Review: Dinner at The Lion in Farningham, Kent

Despite living in London I do enjoy a jaunt to the countryside from time to time to take in some fresh air and see my family who live in Farningham – a small village in Kent just outside the M25.

Excitedly I will soon be upping sticks and moving out to Farningham on a permanent basis. At the moment a family property is undergoing renovations and once ready my husband and I will be moving. On a recent trip back to see how the renovations were going I was lucky enough to have been taken out to Dinner by my parents and we went to the Vintage Inn venue, The Lion Pub.

The Lion has had many reincarnations over the years, when I was a youngster living in the village it was a beloved Harvester which we visited to celebrate birthdays and good news like exam results. I had not been back since it was taken over by Vintage Inns, but having heard good things from my parents, I was excited to see The Lion’s newest offerings.

The Lion has always been a venue which oozes country charm and I was not disappointed on my return seeing that the decor, despite being modernised, still retains it’s bare wooden furniture and atmospheric lighting. I particularly liked the open fire places which both warmed the restaurant and projected a fabulous ambiance.

My parents and I were shown into a comfy corner and ordered drinks before browsing the menu. Fora starter I settled upon the baked cornish brie and onion marmalade brûlée which was served with with celery and crusty bread. In my opinion nothing beats molten cheese and onion marmalade especially on a fresh spring evening, and I was not disappointed.

I was a little concerned that the Lion may not have a good vegetarian offering for a main, but I was wrong, I selected the feta and broad bean burger served in a crusty cob with lettuce, tomato and mayonnaise. The burger came with a with smoky tomato salsa and seasoned chips.

I am often weary of veggie burgers which are made mainly from vegetables as they tend to be dry and have an unpleasant texture but I was happy to discover that this burger was tasty and satisfying with the zingy salsa balancing out the otherwise heavy burger. The chips were also flavourful and I enjoyed the light spicing which gave them a bit of a kick.

I include photos of my parents dishes also – my Mother ordered the Vintage Hunter’s Chicken – chargrilled chicken breast in BBQ sauce, topped with sweetcure bacon and smoked Cheddar, served with confit tomato, beer battered onion rings and mushrooms, seasoned chips and peas. My father went for the steak with confit tomato, beer battered onion rings, a roasted flat mushroom and seasoned chips. Both were satisfied with their mains.

For desert I went for a traditional British dish, which is a favourite of mine, the sticky toffee pudding which was served with a dainty jug of custard and a delightful layer of bramley apple slices on top. Despite usually preferring my sticky toffee pudding fruit free I really enjoyed this version, reminding me of a toffee apple!

My parents chose the raspberry crème brûlée rich set vanilla custard with fresh raspberries, topped with caramelised sugar and the ultimate chocolate brownie tower double brownie layered with caramel and cookie dough, served with chocolate fudge sauce and vanilla ice cream. The brownie tower was a little disappointing in it’s presentation as it had somewhat toppled over, but both my mother and father seemed to enjoy their dishes.

So, what how was the overall experience? We had a really lovely evening at a local restaurant enjoying good food in a lovely atmosphere. I am happy to award The Lion pub 5 out of 5 stars and look forward to restarting the tradition of visiting for celebrations once I have moved back to Kent.