Simon Ritchie finds some excellent food in picturesque Terrington

Terrington, often dubbed The Village of the Dead, was living up to its cruel nickname as we arrived on our eating out foray.

There wasn't a soul in sight in the picturesque village between York and Malton which was at the centre of a long-running saga over a proposed private cemetery.

But thankfully our eating out destination, The Bay Horse Inn, was full of life.

So full of life in fact that if we hadn't booked we would have been hard pressed to find a table.

We had a quick drink while we perused the menu, and we were then ushered into the dining room, although tables in the lounge area and the rear extension were also turned over to diners.

The Bay Horse Inn is a very traditional English country pub - wood-panelled walls, heavily-patterned carpets, beamed ceilings, brasses and Toby jugs.

Our room had a horse theme; lots of equine paintings and bridles decorated the walls. It was an extremely balmy night so the two large ceilings fans which were working overtime were a Godsend!

One of the first things we noticed was the highly-polished cutlery.

The knives and forks were so clean you could see your face in them! The menu was extensive, there was something for everyone.

There was also a number of blackboard specials available. For starters I was faced with a difficult choice - the black pudding with apple on toast, the Scottish smoked salmon or the smoked trout. In the end I went for the smoked trout fillets from nearby Ampleforth (£3.75).

This came with a side salad and a pot of wild blackberry jelly. The fish was delicious, it just melted it the mouth. I had promised our cat, Jarvis, that I would bring him back some fish, but the dish was so tasty I rather selfishly ate it all myself.

Jarvis had to make do with a tin of tuna chunks when we got home.

Jayne was impressed with her choice - melon marinated with green ginger wine together with preserved ginger and lemon sorbet (£3.25). It was very light and "quite boozy", she reported.

We were given a bit of breathing space between courses, unlike some restaurants where your next dish has arrived before your last one has been cleared up.

Landlord Robert Snowdon, who runs the pub with his wife, Jill, acted as dining room general, making sure his trusty lieutenants dealt with each table swiftly and efficiently.

Main courses included venison sausages, game pie and lamb's liver. There was also a healthy selection of steaks and fish dishes.

I was tempted by one of the specials, braised pigeon, but the thought of all those plump pigeons in York's Parliament Street guzzling titbits of junk food from tourists put me off.

In the end I picked pan-fried pork fillets rolled in fine oatmeal on a bed of apple, onion and scalloped potatoes in cream (£7.25)

The pork was extremely tender and the crispy coating was delicious.

There was a healthy selection of vegetarian food on offer and, after much deliberation, Jayne went for the mushroom and chestnut parcel with stout and stilton with wild mushroom sauce (£5.45).

The parcel was in fact a huge piece of puff pasty filled with a rather creamy concoction of mushrooms and chestnuts. Jayne gave it the thumbs up.

Both dishes came with a mountain of fresh vegetables - spinach, carrots and green beans. We declined French fries and had new potatoes and hash browns instead.

We were so full we were going to skip dessert, but after seeing the sweet menu we couldn't resist.

I had a gorgeous banana split, slices of banana topped with scoops of vanilla and strawberry ice cream, whipped cream and syrup, while Jayne went for a refreshing coconut ice cream

With a few drinks the meal came to a tad under £30, very reasonable indeed.

As we left, the heavens opened, and the village streets were deserted once again.

Restaurant: The Bay Horse Inn,

Address: Terrington

Telephone: 01653 648416

Reviewed: June 5 1999

Food: Very tasty and plentiful

Value: Very reasonable

Service: Friendly and efficient

Ambience: Traditional rural pub