 We decided to return to a coastal pub we last visited quite a few years ago. If memory serves me right the food then was pretty good but we did encounter a problem over our seating arrangements. On our previous visit we inadvertently sat in what one regular customer obviously believed was his God-given seat. Throughout our meal he hovered around us, and when we had finished and rose to leave he leapt into the vacant seats. The missus and me believe that everybody deserves a second chance so we set off full of anticipation to the tiny Northumberland coastal village of Dunstan, near Craster and The Cottage Inn. The pub itself took a bit of finding as there were diversions due to roadworks, but when we got there our detour proved to be well worth it. The Inn lies in the centre of some attractive woodland, which also makes it the ideal place to take kids as they can run free in the adventure playground while mum and dad enjoy a drink. One thing the Cottage is not short of is room. There are loads of places to enjoy your meal. We were given the option of going into the restaurant, the conservatory or taking a table in the bar. Mrs Eats decided we would opt for the conservatory, which is light and airy, and looks out onto the play area. The place was quite busy, and when we remarked upon this the new landlord assured us it was going to get an awful lot busier as he was holding a fifth birthday party for his son and his friends, while there was also a fortieth birthday party booked into the restaurant later in the afternoon. We looked at the extensive menu written on a blackboard in the bar. After making your selection you order your meal at the nearby hatch and pick up your cutlery before returning to your table. While we were waiting I decided to test the Guinness while Mrs Eats opted for a lime and soda as she was taking the wheel on the way back, fully realising that a completely clear head would be needed to overcome the complexities of the road diversion. She Who Must Be Fed had already scanned the generous portions being enjoyed by the other scranners so she declined a starter while I opted for the game pate served with Cumberland sauce and garlic bread with a salad garnish for £5.95. Mrs Eats thought she had made a major error of judgment when my food arrived as it looked delicious. The colourful presentation was amazing. As ever it's not all in the presentation it's in the eating and the pate proved to be as good as it looked. There was loads of pate and four slices of garlic bread as well as the colourful salad. I was getting worried about getting past this first hurdle until Mrs Eats could contain herself no longer and ploughed in to give me a welcome hand. As usual the missus could not be swayed to test a different dish on the menu and went for the traditional roast beef and Yorkshire pudding while I went for the chicken. Both roasts were priced at £6.95. If my starter was impressive the main courses were even better. Mrs Eats received three thick juicy slices of beef smothered in a rich gravy with a large Yorkshire. My chicken was wrapped in bacon and came with a generous portion of stuffing. We looked at our plates and thought there would be no room for vegetables. Then the veg duly arrived on a side plate. Again the presentation was excellent. Much care had been taken to make the array symmetrical, and it worked a treat. We had boiled and roast potatoes, broccoli, carrots, cabbage, cauliflower cheese, and green beans placed around a lump of brie all wrapped with bacon. It was splendid. Our meat was tender and the vegetables cooked to perfection. After a while Mrs Eats declared that she felt the task of clearing her plate may be beyond her on this occasion, and tasty though it was, she was proved to be right. The waitress came to clear our plates as the balloons were going up for the children's party. She Who Must Be Fed asked for a few minutes grace before deciding whether she could meet the challenge of a dessert. After a break - and another drink - she decided to go for the summer fruits in meringue. Again this was another feat in culinary engineering as the meringue base was covered in layers of redcurrants, raspberries, strawberries and cream. It was then decorated with segments of orange, kiwi fruit, chocolate strands and a fruit coulis. All this for £3.95 Mrs Eats' face was a picture. She tucked in with relish declaring that the sweet was a winner in her book. There was no chance of anyone moving us from our seats on this occasion as we would have taken some budging. In fact I thought we might even have to put up a diversion sign to get round She Who Must Be Fed. To get to The Cottage Inn head north on the A1 turning off near Alnwick on to the B1340. Travel along this road and then take another right for Dunstan and Craster. The Cottage lies over a set of crossroads on the left, set back in woodland. | 
