and a beer garden, but neither were in use, thanks to the still chilly weather. There is car parking at the rear of the venue, though it’s not the largest; we managed to bag a spot but several cars were parked on the roadside. The carvery is served from Noon until 4pm although you can also have dishes from the regular menu if you so wish, and this is served up until 7pm.
Plenty of folks (including families with children) were already seated and tucking into their Sunday roasts as we went up to the reception stand to confirm our reservation with the two lovely young lasses there. One of the team took us over to our table, adjacent to the roaring log burner, and got us some drinks sorted: a pint of Peroni (£5.70) for The Man and a bottle of Pinot Grigio (£18.50) for us ladies to share. We were informed that the meats on that days’ Carvery were Beef, Gammon and Pork and then left for a couple of minutes to make our choices. The Man Bird, me and BB all went for the Carvery option (£14.50 pp) and Mummy fancied the Pan-fried Lambs Liver with Mash, Bacon, beer-battered Onion Rings and rich Onion and Red Wine Gravy (£13).
At the Elm Tree they have a nifty system where they call up each table separately to the Carvery counter, which pretty much eliminates any queuing. I’ve noticed that more and more venues are doing this, and it certainly does make the process a lot smoother. As soon as we were invited to go up for our roasts His Nibs was in full Usain Bolt mode, leaving me and BB for dust!
As we approached, we could hear Chef explaining that you could have your Beef either pink or well-done and that you could have more than one meat on your plate if you fancied. The Man Bird opted for pink Beef and Gammon (as did we, actually) and as Chef carved smoothly through them, you could see just how succulent they both were. Chef considerately passes you your plate back (once he’s also put your Yorkies, Roasties, and Stuffing ball on) with a napkin, as the plates are heated and he doesn’t want you to be shocked and drop it! BB got 2 Yorkshire puds popped on her plate, but declined the Stuffing; I had a single Yorkie, but had the Stuffing – I hadn’t spotted the pot of pork crackling though, so missed out on that.
With the meats piled on our plates, it was time to sort out the vegetable part of this iconic meals’ orchestra, and the selection looked very inviting. As well as Cauliflower Cheese, there was a massive tray of Cheesy Leeks; both of those beauties got piled onto my plate! His Nibs had heaped the buttery, smooth mash onto his plate, as well as loads of mouth-wateringly good smelling Red Cabbage. Wonderfully large florets of fresh Broccoli stood out with their intense verdancy, so I scooped three of them out and popped them next to the indecently large amount of caramelised, roasted roots (Carrot, Parsnip, and Swede) that I’d already helped myself to. We all commented on how nice it was to see a root vegetable medley on a carvery; it seems ages since we last saw one!
As ‘Mission: Fill Our Plates’ was accomplished, we all headed back to the table where we’d left poor Mummy Bird alone – not to worry, she’d filled the time by supping at the crisp Pinot! No sooner had we sat down than our lovely server came over with Mummy’s Liver morsel, and so we all began to tuck in together.
Mummy Bird was grinning like a Cheshire cat as she savoured the soft Lambs’ Liver and its intense, rich flavour; this was a meal she regularly used to cook for her and Daddy Bird, but hadn’t eaten it by herself for quite a while. The mashed potato was as creamy and indulgent as ours was, and the deep flavour of the thickly sliced Bacon partnered the Liver brilliantly.
His Nibs got passed a couple of the Onion Rings over and as he bit into one, there was a superb crunch that we could all clearly hear – that’s what you call a proper, crisp batter! Now, Mummy isn’t usually one for putting loads of gravy on her meals but a Liver and Mash meal is one of the exceptions, and can you imagine what a gutter it would’ve been if the gravy was lack-lustre?! Thankfully it was as rich and silky and flavoursome as you could ever imagine; so good in fact, that you could just have it with a loaf of bread and slurp it up for a quick meal.
None of us had chosen Pork, so I can’t comment other than to say it did look a lovely joint under the carvery counter lights, but both the Gammon and Beef were superb. I don’t think I’ve had meat so soft as the Beef at The Elm Tree in Heath, it was honestly like velvet on my tongue. A gentle taste glided over my taste buds from the beef and then a punchier, meatier one came from the moist Gammon – my mouth was very happy, as was my tummy when it began to get fuller! The vegetables were all cooked beautifully and the cheese sauce that partnered the Cauliflower and the Leeks was very moreish. Yup, this had been a fab choice for a family Sunday Lunch.
All of us were pretty stuffed, but Mummy Bird and His Nibs had got ‘in the zone’ and ordered dessert: Homemade Biscoff Cheesecake and Vanilla Ice cream for The Man, Homemade Sticky Toffee pudding with Butterscotch Sauce and Vanilla Ice Cream for Mummy (both priced at £6.50). We all had hot drinks to conclude our meal with though: black coffees for The Flock (£2.25 each), and a Moroccan Mint Tea for BB (£2.75).
The portions of the desserts are every bit as generous as the main courses had been, so the two gluttons got stuck in straightaway. A deep, Biscoff biscuit base was loaded with a luxurious vanilla-and-cream-cheese body that was then decorated with ribbons of Toffee sauce. Looks-wise this was glorious, but did it taste as good? A massive grin spread across His Nibs’ mush, so that answered my question: yes, it was just as scrummy as it looked. Mummy Bird loved the texture of her pudding; it was neither cloyingly dense or fluffily light, just that perfectly satiating state. The taste of the actual sponge was quite delicate, but the Butterscotch sauce soon waded in with its richness and depth to lavish its silkiness over the palate. Needless to say, there were two perfectly clean dessert dishes on our table when Mummy and His Nibs came up for breath!
You definitely need to book a table on Sunday; whilst we were dining, at least 4 parties were turned away as there was no availability! Those of you with ‘fur-kids’ will be happy to know that you can take your pooches to The Elm Tree – all you need to do is mention the fact that you want to bring your companion with you when you book in advance, and they will designate you a table in the dog-friendly area. Hot Wings happily awarded here and we’ll certainly be back as there were lots of dishes that caught our eye!
To book your table ring 01246 850490 or visit www.theelmtreeheath.co.uk where you can book online, view the menu’s and look at the wood-fired pizza menu (which means summer is officially back – yay!).
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