Our Time at The Middle Inn
It started with a wet dog and a Sunday lunch
We've eaten at The Middle Inn more times than we could possibly count, but it all started one very wet Sunday afternoon in January.
I was away visiting Mum and Tom had taken Meg out for a walk. By the time the pair of them reached Bamburgh they were apparently soaked through, cold and — if Tom's retelling is to be believed — perilously close to starvation.
Poor boy. I'd been away at least a day.
They stumbled into The Middle Inn, found themselves a quiet corner and tucked into a proper Sunday lunch. Tom came home sufficiently impressed that it wasn't long before I was taken along too.
And somehow, over the years, The Middle Inn became one of our regular Bamburgh stops.
Our Friday afternoon routine
For a while we developed a particularly nice little Friday ritual.
We'd walk Bamburgh Beach first, usually long enough to feel we'd earned lunch, then wander into The Middle Inn at around three in the afternoon.
That timing is something of an H&S tip in itself.
The main lunchtime rush has generally disappeared by then and we usually head for the conservatory-style room at the back. It's spacious, clean, bright and airy — and at that time of day we've often had it almost to ourselves.
Dogs are very welcome and it's equally easy with children, which makes it exactly the sort of place we appreciate these days.
When Northumberland produces one of those unexpectedly lovely afternoons, there's also a cracking beer garden out the back which catches the afternoon sun.
Proper pub food
The food isn't trying to reinvent anything.
It's pub food.
But it's good, traditional pub food, and perhaps the biggest compliment I can give The Middle Inn is that it's one of those rare places where I don't automatically order the same thing every time.
The Middle Inn Burger is a favourite, but I'll happily be tempted by the deep-fried fishcakes, steak pie, lasagne or fish and chips. The menu changes over time, of course, but it's still firmly in hearty-pub-food territory.
Tom, meanwhile, has discovered the Bamburgh IPA.
This appears to have considerably reduced his interest in exploring the drinks menu.
The one thing we'd change
The staff have always been friendly and efficient and, once we've ordered, we've found the food generally arrives quickly.
There is, however, one thing that stops The Middle Inn being almost perfect for us.
You order at the bar.
That wouldn't particularly bother us if there were always enough people serving, but on a number of visits we've found ourselves standing in a queue for considerably longer than we'd like.
It feels especially noticeable when you're already comfortably settled at a table with a dog, a child, coats and everything else that accompanies a family lunch.
Table service — even just for food orders — would transform the experience.
It's a relatively small gripe about somewhere we've returned to again and again, but Listed isn't much use if we only tell you the good bits.
The Lord Crewe connection
We'd heard that The Middle Inn was connected to another Bamburgh favourite of ours, The Lord Crewe, and this one we can now confirm rather than relying on village whispers.
The Middle Inn describes The Lord Crewe as its sister venue, just down the street. The two are quite different propositions: The Middle Inn is the relaxed traditional pub, while The Lord Crewe has a stronger restaurant and seafood focus and currently holds an AA Rosette.
We rate that one very highly too.
Different mood, different occasion.
Part of our Bamburgh
There are smarter places to eat in Bamburgh and there are certainly places making more ambitious food.
But that isn't really why we come to The Middle Inn.
We come because Meg can flop beneath the table after the beach. Because Flynn isn't going to cause raised eyebrows. Because we know we'll find something we fancy on the menu. Because that back room can be wonderfully peaceful at three o'clock on a Friday afternoon.
And, apparently, because Tom likes the Bamburgh IPA.
Some places become favourites because of one exceptional meal.
Others become favourites simply because you keep finding yourself going back.
The Middle Inn is very much the latter.
Heather & Sand verdict: The Middle Inn is a relaxed, genuinely dog- and family-friendly Bamburgh pub serving dependable traditional food in comfortable surroundings. The sunny beer garden is a bonus and that quiet mid-afternoon window after a beach walk remains our favourite time to visit. We'd love table service — or simply more staff behind the bar at busy times — but the fact we've returned many, many times probably tells you everything else you need to know.
