Inn at the Sticks, Llansteffan, Carmarthenshire restaurant review

Tucked away on the Towy Estuary in Carmarthenshire, Llansteffan has been on our list of places to visit in Wales for a very long time.

But, there’s never really been a sense of great urgency. There’s always been other places to visit, with tempting restaurants to turn my head.

That was until we heard that Teej Sparks had taken over the Inn at Sticks, a pub with rooms in the middle of Llansteffan, which dates back to the 19th century. Teej was formerly the ops manager for Ultracomida and became a friendly face on our doorstep during the pandemic when we stocked up regularly on absurd quantities of their olives. As a consummate hospitality professional, anything Teej turns her hand to is clearly going to be worth checking out. 

Inn at the Sticks is a beautiful venue that’s been lovingly restored with cast iron beams, exposed brickwork and a sturdy wooden bar. There's also a delicatessen and wine tasting room in the offing, which will add another string to the business’s bow.

On the booze front, there's sherry and vermouth by the glass as well as an interesting selection of wines from vineyards such as Kosovo’s Stone Castle and Lebanon's Chateau Musar. As we were driving, we enjoyed halves of Estrella Dam before moving onto alcohol free Asahi.

The menu bills itself as Welsh tapas and is divided into sections such as “from the land”, “from the garden” and “from the sea”. In reality, influences come from across France, Italy and Spain too and it’s in the use of top-drawer Welsh suppliers, such as Trealy Farm, Atlantic Edge oysters, and Teifi Cheese, where the real Welshness can be found.

We were recommended between four and six dishes to share and plumped for five.

Soft crumbed granary bread was accompanied by a bottle of grassy olive oil and PX sherry vinegar. It's a fine example of the benefits of Teej's background in working with top drawer Spanish produce.

A basket of golden cockle popcorn (£9) was just as addictive as the buckets of popcorn you get at the cinema. I shoved fistfuls of the crisp sweet and salty bivalves into my gob alongside a delicately honking wild garlic mayonnaise and vinegar twanged with the heat of chilli.

A trio of gloriously tender mini faggots, made with minced pork belly and chicken livers, delivered only the merest hint of offal, making them as accessible as this dish gets. Served with crushed sweet peas and a thick meaty gravy, the only quibble was that I wanted more. At £12, for this dainty dish it perhaps wasn't an unreasonable expectation.

A symphony of beetroot (£12) most certainly lived up to its billing, delivering harmonious textures and flavours of the earthy root vegetable - roast yellow beetroot, sharp pickled beetroot, and sweet beetroot chutneys and gel. It was accompanied by the crunch of candied walnuts and the creamy, salty funk of whipped Perl Las blue cheese.

A potato terrine (£9) was every bit as decadent as it looked. Thin layers of buttery potato retained just a smidgen of bite and had crisp caramelised edges. The luxury levels were dialled up further with a dusting of savoury parmesan and a splodge of truffle mayonnaise. A minor quibble, but we both found the dish a tad salty. 

Finally, a nicely flaky and delicately sweet fillet of plaice (£15) and pieces of hispi cabbage were bathed in a corker of a rich and buttery sauce flecked with the savoury salinity of laverbread. It wouldn't have looked out of place in a far swankier restaurant.

For dessert, we passed over the rather awesome (and foreboding) sounding dark chocolate oblivion. A smooth and creamy panna cotta (£8) was spiced with tonka bean whilst soft macerated strawberries were cannily fragranced with orange peel and the sweetness of honey.

Clever and delicious cooking in a lovely setting make Inn at the Sticks a belting Welsh pub. If you find yourself in this part of west Wales, then I'd very much recommend a visit. And whilst you’re there I’d recommend a stroll along the beautiful Towy estuary and a yomp up to Llansteffan Castle to work up an appetite.

The Details:

Address - Inn at the Sticks, High Street, Llansteffan, Carmarthen SA33 5JG

Web - https://innatthesticks.com/

Telephone -  01267 612727