Freemasons Arms, Nosterfield

CELEBRATING celebrity customers is nothing new, of course.

Establishments seeking a seal of approval – royal or otherwise – have long used the patronage of the great and the good as a means of captivating customers and ekeing out endorsement.

But while it’s well known that Charles Dickens travelled far and wide across these islands in the course of his research and speaking tours, I do sometimes find myself wondering if he could really have laid his head in every one of the hostelries which today claim him as a former customer. Painter J M Turner is a similarly well-travelled chap.

As is Prince Harry who, if media reports are anything to go by, appears to have notched up a fair few pub visits in his 30 years.

Unless you’d crawled into a cave for the first weekend of July, you’d have noticed a bicycle race unwinding its way across Yorkshire. A highlight for some was the surprise appearance of the prince – together with the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge – on the route at West Tanfield, between Masham and Ripon.

Nearby Nosterfield’s Freemasons Arms had been chosen as the venue for the royal party’s private lunch earlier that day.

So is the dining experience at the Freemasons fit for a future king, or merely ordinary fare to fill a commoner?

It was bought earlier this year by local and Catterick Caravans owner Chris Kinsell. He loved the pub so much, he spotted an opportunity, secured the freehold and now regards it a “serious hobby”.

After extensive refurbishment it reopened to diners in March.

First impressions were excellent on the Thursday night we called. The place was packed –we’d called ahead only earlier that day, but were fitted in with a polite explanation that it would be a table in the bar area.

This was no matter, as the whole place is attractively furnished with scrubbed pine tables and slates for tablemats.

I launched proceedings with a pint of Pennine Best Bitter – pumps for Theakson’s Best and Timmy Taylor’s Landlord were also on the bar.

Chalked up specials boards adorn three of the four sides of the bar area, supplementing an already well inhabited evening menu – familiar favourites in the main, but with simple little twists that bode well for some tasty dishes.

After good fresh rolls and butter, Anna began with a smoked salmon roulade with beetroot puree and dill and mustard dressing (£6.95). Three respectably-sized circles of cream cheese wrapped in thick slices of salmon, with dots and drizzles of the puree and dressing.

My baked field mushroom filled with spinach, goat’s cheese and pesto with a herb salad (£6.25) was an excellent version of this oft-tried but often disappointing starter. A large stack of different textures and flavours, it was topped off with a red onion relish.

My main course was equally faultless: slow roast belly pork with champ mash, Savoy cabbage, local black pudding, crackling and rich gravy (£13.95).

The pork was topped with creamy mouthmeltable fat that contrasted perfectly with a great piece of crackling, the potato given a little extra texture and bite, having been combined with chunks of spring onion. A side dish of cauliflower, green beans and carrot and swede interestingly grated together before some light cooking provided an excellent accompaniment.

Anna’s pan-fried sea bass fillet topped with Jersey scallop, creamy mash, sautéed samphire, crab velouté and deep-fried vegetable julienne (£15.95) looked every bit as interesting as its lengthy description.

Again, this was a successful combination of good quality ingredients, handled and presented with care and flair. The julienned vegetables, for example, were like crisp noodles, the sauce subtle and creamy.

And then things came to rather an abrupt halt. We were full.

It could be a sign of age but I’m finally unable to squeeze in a pudding at will, even when rammed to the gills. In any case, I’d always known such gluttony was faintly immoral – even in the name of journalism.

The portions had not been oversized – in fact they were just right – but we’d both simply reached our limit.

So my guilty feelings are now reserved for the excellent staff on both sides of the kitchen door at the Freemasons. I feel sure their puds would have been excellent, and I can tell you what I would have chosen (something I find so much easier now while revisiting their menu with a grumbling empty belly): a Yorkshire rhubarb and apple crumble with cinnamon custard (£4.95). Other options were sticky toffee pudding, cheesecake of the day or a choice of ice creams – there were four more choices on the specials boards. Next time…

With two pints and two fizzy waters, the bill came to £52.80. Wine and three courses might have pushed this meal towards the top end of the good pub grub price bracket, but it was well executed, well served and worth it - with or without a royal seal of approval.

The Freemasons Arms
Nosterfield, Bedale, North Yorkshire, DL8 2QP
Tel: 01677-470548
Food served: Sunday, noon to 8pm; Monday, Wednesday to Saturday, noon to 2pm and 5.30 to 9pm; closed Tuesday.

Ratings (out of ten): Food quality 8 Service 8 Surroundings 9 Value 8