PUB life might be sadly in decline, but there cannot be many finer Great British traditions than visiting your local for a proper Sunday lunch.

And, if your local happens to be The Woodman in Bishopthorpe, you’d certainly be hard-pushed to find a better place for Sabbath sustenance.

During our recent visit, with snow falling festively on a chilly winter’s day, the cosy village pub proved a great venue to close the doors on the outside world for a couple of hours, whilst eating good food and enjoying a glass of red wine in the warmth of welcoming surroundings.

We were also grateful just to be shown to a table.

Due to a booking blunder – I had made our reservation for the wrong day – we could have easily been shown the door and sent back out into the cold as, having arrived at 2pm when the pub was at its busiest, it seemed impossible that we would be accommodated.

But, to our relief and surprise, every effort was made to host us and we were sat down within minutes, which represented great customer service, considering there was not a single table unfilled during the first hour of our meal.

I’d definitely recommend not repeating our mistake, though, by booking in advance to avoid disappointment or, alternatively, turn up in the brief late afternoon lull between lunch and dinner.

The unfussy resolution to our lack of a reservation was typical of the excellent attention we enjoyed throughout our visit to The Woodman.

Owner Vicky is a terrific host, keeping a watchful eye on all 20 tables, ensuring none ever remained unwiped or uncleared by regularly instructing her team of smart and pleasant waiting staff which group of diners needed tending to next.

Impressively, she managed all that, whilst engaging in friendly chat with customers and never looking harassed.

Her demeanour set the tone for a relaxing atmosphere with a buzz of constant chatter that never bordered on rowdiness and it’s amazing how the importance of meeting such standards of hospitality can be overlooked at so many pubs these days, particularly the big chains, where hungover, half-awake kids, miserable to be working on the traditional day of rest, more often than not serve your Roast Beef and Yorkshire Puds.

The quality of our food also more than matched the calibre of service and lived up to The Woodman’s motto of “we don’t serve fast food, just good food as fast as we can”.

For those seeking carvery-like speed, it might be better to look elsewhere but, if you prefer hot, freshly-cooked fare, then this is your place and none of the waits between our three courses were excessive, even during rush hour.

Choosing from a strong menu of mainly traditional dishes and a specials’ board that followed the same theme, I opted for a Scotch Egg starter, which hit the spot.

Crunchy on the outside, the nice warm egg was encased by a soft layer of black pudding and accompanied by a big dollop of hot swede and some light gravy.

My wife Nikki went for Pigs In Blankets and they were a surprisingly big enough size to be shared with out eight-year-old daughter.

The bacon blankets were crisp and the sausage was tasty, with a tangy piccalilli dip complementing them well.

For our mains, I chose beef and the meat was perfectly sliced – not too thick, nor wafer thin.

It was cooked with just the right tinge of pink and I did not find one bit of fat or gristle.

There was also a good selection of six veg to cover everybody’s favourites, which were served separately for us both to share.

The roast potatoes were deliciously crunchy and fluffy on the inside too.

Portion sizes were good and I have nothing but admiration for the one regular we were told eats two plates of Roast Beef – one after the other - every Sunday.

Nikki had turkey, which was also available with all the trimmings during the Christmas period.

She was equally impressed with the quality of the meat, which was juicy, with no stringy dryness.

For the child’s meal, available at £6.95, Ruby had Bangers and Mash, with two big sausages in a dish that would have probably filled any youngster up to their early teens at least.

Having helped her finish it off, I can vouch that the junior menu was just as tasty as ours.

For dessert, I plumped for Sticky Toffee Pudding and it was superb.

The sweet came served with a sumptuous hot sauce, but there was the option of adding more from a pouring jug.

Honeycomb pieces in the vanilla ice cream, meanwhile, were an inspired addition to the classic dish

Nikki had Vanilla Brulee and the crispiness of the caramel was faultless, as was the consistency of the vanilla.

The overall bill, which included four drinks, two three-course adult meals and a two-course child meal, came to £71.25.

For the main courses alone, the roast beef was £13.95 and the roast turkey was £11.95, which we felt was good value, given the price of an average supermarket joint in 2018.

The Woodman, Main Street, Bishopthorpe

T: 01904 706507

W: thewoodmaninnpub.com

Food: Faultless 5/5

Service: Friendly 5/5

Ambience: Cosy 5/5

Value: Good 4/5