Sunday Lunch - Brigantes

Served from 12noon to 8pm the Brigantes Sunday Lunch can be found at the top of Micklegate, a street known more for 'trebles for singles' than for traditional pubs, but Brigantes is breaking the mould and waving the banner for real ales and decent pub food. I ventured up in my search for York's Best Sunday Lunch.

What's on offer?

The Sunday Lunch at Brigantes has three price points for either one (£8.95), two (£11.95), or three courses (£14.95), taking the other dishes from the full menu which is still available on Sundays.

The choice was simple:

We got one of each.

What worked?

I'm a big supporter of the Yorkshire pudding and was overjoyed to see a large Yorkshire acting as a bowl to hold a fair portion of meat rolled into its centre.

The lamb was delicious and surprisingly plentiful, the Yorkshire could accommodate quite a bit in its core with space for plenty of gravy to ooze out onto the piping hot plate.

My highlight was the sweet baby parsnips that were roasted to perfection alongside a portion of cauliflower cheese, a much ignored Sunday Lunch accompaniment in pubs.

What didn't work?

I like a crispy shell on my roast potatoes which was nowhere to be seen here. The spuds were tasty enough, but disappointingly soggy.

Although the lamb was superb the beef appeared to be a collection of fatty scraps which had been stuffed into the Yorkshire pud to hide their shame, just one nice slice of pink roast beef would have lifted the whole dish but it was nowhere to be seen.

Although the Yorkshire pudding looked fantastic and dominated the plate I couldn't help notice the twang of carbonated batter from the burnt rim which unfortunately couldn't be disguised even after a long soak in the gravy.

Is it York's Best Sunday Lunch?

I'd certainly recommend Brigantes as a venue for Sunday Lunch, the meal was very nice and I like the pub and the staff. There was nothing bad here and I'd be happy to return, but surely I can find better.