The Lodge Farm Cafe on the A17 near Holbeach is a great place to grab a meal if you are passing along the road on the way to the coast.

We last stopped here in 2022 when I thoroughly enjoyed devouring a breakfast (read more here) back then the sign said that they had been Truckstop of the Year in 2018

This second visit to the Lodge Farm Cafe was brought about purely because I read in the Truckstop paper that they had been voted Truckstop of the Year winners for 2023.

On the way back from the coast, even though it was more like early tea time we had to break our journey to check them out again

SOME OF THE SPECIALS

If you glance away from the laminated menu towards the wall by the counter you can find the daily (or perhaps always) specials that they offer. All absolute old school classics such as Cottage Pie, Steak & Kidney Suet Pudding (you don’t see that much!), Steak Pie, and Liver & Bacon. Apple Crumble and Rhubard Crumble being offered as puddings, or even as mains (I suppose) if you just wanted a sweet treat on your pit stop 😍

They all sounded really comforting and in the end we chose the Cottage Pie with Vegetables for £9.50. We could have had chips and peas instead with it but sometimes a proper meal with veg is the best.

COTTAGE PIE

The Cottage Pie was quite delightful coming served in it’s own individual bowl accompanied by portions of peas, carrots, cabbage and plenty of gravy.

It was nice to get the extra gravy even though there was plenty in the mince within the bowl. I could have tipped the bowl onto the plate so that it was easier to mix it all up but the bowl was really hot and it seemed like a right faff at the time

Highlights of the dish was the fluffy potato mash on top of the meat that had been nicely browned up under the grill so that you got those glorious bits of crispy mash

The minced beef inside the bowl was nice and tasty and pretty well seasoned, it was certainly comforting as well as filling. Almost too much so as a lot of food can make you sleepy which is not ideal for a long drive home. It would be a nice meal to have before heading back to the cab of a lorry for an overnight sleep though especially on a cold night (I imagine anyway)

The breakfast menu was looking the same as last time we visited except that the prices have gone up since. They have everywhere but it’s always interesting on this blog to look back at places we have been before to see just how much by. For the record in 2022 I had the small breakfast for £4, today in 2023 it is £5, it looks like everything went up by a quid but I still think that is really good value

Elsewhere on the menus away from the classics and the breakfast options they were offering Grills. I do like a mixed grill and it was with that in mind that the mini grill was chosen for £8.50

That was for a plate of ‘Egg, Bacon, Lincolnshire Sausage, Chips, Onion Rings, Beans & Mushrooms’

The 10 oz Gammon Steak with eggs, peas, chips & onion rings might have been a good option, no pineapple on offer though and anyway one of us wasn’t that hungry

MINI GRILL

In reality this was more of an all day breakfast with chips. I think that the only thing making it grill like was the addition of a portion of onion rings that came out seperate from the main dish

The highlight was the lincolnshire sausage which was really tasty and a lot better than the catering efforts I have been served elsewhere recently.

The bacon was decent and the egg yolk nice and runny but the rest was somewhat forgettable. If I passed this way again I would suggest that the big breakfast was a better option. It was nice enough though to fill you up not as filling as the cottage pie but enough to provide fuel for the onward journey

The Lodge Farm Cafe is located at 138 Washway Rd, Holbeach, Spalding PE12 8JA. It is much easier to enter and arrive than some of the other stops on the A17 as there is a proper junction and the actual cafe is set back off the main road.

They do have a Facebook Page that you can check out for more details and contact information