FOR a tip-top Sunday lunch, look no further than this lovely venue in the centre of Milnthorpe.

The stylish and classy No 17 serves as a restaurant, cafe and bar and is proving popular with both locals and visitors to this small South Lakes town.

My partner and I were two such visitors one Sunday after we had been to the nearby Lakeland Wildlife Oasis, just down the road at Hale, where we enjoyed meeting some exotic wildlife.

During the week there is always a good variety of food on the lunchtime and evening menus, and on a Sunday foodies can try anything from a traditional roast dinner with a twist to vegetarian meals and fish dishes.

You can choose a main for a very reasonable £11.50, make it into two courses for £2 more, or switch to three courses for £15.50.

Each of the choices on the menu grabbed my attention, but as soon as I saw this one there was no way back – roast top side of beef, new potatoes, duck fat roast potatoes, Yorkshire pudding and rich pan gravy.

It was a Sunday lunch sent from heaven, everything was perfectly cooked and the presentation was imaginative and creative.

My partner is not as much of a fan of the traditional Sunday lunch as I, so she went for the lightly battered Fleetwood haddock, mushy peas, hand-cut chips and chunky tartare sauce.

I managed to bribe her into swapping a forkful of my meal for a forkful of hers, and so I can confirm it was a lovely dish.

We had opted for the two course choice, so for dessert I went for sticky toffee pudding with vanilla ice cream, while my partner went for chocolate brownie with cinder toffee ice cream and white chocolate sauce.

* Total cost of meal (excluding drinks) for two people: £27.