The first thing to say about Narrow Boat is the charming location; on the banks of the Regent’s Canal affording lovely views across the water.

I’ve often walked past on my waterside strolls and fancied popping in, but the recent re-furb and menu facelift gave me the perfect opportunity.

It looks delightful for a drink on a sunny day, but it was also just the job on our winter visit; a cosy retreat from the January gales.

A congenial mixture of diners and drinkers populated the upstairs room.

Gazing out on the lights of the canal, we kicked off by sharing an allotment board. with a tasty, but small, baked Camembert, a tasty bean dip, fizzy and piquant artichokes and olives and upsettingly dry pasties.

A nice communal nibble, but next time I would probably order the meat platter instead.

Our sea bream was big, juicy, doused in creamy lemon and dill, with heaped herbed potatoes and coleslaw.Less delicate was my thick slab of steak with melted blue cheese and chips and the obligatory grilled tomato.

Quick mention for celeriac dauphinoise, which was great – creamy and cheesy and not a potato in sight. For pud, a no-holds barred sticky toffee pudding, all sponge and agoo, with slated caramel ice cream.

It’s pub grub, done to a high standard and reasonably priced and would make a great stop on the canal route at any time of year.

Jon Dean