The Ship, Mount Road, Gateshead

Mar 15 2009 by Eddy Eats, Sunday Sun

We shared a plate of potato skins with a very tasty garlic and hummus dip plus a platter of breaded prawns with a sweet chilli sauce. The skins were a little oily but pretty good and the prawns were delicious.

Both were washed down with a very welcome John Smiths for me and a diet coke for her (well she was planning on three courses, so the diet drink was a necessity).

The only negative was the lack of a menu on the table, and we couldn’t see any chalkboard for the mains either. Luckily we were after simple fayre and when the waitress offered us a choice of beef, pork, lamb or chicken, that was fine by us. All were priced at £6.95 with children’s portions at £4.95.

My lamb was particularly flavoursome and although Mrs E’s pork elicited some satisfying noises, I think she was slightly jealous of my superior dish. There was still plenty of the four veg left in our two big side dishes at the end as well.

A gravy jug on the table would’ve made this even better – as we had to ask for some after the food had been served.

While we were having a breather before dessert, Mrs Eats took the chance to pull out those brochures again while I was stuffed and vulnerable.

“How about cheesecake?” I said, trying to distract her. “I prefer the Vanilla Mist,” she replied. I think we were talking at cross purposes.

Anyway, there was a good choice of seven or eight desserts at £4 each, although the sticky toffee pudding, which I fancied, was off. I’m glad it was because the strawberry tarte with pouring cream was absolutely fantastic. Mrs E said her rhubarb crumble tasted homemade, a high compliment from her.

However, the service was pretty slow when it came to clearing our plates and getting the bill.

Overall, The Ship offers good hearty grub — and lots of it — at a pretty reasonable price.

For some, the whole nautical thing might be a bit much . . . there are ropes, model ships, fishing nets, anchors and divers’ helmets everywhere you look – but then what’s the point of half measures? If you don’t like ships, don’t go to a pub called The Ship!

:: To get there, take the A1231 just south of the Angel off the A1. Take the first left at the roundabout along the country lane then right onto Mount Road.