Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

The Snow Goose: Pub grub with a modern twist

Post Thumbnail

When I was a teenager, and just old enough to legally drink, there was a rule in place which meant only hotels were allowed to serve strong drink on a Sunday, and even then only to people who were travelling.

Being part of a devious crowd who liked to bend this rule, we’d sometimes take the bus from Inverness to the Coach House Inn on the eastern outskirts of the town and have a grand old time before walking back to the town having enjoyed the craic – and a dram or two.

yl-Snow Goose047

Many happy memories were created at the old Coach House Inn which has always had a lovely cosy, old world charm to it. It sits on land that was originally part of Stoneyfield House, a small holding on the Raigmore estate. The estate was sold off in small lots and in 1918, one of the lots was the Coach House Inn.

Some years ago, it changed its name to become The Snow Goose, and in the last few months it’s been all change again as it is now part of the Vintage Inns Group and been given a major refurbishment.

That’s made it something of a local talking point as the gardens have had a rather severe haircut while the outside has been painted a cold shade of pale blue. You can’t fail to notice the pub now, which I suspect was always the goal.

But don’t let the colour put you off. Step inside and you’ll find yourself enveloped in a country pub oozing charm and warmth. The pub is divided into a series of small rooms, each of which now houses a live log fire giving off a lovely welcoming smell.

yl-Snow Goose040yl-Snow Goose038

The conservatory seems more accessible and would be a great area for anyone wanting to book a large group. There are old beams throughout and the walls are adorned with a nice blend of art and artefacts.

As to the food, what’s on offer is wholesome pub grub, with some traditional dishes being given a more modern twist. Prawn cocktail, for example, includes king prawn, lobster and avocado, while burger fans can tuck into a premium Wagyu burger. There’s also plenty of regional cask ales and affordably priced wines to choose from.

We were shown to our table by general manager Gillian Newman, a Highland lass herself with years of experience under her belt. Diners can choose from al la carte or fixed price lunch and dinner menus which are available at certain times.

From a good selection of starters, I chose the vegetarian oven-baked button and Portobello mushrooms in a garlic and mature cheddar sauce served with two enormous slices of rustic bread. This was a lovely dish, really warming with just a hint of garlic and a lovely strong, thick cheesy sauce which I mopped up greedily with my dark brown bread.

My other half ordered a prawn and lobster cocktail which had plenty of plump, juicy prawns, a couple of wee bits of lobster, creamy, fresh avocado and plenty of well-seasoned and dressed salad leaves.

I was unsure what to have for mains so asked our friendly waitress, Nadia, who recommended the steak and mushroom pie. The pieces of steak were small but there were plenty of them, all cooked in a red wine sauce which you could really taste.

It was topped with an enormous piece of puff pastry which was light yet buttery, and served with a great pile of creamy mashed potatoes, carrots, broccoli and cabbage. It was a man-sized portion and I struggled to finish it.

yl-Snow Goose004yl-Snow Goose033

Across the table, two tasty seared fillets of sea bass, served with asparagus and a piquant lobster and samphire sauce were quietly being demolished which is always a good sign.

After a suitable breathing space, Nadia persuaded us to take up the option of a coffee and mini-pudding at £4.50 each which seemed good value.

A slice of Bourbon pecan pie for me and Bramley apple pie for him. My goodness, I’m glad we didn’t order the full-size versions as these were pretty generous, leaving us with only enough energy to sit by the fire awhile to finish our red wine (Global Roaming Pinot noir 2015) before walking back to Inverness, just like the good old days…