THE HOLLYBUSH Inn and restaurant is a fine hostelry nestling in the picturesque village of Draethen.

With an excellent beer garden and woodland on all sides, it is a great way to spend a lazy Sunday afternoon.

It is also has a reputation for providing good food and diners really need to book a table to avoid disappointment.

To start, I went for the king prawns in garlic, white wine and fresh lemon and my girlfriend chose the goat's cheese wrapped in a puff pastry drizzled with pesto.

The prawns were gargantuan yet tender and very tasty. The goat's cheese was just as good and both dishes whetted our appetites.

For main course, I plumped for the whole grilled lemon sole with home cut chips and tartar sauce. Again, this was absolutely delicious and the portion was just enough to fill me.

My girlfriend went for the fillet of Welsh beef served with home-cut chips, grilled tomato, mushrooms and parsley butter.

Cooked to perfection, she said it was among the nicest steaks she had tasted.

Somehow we both managed to find room for dessert. I had the sticky toffee pudding with vanilla ice cream and my girlfriend selected the Baileys-flavoured cheese cake with toffee sauce and ice cream. Neither choice let down the fine standards set by the previous two courses.

It was clear the outstanding reputation forged by the owners and chef at the Hollybush was well deserved.

For three courses and two rounds of drinks each, the bill came to £62.85 which, while not cheap, was definitely worth it. Gareth Llewellyn