The King & Thai

Located within a 200-year-old roadside pub between Telford and Bridgnorth, The King & Thai (yes, we know it’s a cheesy pun!) is proving a resounding hit with locals hereabouts: “absolutely outstanding” cheers one fan, while another reckons it’s “the best Thai food I’ve found, without exception”. Run by “creative, hard-working Suree Coates” and her keen team, this place delivers precise, sharp cooking in smart, cheerful, modern surroundings. Local, seasonal and free-range ingredients get a good airing on the refreshingly short menu and the results taste “amazingly fresh”, from chicken satay and skewered balls of minced Shropshire pork to stir-fried chicken with noodles. The regularly changing line-up might also feature the likes of tom yam goon soup, tofu and cashew curry, game from the local estates, and Panang beef with bamboo shoots, fine beans and oyster sauce. Desserts are “works of art” too, with their intricately carved fruits, spun sugar and lavish decoration.