Treats are generally offered at the end, the most memorable one for me being a tiny glass of something highly alcoholic and set on fire, but it is the nibble to begin with which wins friends and influences people. Also, despite its absence from the menu and the bill, it tends to be a show-off item, allowing the cook to demonstrate a special skill.

And so it was at Lords, although creating a good impression here is by no means an uphill struggle. Cobbled, twisting Montpellier Street is about as classy as Harrogate gets, so that's not a bad introduction, and inside the restaurant there's a welcome which is personal, but not presumptuous. Plus the "Lords" theme – cricket as opposed to coronets – is not overbearing. Even if you loathe the game, there is no reason to stay away. Yes, there are cricketing prints and pictures on the walls, and menu items are headed "Openers" and "Middle Orders", but that's about it.

Things used to be different. Then everything was cricket, down to the green carpets, but a refurbishment has put things into perspective and this is now more restaurant than shrine. It is a restaurant, furthermore, with more comfortable seats than are normally found at a cricket ground – and indeed, at many other restaurants where the bottom is as much on trial as the tastebuds. I have sometimes wondered if the intention of that is to prevent diners lingering too long over the coffee.

There were two staff the Thursday night we went, the waitress and Mike the manager, and the place was post-festive season quiet, so we had all the attention we wanted. Mike took our order for the wine and the food, and while we dithered over the wine, he suggested the Mandra Rossa Chardonnay from Sicily, a recommendation that proved so agreeable that we would have believed anything he told us after that.

Then, while we waited for "Openers" he delivered the appetisers – crab and dill roulade. And they were creamy, delicate and delicious, so could anything now possibly go wrong? Not much, as it turned out.

The seared Shetland king scallops – accompanied with butter squash purée, chive Hollandaise and half a caramelised lime – may have travelled some distance, but were fresh and sweet and tender. There was a small disagreement at our table as to whether the purée was a good idea. I considered it set the shellfish off very well.

Slightly tempted by the Yorkshire Dales game terrine, I put it to Mike that game these days doesn't taste of game, and he agreed. So instead it was the ham hock terrine, and a substantial thing it was, with big chunks of hock in it. I've had coarse paté described as a "terrine", but this was an entirely different species.

It being winter, if only in name, I ordered the steak and kidney pudding – a handsome beast, served with a dark, dark gravy, excellent roasted carrots and soft, but straight-forward mashed potato. The aroma, when the suet casing was punctured and out flowed the juices, produced one of those intense savoury moments which briefly stops the world.

If the roast guinea fowl had been up to that standard, our visit would have been an unqualified success.

But it was dry and not very exciting. When this was reported to Mike, who had inquired if things were all right, he immediately offered to replace it. We said "no", recognising that the kitchen had a difficulty here as we were comparing this roasted fowl with what we would have
at home.

We bone the bird, it is packed with sausage and bacon stuffing and cooked in the oven in a lidded pot, so it emerges tender and succulent.

This was never going to happen with a roasted version.

Marks out of 10 had dropped very slightly, but the score recovered a couple of points with the white and dark chocolate marquise and its coffee bean Anglais. The crunchy, bitter beans are an inspired addition to this luxurious and daintily-presented dessert.

Lords has much to commend it. Civilised, unpretentious and with courteous service, it serves food reflecting occasional flair in the kitchen. The dishes are cooked to order, produced in-house, using fresh ingredients from as local a source as possible.

A 10 per cent service charge is added for parties of more than 10 people.

Our meal, with the wine, was a little over £65.


Lords Restaurant, 8 Montpellier Street, Harrogate, HG11 2QT. Tel 01423 508762. On-street parking. Open Tuesday to Saturday, noon to 2pm and 6pm to 9.30pm. Sundays, 12.30pm to 3pm and 6pm to 9pm.