We tried the Three Kings at Fornham All Saints, outside Bury St Edmunds, for a birthday lunch for two

There are not many times that my wife Chantelle and I get to go out together these days, but for birthdays we try our best, so to celebrate her birthday I took her to a place I had heard great things about.

Stepping into the 17th Century pub which is the Three Kings at Fornham All Saints, you are greeted by lovely low ceilings, solid red brick walls and a sturdy wooden bar - just the cosy welcoming entrance you would want from an establishment of its age or any for that matter.

We were shortly led to our table, within one of the beautiful pockets of dining areas the building has.

Looking up you could see newer pieces of the Grade II listed building connecting to what looked like an original part of the pub – intertwining the old with the new.

Sitting down we were handed the menus, which had a ton of tasty treats which we wanted all of.

But though there were incredible options on the set classic menu, including wild mushroom brioche with Cabrales cheese and a Red Poll cheeseburger with pickle, slaw, fries which could be pimped up with duck liver and truffle mayonnaise (spoiler alert, I am going back for both at some point) we went for the locally sourced menu.

The starters picked were fillet of halibut, snails pearl barley and parsley as well as a celariac and apple lasagna, blue cheese, walnuts and baby vegetables.

For mains we went for fillet steak, garlic mushrooms, potato terrine and onion rings for the birthday girl and blowtorched Cornish mackerel, chicken fat potatoes, beetroot and gem lettuce for me.

Now, there is something I rarely mention on my reviews and that is the bread. But this time I think it deserves a shout out.

Whilst waiting for our dishes we were given some aged grain bread and with its perfectly soft centre and nice crust, along with the salted butter that came with it, I could have quite easily had more of that than my hunger would allow – but our starters had arrived.

Chantelle said the cooking of her halibut was spot on, and that the pearl barley still having that great bite to it, the juicy meaty snails and parsley sauce never overpowered the beautiful fish.

For me and the lasagna, the thickly cut apple and celeriac went hand in hand, hitting sweet and earthy spots all at the same time – wonderful winter flavours on a plate.

Putting that with the nuttiness of the walnuts, the soft but punchy blue cheese and the crunch of the baby vegetables, just gave me the amazing start to a meal that anyone could hope for, simply lovely.

It was not long before both plates were emptied and cleared before we took on our main events.

The thick tender fillet steak for Chantelle was cooked to perfection for such a big cut of meat, she said, with a beautifully crisp potato terrine on the outside that was soft and fluffy in between the layers.

The sauce sat back on the usual punchiness of peppercorns, letting the cream and the subtle spice bring everything else, including the garlic mushrooms and the onion rings, together to what she described as an ‘amazing’ plate of food.

Equally my mackerel was an example of brilliant cooking.

The crispy scorched skin and the soft delicate mackerel flesh was a perfect partner with the sweetness of the beetroot, the gem lettuce and the starchy lightly chicken flavoured potatoes.

This was a light but wholesome dish that I would order again without hesitation and will be talking about to friends for some time.

It was now time for dessert and with the mains plates gone we were back on the menus.

I had already seen from the last time they were in our hands and added due to the greatness of the fruit from my starter what I wanted.

I chose apple tartan, hazel and walnut praline and bay leaf ice cream, Chantelle went for the cheese plate, which had the amazing Baron Bigod, Suffolk Blue and Red Storm.

The trio bought their own things to the table, the baron gave its rich creaminess, the blue a depth of intense flavour you would expect from a cheese of its type and the Red Storm (which we had never had before) gave a hard cheese incredible gritty strength – these three kings were truly made to share the same plate.

For me and my second apple dish of the day, it had a deep sweetness contrasted by the slightly spiced bitterness of the caramel and the nuttiness of the hazel and walnuts.

The ice cream, obviously giving that cold temperature difference to the warm tartan, gave a underlying floral tone to each and every wonderful spoonful.

We had been royally treated to something special at the Three Kings, but with our last plates cleaned and cleared and the bill paid, it was time to go.

This is a hidden gem of a place just outside of Bury St Edmunds, that not only we will be back to try again but I will be more than happy to tell anyone and everyone I see about too.