Review of Jen Edgar & Dick Richardson's book
Senior Citizens' Good Food Guide to Derbyshire, by Julie Bunting

SENIOR CITIZENS' GOOD FOOD GUIDE TO DERBYSHIRE

There have to be some advantages to growing older and one of them is eating out at special rates while those around you are tucking into exactly the same fare but paying more for it!

We are all used to seeing bargain invitations to whet the mature appetite, whether described as OAP meals or the more euphemistic Golden Years menus. Now Jen Edgar and Dick Richardson have trawled Derbyshire to assess dozens of participating establishments. At the time of writing it is possible to enjoy a 2-course lunch for as little as £3.25 a head. Another hostelry serves Senior Citizens' menus all day and every day.

Every possible query seems to be answered too, dealing with questions of wheelchair access, log fires, reductions for Gold Card holders, large-print menus, with a special mention of one in braille, and 'no loud music!' Warm welcomes await walkers, dogs and grandchildren. As for the menus, readers can check which places serve vegetarian dishes, home-made pies or sausages, Italian and Hungarian fare, free drinks with the meal, or the rare pleasure of beer brought up from the cellar in jugs. Smaller portions are available here and there, in contrast to button-popping snacks such as huge home-made black pudding sandwiches with brown sauce for around £1.

To help make an outing of it, the authors give descriptions of surrounding towns and villages, along with ideas for places to visit.

The first of a series covering the country, the Senior Citizens' Good Food Guide to Derbyshire is to be regularly updated; input from readers is welcome. Published by Ashridge Press and widely available locally, ref. ISBN 1-901214-51-6. At £3.99, it should pay for itself many times over.

Review by Julie Bunting