The Pitcher and Piano, St Nicholas Street, Worcester

9:26am Friday 14th March 2008

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THE first thing that hits you as you step into Worcester's branch of the Pitcher and Piano is what a grand old Tudor building this is.

Unfortunately, once inside, the second thing that hits us - on this particular Sunday at least - is, well, the smell.

This bar, like too many others, seems to be suffering from an unintended but perhaps inevitable consequence of last summer's smoking ban. It appears that all those nasty cigarette fumes were actually doing a pretty decent job of disguising the true aroma of many of our nation's favourite watering holes - namely, a less-than-heady blend of toilets and stale lager.

Even though we moved to a table as far from the toilets as possible, the stench throughout the bar was frankly somewhat overpowering - hardly the ideal eating companion.

Our appetites soon returned, however, as we perused the extensive menu, with all eyes immediately drawn to the lengthy burger section. Clearly a point of pride for the Pitcher and Piano, the burger menu offers an extraordinary range of styles, toppings and added extras which allow you to construct a mighty tailor-made meal to satisfy almost every taste.

What is more, the bar's ongoing two-for-one deal on all burgers is brilliant value, and me and one of my companions were both hugely impressed with the towering feasts with which we were presented.

My classic beefburger was immense - far too big for its bun and greedily topped off with cheese, bacon, guacamole and the bar's own smoke and fire' topping (totalling £12). My vegetarian friend, meanwhile, pronounced the imaginative mozzarella and olive burger (£7.95) a delight. Unfortunately, the steak and mushroom pie (£9.25) chosen by our third companion was a real disappointment.

We'd all enjoyed the starters, however, particularly the deliciously creamy mushroom and asparagus bruschetta (£5.75) but also the lightly-battered tempura butterfly prawns (£4.75). And the plum and strawberry crumble (£3.95) with which we finished was truly a homemade triumph.

For the most part, then, this was a breath of culinary fresh air compared with much of the bog-standard bar food available.

If only the air inside was a little bit fresher too...

HOW IT RATEDPitcher and Piano, St Nicholas Street, Worcester.

Telephone: 01905 23050

Food *** Value for money *** Ambience ** Service ****