You could easily miss this new food and drink court at Lancashire beauty spot- but don't

Earlier this year I did a video where I admitted I hadn’t been back quite often enough for how lovely it was. And guess what....now it’s got even better.

A new food, drink and live music area has opened in the walled garden, near the main car park off Berkerley Drive, called The Roost. But unless you’ve been told about it, you’d very easily miss it - and that would be such a shame.

So, to make sure you don’t miss out, when you’re in the main carpark, and the cafe is infront of you, instead look right, and you’ll just about see a red banner with an arrow pointing the way. In something that reminded me of the Secret Garden, you walk through an opening in a rustic old brick wall, and down some steps into a pergola-covered walkway.

Just a few metres along here, another opening appears on the right-hand-side, and there it is, the roost. It’s quite a large area, with both covered and uncovered tables, some outdoor games like Jenga, a well-stocked bar, and a kitchen.

Dogs are welcome, and there’s some funky toilets in an on-site cabin where the sinks have been made from old beer kegs. My son liked that bit.

I was quite surprised, in all honesty. At how well-done it was, and how big it was. We went on a cold October afternoon, but I can imagine in the summer, this place would be packed. Or at least it should be.

We walked over to the bar to look at the menu, and were given a warm welcome by the bar man. Much warmer than the welcome I received in July while attempting to look at the menu at the main cafe...Anyhow, the menu, which was supplemented by some Halloween specials, focused on pizzas, garlic breads and burgers, and that was fine by me.

Food choices

I chose a simple margharita pizza (£11), my husband had a garlic mushroom burger with chips (16.50), and my son had the Mummy’s hotdog with chips (£7). There isn’t a kids menu, so bear that in mind.

The bar menu is extensive - from £50 bottles of chablis, to whiskey, gin, wine and soft drinks. Both my husband and I had a hot chocolate (£3.55) and my son had half a pint of lemonade (£1).

In total, lunch with drinks cost us £42.60, so it’s not a cheap trip. However...I will certaintly be back.

When our buzzer went off and we collected the food, it was fresh, tasty and of great quality. A pizza is simple, but easy to make heavy and stodgy. Mine was neither - made using sourdough in a pizza oven, with ample, zingy and herby tomato and stringy mozzarrella, it was delicious. My husband’s double, smashed beef burger was so good, he commented specifically. The chips were crisp and not too oily, but the piece de resistance of the dish were the garlic mushrooms - finely and carefully chopped, and oozing flavour. The hot dog was authentic, huge, and everything a young boy would want from a lunch. Oh, and extra points for real Heinz ketchup.

The Roost even offers blankets to keep you warm, and it’s a real boost for the park, which, until the last few years, has really lacked in any kind of facility. I hope it does well - there’s no reason why it shouldn’t - and like I said, even though it’s not cheap, we will be back to enjoy with a dog walk and maybe even some live music.