The Cavendish Arms

I've eaten here countless times over the last couple of years with lots of different people. We've all enjoyed the food, ambience and friendliness of the staff. I've tried a variety of the menu and have never been disappointed. This was a delicious Beef Stroganoff 😋 There is a lovely sized space for outside dining during warmer weather too.

A group of three of us visited on a Wednesday afternoon. A short drive off Junction 3 of the M65. Plenty of parking to the side and front with an over flow car park as well. Only saw 2 disabled bays. Very close to the entrance but access didn’t look great due to the angle they were at. And bays didn’t seem to be marked out as any bigger than the normal bays. However, access into the pub for disabled was excellent. A ramp right up to the entrance. Inside though if you are approaching six foot or more you will need to mind your head as some low ceilings and doorways. It looked busy. Most people dining were in what I would describe as a side annex. I don’t know for sure but it seemed like it was an extension built onto the side of the original building. I can imagine this would be popular in the summer as doors on two sides could be opened up giving access to a seated outdoor area. We did get a table despite not booking but it might be advisable to book if you are visiting in a bigger group at lunch time. Drinks order taken and menus presented to us. Berra Moretti was £5.60 a pint and a pint of lime and soda was £1.55. The menu offered a wide range of dishes plus they had a two and three course Market menu attached. This is available Monday to Friday between 12 and 5pm and Saturday 12 till 4pm. Choice of 4 starters, 6 mains and 3 dessert dishes charged at £15.95 for 2 courses and £18.95 for 3. I don’t know if this menu is changed on a regular basis. In hindsight I should have asked as this would be useful for future reference. I went for the 3 course option. My friend went for 2 courses. We both ordered Black Pudding fritters for our starter and Gammon Steak for our mains. The 3rd member of our party ordered Cheese and Onion pie from the main menu at £14.95. Started didn’t take long to arrive. We both found them tasty. Mains again didn’t take long to arrive. The gammon steak came with thick cut chips, a poached egg, half a tomato and mushroom and two decent sized onion rings. Really enjoyed the gammon. It was certainly a steak. Very thick but not tough and not over salty. Found a poached egg rather than a fried egg a bit different for this dish. I had asked for a soft yoke and mine was done accordingly. And the onion rings were amongst the best I have had in a long time. Not the biggest of portions but ample and excellent value for money. Unfortunately the cheese and onion pie wasn’t going down as well. Our third diner thought it was bland and rather dry. Perhaps this might have been because it was made with Lancashire cheese. It’s not the strongest of flavours. He also was a little unhappy about how the beans had been put half on the plate and half over the top of his pie. He would have preferred them served in a separate dish on the side. As he was finding the pie quite dry he had asked for two more pints of lager. He did get a little impatient and, I have to admit, it did seem to take a very long time for the two beers to arrive. It also was a little surprising to see the empty glasses left on the table. It was only when another round of drinks was ordered after the food was finished that four empties were then taken away. I was the only one to get a dessert. It was fine. And the cappuccino I ordered was again fine. Not the best I’ve ever had but ok. One of our servers did ask several times if everything was ok and if were we enjoying our food. Always nice to be asked. Many places just don’t seem to ask or be interested these days. Well it was for me and my friend. But our third diner wasn’t overly impressed but didn’t raise any issues then with the staff as in themselves they were nothing major. Overall I would recommend. It was a lovely venue in a nice location. I thought the Market menu was really good value for money. Not the biggest of portions but three courses would be more than adequate for the vast majority of people. And there was such a wide range of dishes available on the full menu with some offers worth a look at. I’m sure this establishment would be worth another visit sometime.