Caterer Menuwatch – The sun inn, Marton

19 June 2003 by
Caterer Menuwatch – The sun inn, Marton

The flight of chefs to the countryside continues. The scale of the phenomenon is hard to pin down but one can imagine demographers issuing grim forecasts of city streets lined with deserted restaurants as chefs flee the hectic pace and financial tightrope of the city for a life in the country.

That may be a little fanciful, perhaps, but what is certain is that the border between Wales and England has become a favoured bolthole. There is now a remarkable string of restaurants that stretches from Monmouth in the south right up to Chester in the north.

And midway along that line, in the Shropshire village of Marton, is a recent recruit to the ranks: the Sun Inn. Chef Steven MacAllum and his family have taken a village pub and succeeded in making it a destination that attracts pilgrims from as far away as London with its deceptively simple food based on great raw materials.

Actually, as a culinary refugee, MacAllum doesn't quite fit the stereotype. Before taking on this Shropshire country pub he was already enjoying life in a rural idyll at the Airds hotel in Scotland's Port Appin, Argyll. At this splendidly isolated country hotel, which is caught between Loch Linnhe and the mountains, he had picked up, among other accolades, three AA rosettes.

The scenery in that part of Scotland has few peers and the chef realised he was likely to miss it. "I just love the countryside - and it's stunning around there," he says, "but it's equally beautiful in Shropshire."

MacAllum's enthusiasm for rural finery extends beyond a simple admiration for the landscape, however. He likes to source what he can from the locality, especially if he can go out and gather it himself. "I love to find my own wild mushrooms. Around here I'm able to find St Georges, for instance, and when I visit Scotland I get cŠpes and chanterelles."

A chef friend in Scotland occasionally sends him a selection of fungi but otherwise MacAllum is a big supporter of local suppliers. "The produce is excellent around here," he says. "There are great fishmongers in Welshpool and Shrewsbury. In some ways, it's easier to get good fish here than at Airds, which is odd given the locations."

These relationships with local suppliers benefit both sides. His Shrewsbury fish supplier, for instance, displays a Sun Inn menu in his shop window, which MacAllum claims has brought in "maybe 100" customers. Such strategies to attract customers are typical of an approach that has involved "virtually nothing" spent on advertising.

A commonsense business attitude has also been behind the decision to start small and build up. There has been no rush into large-scale refurbishment. At the moment MacAllum cooks alone - although he does have the luxury of a washer-up - and he restricts the restaurant to 20 covers and one sitting.

He is well aware, too, of the need to come up with a "practical" menu offering good-quality dishes that can be produced at a reasonable pace. "There's no point in producing fancy menus if you can't actually come up with the goods," he says. "I may occasionally get criticised for not being flash enough, but I'm not a coriander-and-chilli chef.

"I like Thai food, but I leave that to Thai restaurants - that's not my style. I want the piece of meat to taste as it should, to serve cracking beef, superb fish, and cockles that taste like they're cockles."

It's a simple philosophy that is serving the Sun Inn well. The restaurant is often full during the week, and weekends are packed. "It's almost a problem on Fridays and Saturdays because people are starting to think it's not worth trying to get a table at the weekend," MacAllum says.

It's a problem that many restaurants would no doubt welcome.

The Sun Inn, Marton, near Welshpool, Shropshire SY21 8JP
Tel: 01938 561211

By Simon Wright

What's on the menu

  • Cream of wild garlic soup, £3.50

  • Seared scallops with slow-cooked fennel, rocket and basil dressing, £6.50

  • Ravioli of langoustine with braised baby gems in a red mullet soup, £7

  • Pan-fried fillet of John Dory with pea mash, asparagus, prawn and mustard sauce, £16.50

  • Rump of lamb with mashed swede and carrot, gratin potatoes and rosemary sauce, £14.50

  • Fillet of beef with bacon, baby onions, roasted root vegetables and caramelised potatoes, £13.50

  • Date pudding with butterscotch sauce and vanilla ice-cream, £4.50

  • Chocolate tart with cream, £4

  • Pears poached in Champagne with shortcake and caramel sauce, £4.50

Chef's Cheat

Use cleaned old baked bean cans to bake cylindrical loaves of brioche.

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