41 Earlham Road
Norwich
NR2 3AD
Norwich
NR2 3AD
Sunday roast served from 12pm till 8pm
Free wifi and dog friendly
In November 2014 I visited The Earlham Arms in Norwich for the first time and enjoyed a great breakfast, you can read about that here.
This was the reason for our visit, I'd heard good things about their Sunday roast.
There didn't appear to be a Sunday roast menu anywhere so we asked what was available. Place your order and pay at the bar, the food is brought over when it's ready.
Salt and pepper is already on the table, cutlery wrapped in a napkin is brought over.
I went for my usual Sunday lunch tipple, a pint of Guinness.
Once the food arrives sauces are offered, we choose ketchup and apple sauce.
I chose roast pork and my wife went for nut roast.
I was delighted to see such a huge slab of pork!
I love crackling and this sight I will always remember, what a beautiful moment.
The thick slab of pork tasted amazing.
The Yorkshire pudding soaked up the rich tasty gravy nicely.
The large roast potatoes were delicious with a nice crispy edge.
A root veg selection consisting of swede, parsnips and carrots.
I nice big heap of kale.
My wife really enjoyed her nut roast but couldn't finish both wedges. I was more than happy to help her out though and thoroughly enjoyed it, certainly the best nut roast I've ever eaten.
It was Sunday morning and my wife suddenly mentioned going for a roast dinner somewhere, I was well up for it! We were torn between trying The Reindeer on Dereham Road or The Earlham Arms on Earlham Road, we decided to try the Earlham Arms first as we'd had a great breakfast their before...
Upon entering - The Earlham Arms has a large dining room as well as plenty of tables around the bar. There are also some bar tables with stools to sit at when they are fully booked, this is where we sat and it seemed like a good enough spot. There are menus on the table but there didn't appear to be a Sunday roast menu, if you ask at the bar they will tell you what is available. Place your order and pay at the bar, everything is brought over when it's ready. There's salt and pepper already on the table, sauces and cutlery are brought over before the food arrives. Free wifi is available and if you want to bring your dog along then no problem, it's dog friendly. A blackboard saying what's available and how much the Sunday roast costs would have been nice It was certainly a great place to spend some time enjoying a pint or two and a nice roast dinner. 8/10
Service - There seemed to be plenty of staff about efficiently serving the full pub, everyone we spoke to seemed helpful and friendly too. When we first arrived we didn't think we would have a chance of eating here today as all the tables were booked. We were offered a place at the one of the bar tables though which we were happy to sit at. We were told to order at the bar when we were ready and also told what roasts were available. Once we'd placed our order and paid we sat down, the drinks arrived first shortly followed by cutlery and napkins. Despite it being really busy the food arrived about half an hour after ordering which was quite impressive, we were offered sauces which arrived in small pots. Our plates were cleared at the end and we left happy customers. 8/10
Type of roast - Ready served
Meats available - Beef and pork
Contents - Roast pork and crackling, roast potatoes, Yorkshire pudding, kale, parsnips, swede, carrots and gravy. 7/10
Vegetable portions - I was delighted that everything arrives already served on the plate here. Three huge roast potatoes, a big heap of kale and a trio of root veg consisting of carrots, parsnips and swede. 7/10
Presentation - The food arrived on a nice big plate, the veg sat together on one side of the plate, in the centre the potatoes and across the other side the Yorkshire pudding. The thing that really caught my eye though was the giant slab of roast pork coated in crackling that lay across the top. It all looked really impressive and I had a feeling that I was about to eat something really special. 9/10
The food - The thick slab of roast pork was amazing, I felt like I was in hog roast heaven. The juicy meat fell apart with ease as I cut through it and it tasted superb. The thick crackling that coated the meat was equally as stunning. I had difficulty slicing through the crackling so ate it in quite large lumps, the conversation was limited between my wife and I as I chewed away on it but what a delicious moment it was. I've eaten roast pork many times before but eating roast pork at The Earlham Arms takes it to a new level! The make or break item of any roast dinner is a decent roast potato and the chef here had nailed it nicely. Really big and tasty roast potatoes with a soft fluffy centre and golden crispy edge, perfect. The Yorkshire pudding was a nice size with a fairly good texture, softer at the bottom and crunchy at the top. I really like kale so was delighted with the generous serving given here, really fresh and nicely cooked. The mix of root veg was delicious and complimented the rest of the meal nicely, carrots, swede and parsnips. I'm a big fan of parsnips, they're always welcome on my roast dinner anytime. This was a really enjoyable roast and one I will always remember because of that stunning chunk of pork. 9/10
Gravy and sauces - The gravy was dark, rich and delicious, it was already on the plate and it lasted until the last piece of pork swiped across the plate. I asked for some apple sauce which arrived in a pot, good stuff from what I remember. 8/10
Veggie option - Nut roast, roast potatoes, Yorkshire pudding, kale, parsnips, swede, carrots and gravy. £9.95
Value for money - An incredible roast dinner for just under £10, a price I was very happy to pay! 9/10
Overall - The chunky slabs of delicious pork served here was something I will fondly remember for a long time! The nut roast was the best I've ever tasted and the beef looked amazing too. A thoroughly enjoyable Sunday roast served in a nice environment with friendly and efficient staff. The free wifi worked well and it was really nice to see dogs in the pub too. 8/10
