YOU know a pub must be doing something right when you pop in for a quick drink and end up staying for a meal.

Just such a circumstance happened at the Old Inn, when myself and three friends popped in for a post-paintballing pint at the weekend.

We had built up quite a thirst at the shoot 'em up, and had also proved that young people today need to watch more Second World War films to get a basic grasp of military tactics — there were lots of children at the paintballing at the same time as we were there, and despite being small and quick on their feet they proved easy to shoot in the back. Regardless of what team they were on.

After the battle had finished, team "death or glory" decamped to the Old Inn for a debrief — and immediately felt at home in the place with it's classy paint job of browns, greys and a kind of plum colour, comfy leather sofa, and tops tunes on the stereo in the shape of granddad rocker Chris Rea.

We settled back in the sofas with a couple of pints of beer and discussed the day's gunfights, and after a while realised that we didn't want to leave — so we reached for the menus.

While we studied the food options we had a sharing bowl of spicy nachos to keep us going — and they were delicious. Between the four of us the bowl was just a light bite but to be honest I could have eaten the lot myself, an opinion shared by brothers-and-sisters-in-arms — in fact had we still had the paintguns with us, hostilities may well have resumed.

For the mains we went for a real selection of dishes — two fishy, two meaty.

One of my comrades went for beer battered haddock and chips, and another for scampi and chips — both got enthusiastic thumbs-up.

My second-in-command went for ham, eggs and chips — and reported it to be good, save for an over-cooked egg — while I went for the "grills and more" burger stack, which was a real monster of a meaty meal, though the burgers were a touch on the dry side.

Satisfied with our meals we stayed a while longer — and who can blame us, for another Chris Rea track was just beginning.

Jason Evans