Navigation Inn, Shardlow, Derby

Phew, what a busy couple of months it's been! I've been fortunate enough to go to The Seafood restaurant (Rick Stein's), Jamie Oliver's award winning 15 Cornwall (Best Restaurant view in the UK award) and more recently Aaron Patterson's Hambleton Hall in Rutland. Lunch here set me back nearly £240 smackers, severely denting my 'eating out' budget for May. Worth every penny though!
Anyway back to the task in hand, it's Sunday, it's sunny and me and the Mrs fancy a run out with a view to having a lunch. "Shardlow" I screech. A quick pint outside the picturesque Malt Shovel then it's back up the road to the Nagivation Inn for lunch.
Taken over a few years ago by Ian & Kim (formerly of various eateries in Nottingham: The Grill Room, etc) This large pub en route to East Midlands airport (I will never call it Nottingham airport!) serves better than your average pub food, with Ian still at the helm. On a sunny day it's perfect with stack's of tables outside and an area the size of an aircraft hanger for the kids to suitable run around. Drink in hand we scoured the printed menu. It was decided a Blue Cheese, potato & bacon salad (£4.90) to share as a starter, Roast beef, Yorkshire pudding with horseradish sauce (£8.50) pour moi & a main size portion of Tuna nicoise (£8.90) for Bec. My pint slipped down well under the warm afternoon sun, but Bec's Pepsi didn't have enough syrup (it was obviously one of those mixer taps) and was just a glass of Pepsi flavoured water. Yuck!
Due to Bec's dislike of strong cheeses, it was down to me to polish off the majority of the starter. No complaints from me. Mains arrived. My large piece of beef was accompanied by an abundant plate of veg, it actually looked like two plates of food, I suggest a different shape receptacle for accompanying veg. I could see Bec wasn't going to be happy with the large quantity of tomatoes & olives that adorned her salad, ah well....... My choice was just what the doctor ordered, beef still a "bit" pink, plenty of veg & gravy, however no horseradish sauce (well nothing that tasted of horseradish anyway). The only real down point was when Bec complained of the Pepsiless Pepsi, no "sorry, can I get you anything else" or "apologies, please accept a fresh one", just nothing! I hope the service doesn't start to let this place down, Ian's a great chef/cook, but you don't need all the hard work you've done in the kitchen, undone by young staff who don't really give a hoot. I recommended the Navigation to a friend a few days later, the friend who I will call Steve Bailey for fear of disclosing his real identity, reiterated my service fears, veg never arrived and they even forgot to bring the change back at the end of the meal.
Guys, tighten the service reigns and you'll have a good gastropub on your hands, not just another pub selling food.
Food 6.5/10
Service 5/10
Venue 7/10
Tel: 01332 792918

"Oh, the heads that turn, make my back burn" (She Sell's Sanctuary, The Cult, 1985)

Martin, Sunday 3rd June, 2007