PUB grub can cover a whole multitude of sins. From flabby chips to limp burgers or overly cheesy lasagne, a night out at the pub doesn't always equal a gastronomic adventure.

But just because food is served in a pub it doesn't have to be dull. The Garden House Inn, in Durham, is flying in the face of the all too familiar chain pubs which churn out 'nice' meals on an industrial scale.

The last time I went to the Garden House was about a year ago. Following a rave review by a well-known food critic in a national newspaper, I had to try it for myself.

After being suitably impressed on that occasion, I went back more recently, just to check that things were still up to scratch.

Happily, I’m pleased to report that things are looking good for the gourmets of Durham.

With my fiancé and future mother-in-law in tow, we pitched up on a Saturday night- all three of us with a fairly hefty appetite.

It was busy – almost full – so we were glad we had booked. Slightly early, we had a couple of beers at the bar before we were seated.

The pub has a cosy bar area with an eclectic mix of décor but we were seated in the large conservatory-type area at the back. It doesn’t quite have the same atmosphere as the rest of the place but is pleasant nonetheless.

The menu is a happy mix of things that make you go ‘ooh, that’s nice’ and ‘ooh, that’s interesting’. You can have a cheese burger or steak and chips, but you can also have monkfish and spicy njuda or toasted cous cous and pomegranite.

To start with we ordered two dishes of scallops and pork belly (£10) and one fish cake (£7).

Mine was the scallops and pork belly, which are possibly two of my favourite things ever. The scallops were perfectly seared and sweet and the pork belly crispy – brought together with a caramel sauce. The scallops and sauce together were slightly on the sweet side but altogether – an absolute dream.

The fishcake, served with a hollandaise type sauce with chives was also well received. The fishcake crispy and flavoursome and the sauce thick and rich.

Next up was a couple of plates of big, hearty beef shoulder (£15), served up with wholesome herby dumplings and carrots.

The beef was everything you could hope for; the meat tender and falling apart and the sauce bold and rich.

All to often bland and entirely unexciting, I’m not always the biggest fan of cooked carrots. The carrots on this dish were cooked in ginger beer and were absolutely fabulous.

The other main was wild seabass with lobster sauce and saffron mash (£20). I’m told delicious, though didn’t need the lobster sauce to make it so.

Service was pleasant, if not stellar. Admittedly it was a Saturday night, and the pub was busy - but the wait between starter and main course was a little on the long side. Fortunately we had wine and good conversation on our side, though we were also given an out-of-date wine list and our first choice was no longer stocked.

Our second choice was a perfectly serviceable bottle of Sicilian shiraz (£18.50), which went down a treat.

So far, so good. Good cooking, great combinations – what else can you ask of a chef?

If there was a low point – perhaps more accurately described as a dip in the top quality previously offered up – it would be the desserts. Carlo and I both went for chocolate brownie, served with marshmallow, raspberry and pistachios (£7).

The marshmallow was a sickly sweet as you would expect. The raspberry gave it a bit of sharpness, the pistachios a lovely splash of green and a bit of crunch. But the brownie just didn’t deliver. I mean, it was nice. It was rich and chocolately. I one hundred per cent cleared my plate but alas, my expectation had been inflated, it did fall short of the food that had come before.

The M-I-T to be wanted affogato – vanilla ice cream, espresso and amaretto – but with no vanilla ice cream in the place she decided to go without.

The total bill for three at £109.50 was steep enough but it was all delicious enough for me not to resent it.

FOOD FACTS

Garden House Inn, Framwellgate Peth, Durham

Contact: www.gardenhouseinn.com, 0191 386 3395

Opening hours: Monday - Saturday, lunch 12noon-3pm, dinner 5pm-9.30pm, Sundays - 12noon-6pm

Ratings (out of ten): Food 9, Service 7, Surroundings 8, Value 8