Fifteen years or so ago, I used to travel all the way from Wymondham in Norfolk by train to visit lovely Woodbridge and, especially, to have lunch here. Then the owners went off to have a family and the place went from having an excellent reputation to, shall we say, becoming rather less successful.
With some business to attend to in the town, I booked a midweek lunch in February, three courses for just £19.
Hurrah! The Captain's Table has the original folk back, Pascale is turning out wonderful souffles again and the restaurant clearly has its mojo back.
I opted for the homemade soup of the day, which was cauliflower cheese with Focaccia bread. Blooming marvellous. Thick, hot and very tasty, just the job for a grey February day. For main, I chose the home made pie of the day - beef and bacon, with mashed potato, braised peas and a little jug of gravy on the side. It was all really tasty, especially the pie.
For dessert, light and yummy sticky toffee pudding with toffee sauce and a jug of splendid custard.
Attentive service, friendly staff, food really quick to come out of the kitchen.
Having recommended my soup and pie, the 'ladies who lunch' behind and across the room from me opted, without exception,for the kitchen's signature dish which, on the day, was 'twice baked smoked haddock souffle on wilted spinach, a creamy cheese sauce, served with chips and salad'. £18.50's worth. It looked wonderful and must have been, because the ladies said so!
January 2026
On an absolutely foul wet and windy January evening, a party of 24 of us from a local u3a dining group descended on one of my favourite Woodbridge restaurants. As the organiser, I'd arranged a set menu of three courses for a very reasonable £25 and just £21 if you weren't having a starter or a dessert.
My parsnip soup could have been hotter but it was tasty enough, while the mackerel pate or Scotch Egg alternatives were well received.
For mains, the Malaysian vegetable curry was well-spiced, lacking, perhaps, a better variety of ingredients, the sausage pinwheel and mash was generously portioned, while my choice of The Captain's fish pie was extremely good although the accompanying vegetables were disappointingly cold and undercooked.
The mulled wine poached pear dessert was voted a huge hit, as was the apple crumble, nicely served in a dinky little cast iron pot with a little jug of custard on the side.
Unsurprisingly on such a horribly wet and stormy night, our somewhat raucous group were the only customers and were very well looked after. When the Adnams Ghost Ship 0.5% ran out, the owner's student daughter, about to return to her Chemistry studies at Leeds University, volunteered to go in search for further supplies.
You wouldn't get that level of service everywhere.
All in all, a thoroughly splendid evening.
