I am g lad to see the Minister of Food advocatin g
better cooking in English country inns. Not that all cooking in such places. is bad ; it is often very good ; but as a rule it is singularly unimaginative. That is equally true of the Trust House type of hostelry. Beef and mutton seem to be invariably roast ; those "made" dishes, ragouts, and the like, in which the French excel', seem altogether outside the kitchen's capacity. In war-time that may be natural, though I should have thought there was special need at a time like this to make a slender meat ration go as far as possible. But it still remains trtie that the best type of established country inn is as good as any- one could want, or could fmd elsewhere. I may have quoted Shen- stone's rather melancholy lines here before, but they will bear repetition: Who e'er hath travelled life's dull round, Where e'er his stages may have been, May sigh to think he still hath found The warmest welcome at an inn. There are still inns like that. * * * *
Previous page
