mended in The Ecologist

What an accolade! The Ecologist has highly recommended The Countryman Inn, country restaurant and pub, as one of the top five pubs in the UK. It doesn’t get much better than that!

The article first comments on the sad state of affairs with over 20,000 pubs shutting as a result of the 2007 smoking ban, tax hikes on alcohol and reduction in alcohol consumption. However, the innovative establishments, such as The Countryman, have been tapping into the latest trends and news, and listening to what customers want. We have kept the traditional aspects such as a bustling bar, community events, fine wines and ales, plus honest food using the local and seasonal ingredients and community events. However, we have added a farm shop with fresh fruit, pickles, jams and other delicious organic produce.

This is what the Ecologist says about The Countryman:

“Why we love it: Located in the gorgeous open countryside near Shipley in West Sussex, the Countryman Inn is traditional, rustic and welcoming. Cosy up to the open log fires in the winter and get to grips the open air kitchen in the summer. There’s a huge selection of local ales, organic meat and vegetables from nearby farms plus fish from nearby Shoreham and Newhaven. As a result of relying exclusively on locally grown produce, the menu is totally seasonal but tastes all the better for that.”

We are at the top of their list of recommended pubs so are basking in the glory.

Call The Countryman Inn now on 01403 741383 to book your table and enjoy dining out on food cooked with the freshest, local ingredients.

King Rollo, Blues & Roots Music Night, Live at the Countryman, Shipley, West Sussex Thursday 3rd May

Come on down to The Countryman restaurant and pub in Shipley, West Sussex on Thursday 3rd May to enjoy Fantastic evening with a real feel of authentic blues with King Rollo. Check out this You Tube clip of King Rollo by clicking here.

King Rollo is a twenty-first century troubadour (according to the Google dictionary, a troubadour is a French medieval lyric poet composing and singing in Provençal in the 11th to 13th centuries, esp. on the theme of courtly love.)

King Rollo’s soulful vocals provide novel interpretations of blues and jazz classics, latin vibes, rhythm and blues standards, and gospel-tinged folk songs. We can’t wait to hear him!

And this music is served with a generous portion of classic deep-South American specials:

Jambalaya Stuffed Sweet Pepper
Long Pimento Stuffed with Spicy Cajun Rice

Chilli Nachos
Spicy Ground Beef with Sour Cream,
Guacamole & Salsa

New England Jumbo Prawns
Served with garlic butter on a bed of Salad Garnish

******

Chicago Rib Eye
Classic Chargrilled Steak
served with Grilled Tomato, Mushroom & Mashed Potato

Louisiana BBQ Combo
Ribs, Chicken, Sausage & Pork Belly
With French Fries & salad

Chicken Fajitas
Shredded Chicken with Grilled Red Pepper & Onion
In a soft tortilla Wrap Served with Spicy Salad

******

Granma’s Apple Pie & Ice Cream

Mississippi Mud Pie

New York Baked Cheesecake

We look forward to seeing you on 3rd May at The Countryman Restaurant and Pub in Shipley, near Horsham, West Sussex.

The Countryman In Shipley celebrates the St George's day

Come down to The Countryman in Shipley and celebrate St. George’s Day in style! You can enjoy our Best of British Menu, all day long, with Sompting Village Morris dancing in the evening. Afterwards, there will be good old British singing while you dine out on our Bangers ‘n’ Mash Buffet in the bar afterwards. Find out more about our merry morris dancers by clicking here.

For all of you that don’t know the history of Saint Gorge, here’s a little history lesson.

Who was Saint George?
It is difficult to filter fact from fiction of the real story of Saint George. Some believe that Saint George never existed and others believe that he was a Christianised version of an older pagan myth. In the early centuries of Christianity, followers would write up fabulous accounts of the lives of their heroes which enhanced George’s reputation but left the details of his life very blurred.

Early life
George was born in Cappadocia in Turkey during the third century. His parents were Christians, and when his father died, George’s mother returned to her native Palestine with George. George became a soldier in the Roman army and rose to the rank of Tribune.

Persecution of Christians
The Emperor of the day, Diocletian (245-313 AD), began a campaign against Christians at the very beginning of the 4th century. George is said to have objected to this persecution and resigned his military post in protest in 303 AD.

Torture and martyrdom
George tore up the Emperor’s order against Christians. This infuriated Diocletian, and sadly, George was imprisoned and tortured, however, he refused to deny his faith. Eventually he was dragged through the streets of Diospolis (now Lydda) in Palestine and beheaded on 23rd April 303. The Diocletian’s wife was so impressed by George’s resilience that she became a Christian and she was also was executed for her faith.

We all need cheering up after that, and The Countryman in Shipley, West Sussex is just the place with it’s award-winning restaurant and pub.

Mothering Sunday (or Mother’s Day) is to be celebrated on the 18th March this year, so put the date in your diary (if it isn’t in there already) and give us a ring on 01403 741383 to book a table.

We thought we would do a little research into Mothering Sunday because we wondered why it is celebrated on a different day to Mother’s Day in the USA and it turns out that Mothering Sunday had a whole new meaning when it first came into practice.

Sunday Roasts at The Countryman for Mothering Sunday

Originally celebrated by Christians to honour the Mother Mary, Mothering Sunday developed a tradition in the 17th century for worshippers to visit their ‘Mother Church’ (the church of cathedral of their hometown, typically the church they were baptised in). This tradition developed somewhat into a date for children living away from home to come and visit their mother and family, bringing offerings and gifts with them.

Despite a decline in the popularity of the tradition during and after the Industrial Revolution, it started to grow again in popularity towards the end of the 19th century into the modern day tradition we celebrate today. Not only was Mothering Sunday a day to visit home, it was a day to celebrate mothers and mother-figures in ones life (including grandmothers, step-mothers and mother-in-laws), showering them with gifts and presents such as flowers, chocolates and treating them to meals out for brunch, lunch or high-tea.

So now you know why we celebrate Mothering Sunday, why not make sure you make a fuss of your mother or mother-figure this year and book a table at The Countryman Inn, Shipley – where traditional Sunday Roasts will be available all day until 9pm – by calling us on 01403 741383.

These pies include firm pub favourites such as Steak & Guinness and Pork & Cider as well as some more unusual, but typically British pies like Lamb & Redcurrant – delicious. Also on the menu throughout the week at The Countryman Inn will be Bacon & Mushroom, Chicken & Sweetcorn, Goats Cheese & Onion and many more classic British pies.

Every day of our British Pie week, our Steak & Kidney and Chicken & Sweetcorn pies will be available, with the daily specials changing every day featuring a new and exciting pie, so if you don’t fancy either of those classics, give us a ring on 01403 741 383 to find out what our daily specials are. These specials will vary between short crust, puff pastry and deep dish ruff ruff pies so there will be plenty of variety throughout the week.

Prices will vary between pies, for example a vegetarian Cheese & Onion will cost just £10 whereas a Steak Pie will be £12.50 and a Venison and Oyster Pie priced at £14 with other pies similarly priced. All will be served with accompanying vegetables, a choice of potatoes and will be available both lunchtimes and evenings.

If you want to take part in our British Pie week, then pop in any day from the 5th – 11th March and we guarentee you’ll want to come back again for more. Call us on 01403 741 383 or book a table online today.

On the menu are some fantastic dishes such as our ‘Tapas Grazing Platter‘ and ‘Lobster, Crayfish & Chive Linguini‘ but nothing is more romantic than sharing a beautiful dessert and we have ‘Iced Berries & White Chocolate‘ alongside ‘Rich Chocolate Truffle Torte‘, delicious.

You can view the entire menu by clicking here.

The Countryman Pub doesn’t just provide incredible food though, you will be celebrating Valentines Day in a beautiful, romantic Sussex pub, set in open countryside close to the small village of Shipley. We will also have log fires burning which will add to the atmosphere so why not treat your loved one on Valentines Day to a beautiful meal at The Countryman Inn.

Starters are priced at £6 or  £10 to share, main courses are £20 with desserts at £5 or £9 to share. Call us on 01403 741383 or book a table online to make sure you get a table and avoid disappointment.

For those of you that don’t know, ‘My New Hair’ is a charity which provides public advice, and supports a national network of independent salons and professionals who provide wig styling services for those suffering from cancer and medical hair loss. Please visit their website for more information and to support this fantastic cause.

This years ‘Spice Night’ will consist of a 3 courses with Spicy Starters, a Curry Buffet and some exotic Desserts.The Buffet will consist of a variety of different curries including Vegetable Curries, Goan Fish Curry, Thai Green Curry, and the world’s favourite Tikka Masala. There will also be a selection of Noodles and snack ‘Street Food’ from Vietnam & Indonesia on offer.

Don’t worry if you can’t handle very spicy food though, we have created a menu for the evening that has gentle mild dishes to tantalise the taste buds through to spicy hot dishes to challenge the serious curry connoisseur.

Tickets for this event at The Countryman Inn, Shipley are priced at £25 per person for the 3 course meal with ALL proceeds going towards much needed funds for this new charity.

If you don’t fancy a 3 course meal, then you can always try our fantastic snack/starter option; Vietnamese Spicy Chicken Salad – Shredded chicken served with a mix of fresh coriander, mint & lime finished with sliced red chillies & crushed peanuts.

Whether you can make the evening or not, any donations and sponsorships are welcome, so please help ‘My New Hair’ out as much as possible. To book a table for the night, or to make a donation, please call Alan on 01403 741383.

“Dear Alan,

I feel I must write to you about last night at the Countryman.

We had such an enjoyable evening. It was my husband’s birthday and I had booked a table for four hoping that it would be a lovely treat to celebrate.

The atmosphere was lively and friendly, your waitresses were efficient and well organised. The menu was just right – and your chef had produced an outstanding meal.
We have had haggis many times over the years and it is usually a fairly heavy solid meal but your chef’s inspirational haggis timbale was totally delicious. We loved the food and ate far too much!”

“The piper was superb – inviting requests from the diners and performing throughout the evening

The Falloons…. well what can I say? Brilliant musicianship, with fun and ribaldry…… provoking audience participation ranging from The Gay Gordons ( ? ) Greek dancing and so on.
We loved watching your hard working waitresses dancing a reel to the music and laughing with the fun of it all, then calmly stopping as they continued clearing tables.

Congratulations to yourself for organising such a wonderful event, as well as memorising the Scottish verses and proclamations.

A lovely evening. Thank you.”

The Countryman Pub would like to extend it’s thanks to everyone that attended the evening and made it what it was. It was great fun and we always look forward to our big events and this has left us wanting the next one to come around quickly!

To come in and visit us, call us on 01403 741383 or book a table online.

Robert Burns (1759-1796) was the eldest of seven siblings and was born into a farming family in Scotland. Despite spending his youth working his father’s farm, he was well read, due to his father’s insistence who employed a tutor for Robert and his younger brother Gilbert.

At the age of just 15, Burns started writing to find a counter-balance to his work on the farm and at this age he wrote “My Handsome Nell” a poem about the other things in his life, such as Scotch and Women.

When his father died, Robert and his brother became partners in the farm but Robert wasn’t interested in labouring in the farm, more so in the ‘romantic nature’ of poetry and women. He had already in fact, had some misadventures with the ladies leaving him with several illegitimate children. He aimed to leave Scotland for the West Indies to pursue the life he dreamt of.

However, at the point of leaving the farm, his poetry collection “Poems- Chiefly in the Scottish Dialect – Kilmarnock Edition” was published and received great acclaim. This fact, coupled with his pride of parenthood left him to stay in Scotland.

Robert Burns then spent the rest of his life as a celebrity, and contributed to numerous songs such as James Johnston’s “Scot’s Musical Museum” and George Thomson’s “Select Collection of Original Scottish Airs.” In all, more than 400 of Burns’ songs are still in existence.

He died aged 37 of heart disease exacerbated by the hard manual work he undertook when he was young. His death occurred on the same day as his wife Jean gave birth to his last son, Maxwell. On the day of his burial more than 10,000 people came to watch and pay their respects.

So now, Scots both at home and abroad celebrate Robert Burns with a supper, where they address the haggis, pamper the ladies and drink whisky -  a true reflection of the man himself.

Well, there you have it, now you know who Robert Burns is and why we celebrate him, why not come along and celebrate with us. The cost of the four course meal is just £35 per person, which of course includes all of the entertainment for the evening, so make sure you book your table now before we sell out. Call us on 01403 741383 or book online.

Robert Burns

In what has become a legendary annual event at The Countryman Pub, there will be entertainment in the form of a highland piper, a Papa Falloon Band and of course, a four course Scottish menu.

On the menu this year we have classic dishes such as Haggis, Cockie Leekie and Tipsy Laird, alongside old favourites such as Smoked Salmon and Highland Cobblers. The cost of the four course meal is just £35 per person, which of course includes all of the entertainment for the evening, so make sure you book your table now before we sell out. Call us on 01403 741383 or book online.

For those of you who don’t know what Burns Night is all about, check back on The Countryman Blog on Friday where we will explain all about Robert Burns and why we celebrate him every year!