IT HAS to be said, the Brownlow Arms is not the place to eat if you have a pressing after-dinner engagement. Three hours from prompt arrival for an 8.15 booking to draining the last of the coffee was a little longer than we'd envisaged.

We'd been before and had to chivvy them up a little, but the food was deemed well worth a return visit.

Assuming there's no rush and you have companions with whom you're happy to while away 40 minutes between finishing the starter and being served the main course, the food is tasty and attractively presented.

We ate in the bar - it's cosy and traditional and bedecked with hunting and horse racing memorabilia.

It's not often that a fish and seafood fan has such an extensive choice, and I began with crab and avocado platter (£6.95), which had plenty of each and an attractive, crisp salad.

Curiosity led my partner to sample a warm salad of duck livers, scallops and black pudding (£5.95), a seemingly strange combination which he pronounced delicious - and he considers himself something of a black pudding expert.

Monkfish wrapped in basil and bacon on herb-roasted Mediterranean vegetables and pesto (£13.50) had caught my eye the moment I glanced at the menu.

Full marks to chef, Carole Mathias, for not overcooking the fish; in fact, the thicker end of the fillet was only just sufficiently done. Roasted aubergine, courgette and fennel were the ideal accompaniment, along with carrots, broccoli and new potatoes. One interloper we didn't expect to see gracing the vegetable dish in June was a rather delicious braised red cabbage.

There are plenty of other fish and seafood options, including fresh lobster cooked in three different ways (£10 for a half and £18 for a whole one).

As I mmmmed and ahhed my way through the monkfish, my partner tackled a trio of pigeon breasts on garlic mash with red wine, bacon and mushroom sauce (£11.95). When he'd ordered, the waiter had informed him the breasts were cooked pink - which he found perfect but which might deter some diners.

Incidentally, the steak menu includes a discreet footnote that the chef can not take responsibility for the tenderness of steak ordered "well done." Quite right, too.

The pigeon was tasty and tender, the mash filling, the sauce not too rich and the accompanying dish of chips was definitely the product of a bag of King Edwards and a knife rather than a freezer. Mash and chips? Well, my partner gave it the thumbs-up.

Game is something of a speciality at the Brownlow, although by summer it's frozen rather than freshly hung. "My partner does a shoot and we try to stock up with pheasant, mallard, grouse and partridge," says Ms Mathias. "We also get venison from Raby."

She and her business partner, landlord Tim Johnson, have run the pub for 14 years and make seasonal changes to the menu, although regular diners will not let them remove their favourites. "I have had chicken, Stilton and bacon on since I started cooking and I'm sick of making it, but everyone loves it," she says.

Non-meat-eaters need not feel left out, as there is an extensive and interesting vegetarian selection - and not a cheese omelette in sight.

There's a good choice of wines but we were disappointed that they'd run out of the Chablis we chose (£19). We opted instead for a Sauvignon blanc (£10) which proved a decent runner-up.

We'd barely room for pudding but the menu was enticing and I gave in and plumped for a raspberry creme brulee (£4.25), which was superbly creamy and velvety and deserved to be eaten far more slowly than it was. However my partner's warm peach and hazelnut tart (£4.25) was disappointing. It was beautifully presented but he suspected the soggy pastry was a sign it had been microwaved.

Coffee was fresh, hot and strong enough to keep us awake for the drive home - it was 11pm when it arrived.