Derbyshire's Best Pub

A proper English meal is what I wanted to share with my friends.  And to me, I love the local carvery (not the White Horse across the street from the hotel), Cooper’s Arms (http://www.thecoopers-arms.co.uk/index.htm). 

A carvery provides fresh cut meats with other vegetables.  I got the Cooper’s special, a mixture of roast beef (with a fine horseradish sauce) and pork.  I chose to get some pork crackling to go along with the meal, much better than the pork scratching, but probably just as healthy.  The meal came with Yorkshire pudding, a traditional English staple, which is kind of like a type of roll that you put your gravy on, and is very tasty.  Potatoes were provided, similar to our salted potatoes, and went good with the gravy.  There were other vegetables, but I longed for a side of asparagus which was in season and ordered it as a side.  And then there is the beer.  I had the Leatherbritches Cooper’s Ale on cask, made especially for this restaurant.  The whole meal was delicious, and the location by a stocked lake is perfect for a relaxing evening.  But I had promised to meet a friend at his local pub, so we headed off to the Harrington Arms in Thulston.

Jenn and I fell in love with a pub called the Bell in Aldworth, an oasis in a small community where everyone met on Sunday afternoons with good beer and vittles.  The Harrington Arms was like this, a beautiful pub with a large garden area in the back that was crowded on a Wednesday night.  We met my friends Steve and Rob, and we settled in for a while.  The beer was outstanding (best pint of Bass in England according to the locals, and the food looked delicious).  Besides the Bass I got to try a couple of beers on cask from Tollgate nearby in Woodville.  I had the house special, the Earl’s ale and then tried their TSB (Tollgate Special Bitter?).  It was a great evening.

After more than 4 weeks in Derby, I finally found my favorite “pub.”  This is the place I’ll come back to in the future when I want to simply relax after a day of work.  I can’t wait to go back.  – 5782/10746

"A good local pub has much in common with a church, except that a pub is warmer, and there’s more conversation." – William Blake