Among the firmament

I knew this as a village pub, a place to stop off for a quick pint and a sandwich, good but nothing exceptional. A small time boozer was never going to be enough for new, ambitious young owners who set about transforming it. They turned the front into the back, the bar into the dining room and the dining room into one of the best places to eat what turn out to be expertly-crafted, locally-sourced dishes.

For chef Ben Cox and wife Lindsey it was a major gamble. The Star is not a familiar name outside the locality and Sancton is a little off the beaten track for passing trade. Nor was Ben a well-known face on the local culinary scene although he had served his time in some of the better-known East Yorkshire establishments.

The gamble paid off. On a packed-out Friday evening we were presented with dish after dish of wonderful, colourful, delights in an atmosphere of cosy country warmth. The layout is at once intimate and open with three eating areas, all splendidly furnished and arranged to create a feeling of communal intimacy. The décor is “trad pub”, with solid wooden tables and comfortable leather chairs – there’s even the odd toby jug – and it’s all nicely under lit so you almost feel at home.

The wine list is inviting, cheerily presented and reasonably priced – from £20 upwards – but the real star of The Star is the menu. It has a choice of eight starters and eight mains, each containing at least one ingredient sourced from nearby and leaves you scratching your head wondering what you’re not going to choose. It’s not steak, it’s Laverack’s of Holme steak. That garlic taste? That’s Raywell wild garlic. Nothing is pretentious and all of it sounds delicious.

We went for starters of York ham and East Riding honey terrine with pancetta, Jersey Royal and chive salad and a dressing of Bracken Hill grain mustard, and Blue Ribblesdale and red beet salad with Pickering watercress and chive and sesame straws. The terrine was rugged and packed with superb moist ham. It came with a pig stick (think pork scratchings shaped like matchmakers). I still had a pint of locally-pressed cider ordered pre-meal and enjoying the two together left me feeling like a farmer pausing for lunch on harvest day.

The salad looked lovely on the plate – all deep reds and vivid greens with cheese and beetroot – the simple ingredients perfectly balanced and well prepared. There was an artistic smear of beetroot reduction on the plate which had a welcome sharpness to it – later confirmed to be a touch of mace. Ingenious and bang-on.

Mains would have to work hard to compete. Braised Broomfleet lamb shoulder and minted faggots with garlic crushed Jersey Royals, sauté baby onions and red wine jus looked a little colourless after the starters. A choice of braised and crisped belly pork with sauté black pudding and cyder juices looked a little lacking in the crispy department.

Initial reservations soon vanished. Both the lamb and the pork joints were fall-apart succulent. The black pudding (also local) was soft and flavoursome and the minted faggots staked a strong claim to best accompaniment of the evening.

For dessert there was tempting parkin ice cream and Lancashire cheese and ale rarebit. We chose hot chocolate fondant with ice cream – a test for any kitchens – and the wonderfully named “A celebration of strawberries”. The plate’s arrival met with a small cheer for the delightful child-like tableau of meringue, pannacotta, shortbread and strawberries arranged to form flowers and sandwiches and other alluring shapes. There was even a small glass filled with jelly, mint and fruit to mimic a Pimm’s cup.

On the 15-mile eastward drive home we passed the farm where the evening’s cider was made, the woods where wild garlic was picked and the fields where goats that provide milk for one of the cheeses graze.

If we’d done 15 miles in any other direction we’d probably have passed producers of yet more from the menu. So to sum up: friendly staff, imaginative cooking, superb surroundings and a menu whose focus comes from what’s to be found just outside the kitchen door. It’s a star all right.

* Starters: £5 - £7.50, Mains: £14 - £20, Desserts: £6 - £8

* Tuesday- Friday 12-3pm, 6pm-11.30pm. Sat 12-3 pm and 6pm-11pm. Sun 12-11pm.

* The Star @Sancton, King Street, Sancton, Market Weighton, East Yorkshire, YO43 4QP. Tel: 01430 827269. www.thestaratsancton.co.uk