Fine food on offer at The Three Horseshoes in Powerstock

To compensate for the weather, friends and I headed off to a pub with a sterling reputation for fine food – The Three Horseshoes in Powerstock.

And fine food it was.

Using local food is a common mantra these days but at least the village pub’s menu actually lists where the food comes from – all familiar local names, among them Frampton’s, Samways and Bridget’s as well as the less well known Capreolous meats in Rampisham who provide artisan and air dried meats.

Still you pay for local, seasonal and high quality with the main courses ranging from £13 for a generous bowl of macaroni cheese, albeit with wild mushrooms, Dorset blue vinney and summer truffle (my choice, more of which later) to £18 for fillet of wild sea trout, with peas, gnocchi, brown shrimps and samphire (my companions’ choice).

There was also a cheaper bar menu – including veal burger (£12) Billy kid faggots (£10), beer batter pollack (£11.50), hay-baked ham with duck eggs, chips and salad (£10) cheese toastie or BLT (both £6).

Starters too were £7 to £8, apart from the homemade bread and olives at £3.50.

For that price you have to be sure of flavour and quality and my guests were willing to take that bet.

They were not disappointed. They shared a plate of cider-cured mackerel, pickled rhubarb, smoked eel, horseradish, onion jam and cress. I think the comma was in the wrong place as it turned out the smoked eel was in the horseradish rather than a separate entity. It doesn’t sound important but one diner was persuaded against the choice not liking the idea of eel but as it turned out it appeared only as a delicate flavouring for the horseradish.

The plate was beautifully presented and each ingredient perfectly executed but perhaps trying to share was unreasonable. But at least it did serve to whet the appetite.

My other friend wanted the sea bass fish cakes and orange from the bar menu (£6.50), and made it into a main-sized meal by way of the famously thrice-fried chips (to die for!) and salad.

She was very happy with her choice, although with two fairly small fishcakes wasn’t inclined to let any of the rest of us see why.

The sea trout was the biggest hit on the table, apparently perfectly cooked, a very light and delicate flavour with well balanced flavours making the dish a definite reason for a return visit.

My first choice of maize-fed chicken breast with goose fat potatoes and creamed wild mushrooms turned out not to be available as the chicken hadn’t turned up so I had the macaroni cheese.

If such a thing is possible there was too much to eat in one sitting and with the blue vinney it was very rich and I think the summer truffle was rather swamped by the strong flavour of the cheese and mushrooms. Perhaps it would have been better with less pasta but with a green side salad as a contrast.

I could have chosen Dorset veal escalope, with fried polenta, tomato and rosemary butter but haven’t as yet been persuaded about veal.

Maybe next time I can put my prejudices aside and be more adventurous.

Pudding choice was a little limited – either strawberry Eton mess, rhubarb with set vanilla cream and honeycomb, home-made ice cream (albeit a choice of salted caramel, rhubarb, mint choc chip) or brown bread and butter and a cheeseboard.

Still, it is hard to go wrong with Eton mess and that proved popular and as did the rhubarb dish.

The shared opinion was that it isn’t necessary or even desirable for a pub to offer truly extensive menu choices if the quality of the food is as good as it is at the Three Horseshoes.

This is an independent review by a reporter without the cooperation of the establishment.

My Three Horseshoes bill:

Cider-cured mackerel: £7.

Fishcakes: £6.50.

Side salad: £3.

Chips: £3.50.

Sea trout x2: £36.

Macaroni cheese: £13.

Eton Mess: £6.

Rhubarb: £6.

TOTAL: £81.

The Ratings Board

(Out of five)

Location: 4

Atmosphere: 3

Value for money: 3

Quality of food: 4

Service: 4

Comfort: 3

Family friendly: 3

Menu choice: 3

Overall rating: 4