We had a little drive out the The Crown at Worthington over the Bank Holiday. It’s one of those places that has been on my radar for years but when I lived in Wigan I didn’t drive so never made it there.
The Crown is down a lovely country road between Haigh and Standish- just five minutes from the M6 and about ten minutes from Wigan town centre.
It’s a pub which has built its reputation around two beautifully complementary elements- beer and meat. The real ale on offer is brilliant- the day we went there were five or six Jubilee themed ales on the pumps- I went for a pale limited edition from Lytham Brewery, and they also sell Dove Skye Cider from Lancashire which all cider lovers should try.
They are famous locally for their butchers block menu – where you choose your cut of steak, size, sauce etc. However we were there at lunch time and didn’t feel up to such a giant feast so decided to order form the lounge bar menu.
My hubby had his pub-standard order of pie, although he did deviate and go for chicken and leek instead of his usual steak and ale pie of choice. It came as a potpie with a high puff pastry top, mashed veg (he said carrot but looked more like sweet potato- I didn’t like to say!) and seasonal veg. He’s a man of few words but said it was ‘steady’ which in his terms means tasty but not mind blowing!
I went for the 6oz burger and had cheese and bacon added as you can’t have a pub burger without them in my opinion!
The burger was sublime. It was really juicy, but the thing which made it stand out for me was the seasoning. This was beef packed with flavour. I am rubbish at picking out flavours, but I am sure there was parsley. Whatever it was, it took it above your average pub burger to something a bit special. The slice of cheese was thick, but still melted over and out of the bun. The bacon was thick too- almost gammon-like, and salty. I know so many people think that salty food is the devil but sometimes it just works, and this salty bacon combined with the cheese and burger was just perfect.
It came with chips- good pub chips but nothing mind blowing. My only gripe, adn it is a tiny one, is that I wasn’t asked how I’d like it cooked. It came well cooked, and although still nice and juicy, I like meat of this quality to be a little more medium in a burger. But like I said, it was still juicy so nothing ruined.
No room for pudding, but with full bellies and quenched thirst we were on our way. I noticed that they do lots of specials during the week (half price butchers block on Tuesday I think). If you like real ale and real food, then get yourself over to The Crown (preferably with a designated driver so you can enjoy the selection of beer) and tuck in!
Platt Lane, Worthington, Standish, Wigan, Lancashire WN1 2XF
08000 686678
