Optimisti C.
Yelp
As one of the previous reviews said "don't do it" - I foolishly didn't read the yelp reviews and went by word of mouth. In full disclosure: I'm a Brit and felt like I needed a little taste of the country lane pub (like The Bell in Sapperton, in the Cotswolds, I wish.)
You know it's fake, but there's something here that you so want to believe is authentic. And, they do have Speckled Hen on tap.
But yes, it is all an illusion. You are wittingly being suckered into it.
Please, if you've never been to the UK (or don't care), ignore this posting and believe it is real - you truly will be in a tudor oak beamed pub, down a country lane, and the sun is shining.
However, the reality of it all comes crashing down when you receive the "Ploughman's Lunch" (listed under "Classics" in the menu.)
The great man that ploughs the fields of ye olde England deserves a hearty nourishing board that represents the bounty of the great farms of the fine old country. This great farmer shall not deserve a salad with a few crumbs of cheese drizzled with French dressing and a side of ginger chutney. Firstly, "drizzling" is reserved only as a British weather description. Secondly, we would never combine anything "French" with the fine produce of the great British farm. Thirdly, he who toils deserves a generous dollop of Branston pickle.
A little confused, I asked the waiter if the said dish was indeed the classic PL and not a salad - the response was "it's our style." Clearly.
To be objective: The Ploughman's lunch is not a salad, if it were a salad, please list it on the menu under "Salad" - do NOT list it under "Classics" - the Pelican Inn's PL is definitively NOT a classic British Ploughman's lunch.
Anyway, if it were a salad, one should not expect the salad to contain wilted and decaying salad leaves mixed among other fresh leafy greens. Horrible, horrible, horrible.
The service: if you can find the waiter, is tardy, lack luster and indifferent. This is not a cheery British country pub.
DO have a pint and enjoy the garden.
DON'T eat at the Pelican Inn. (If you're British, bring sandwiches, eat in the car like it's raining, or enjoy everything else this beautiful area has to offer.)