Freemason's Arms At Nosterfield

Thursday 01 February

Nosterfield is one of those places that you don’t go to very often and perhaps aren’t quite sure where it is. For your information, it’s about 2 miles past West Tanfield and is only a 15 minutes drive from Ripon.

At the roundabout in West Tanfield, go straight ahead, and at the end of that road turn right...and half a mile later you’re in Nosterfield.

But there is one good reason why you might want to get more acquainted with Nosterfield - the Freemason’s Arms, in the block of 17th century cottages that have served as the village pub for many years. The terms ‘unspoilt’ and ‘characterful’ perhaps best describe the interior and atmosphere of the place, which is a lovingly preserved cornucopia of nostalgic regalia, old prints, signs, tools and other assorted items. And it’s all real - no faked history here! And to make you feel even more cosy there’s two large roaring fires, low beamed ceilings and the buzz of conversation.

The menus are on the blackboard over the fire in the bar, so you can warm up whilst looking. I ordered a glass of the house white, a Sauvignon Blanc (£2.85 glass/£11.50 bottle) which was very acceptable for a house wine. This is a free house, so the bar is well stocked with local ales from Black Sheep and Theakston's, plus frequently changing guest beers.

For starters I chose the smoked salmon and capers with salad (£5) which was one of the daily specials that our waitress told us about, and my husband had the smoked haddock in a creamy sauce of garlic, smoked bacon, mushrooms and cheddar, which came with a small hot baguette and butter (£5.50).

Also on the starters menu were warm goats cheese infused with pesto (£5), homemade Thai style fishcakes (£5), beer-battered goujons of fresh haddock (£5), and mushrooms in a creamy garlic sauce (£4.75)

The starters really couldn’t be faulted, both were great and extremely tasty dishes - the delicious creamy sauce with the smoked haddock was too nice to leave and was finished with a spoon when the crusty baguette was all gone.

With the quality of the food already apparent, we were looking forward to our main courses of the Freemason’s Mixed grill (£15.50) and the day’s special of pot-roasted partridge (£12). The proprietor and chef, Kris, uses local meat from Atkinson’s in Kirby Malzeard, and this is evident on the main course menu, which also features Dales sirloin steak with green peppercorn and brandy sauce (£14), local rib-eye (£13), T-bone steak with onion rings (£14.50), strips of beef fillet in a rich red wine, garlic, smoked bacon and mushroom sauce (£12.50), pan-fried pork fillet with creamy mushroom, garlic, white wine and paprika (£10), lamb chops with red currant jus (£10), corn-fed chicken supreme with wild mushroom veloute (£10), and pan-fried salmon fillet with dill, lemon and white wine (£9).

The service was friendly and efficient, and we were asked if we wanted a wee break between our starters and mains, which I thought was quite considerate. All the main courses are accompanied by fresh vegetables (broccoli, cauliflower, mange tout, carrots and new potatoes) and home-cooked chunky chips.

My pot-roasted partridge was a visual treat when it arrived, elegantly but simply presented with fresh roasted vegetables (leeks, carrots, shallots) and bay leaves. The partridge was nicely coloured by the Campari jus and looked, and tasted, beautiful. It was tender and moist, not at all ‘gamey’ but definitely with a more pronounced flavour than chicken. Chef obviously knows how to cook a partridge well, and I loved the jar of home-made bitter rowan jelly that was served with it.

Darren found his mixed grill to be a hearty Yorkshire feast, and given an empty stomach he would have easily cleared the plate, but after already having the generous smoked haddock starter, he was struggling! It was a plate loaded with sausages, two fried eggs, a wedge of black pudding, gammon steak, two chops, beef steak, mushrooms and tomatoes...plus the huge plate of delicious homemade chips. Not a choice for the feint hearted.

Onwards, as always, to the desert menu which was described to us by our waitress. I chose sticky toffee pudding with custard and Darren had banoffee pie with cream. It was fantastic when they arrived to immediately notice, from their shape and appearance, that these were certainly home-made puddings and not bought in, (I found out later that Kris’s mum makes all the deserts and puddings, and what an excellent job she does too!). My sticky toffee pudding was lovely, but if I went again I’d have to go for the banoffee second time around - it was perfection. Even though we were full to bursting at this point...I could’ve squeezed in another helping of that.

I spoke briefly with Kris, owner of the Freemason’s Arms for the last four years. He works alone in the kitchen and surely must be the hardest working chef in North Yorkshire. Originally from Appleton Wiske, near Northallerton, he learnt his skills in a local pub and developed a love and appreciation of real Yorkshire food and particularly game. “There will always be at least one game dish on the menu here,” he explains, “..and please emphasize we are a pub with food….not a restaurant with beer!”

• Local Attractions
• Where To Stay
• Food & Drink
• Shopping
• Sport & Leisure
• Ripon Tours
• Map of Ripon

What's On

• News
• Tourist Information Office
• Community Links
• Car Parks
• Public Transport
• Useful Phone Numbers

• Home
• About Us
• Contact Us
• Link To Us