The Star Inn at Sancton Restaurant Review

Last Updated on May 6, 2023 by Suzy McCullough

Living in a seaside town we don’t have very many award-winning restaurants to choose from. There are a few in the old town but they are mostly only open evenings at 6 pm which as a family doesn’t really suit us. After messing up Father’s Day (we were away on a weekend break with my Mum without him, I’d booked it ages ago!) I really wanted to treat the other half.

I started by searching for Michelin star restaurants but the only really child-friendly sounding restaurant with a Michelin star was booked at weekends for about the next 8 weeks. I finally came across a multi-award-winning restaurant the Star Inn at Sancton that sounded welcoming of families. Plus I was able to book online which is always a bonus.

The Star Inn is located in the small East Riding of Yorkshire village of Sancton. It looks like a regular pub from the main road but as you can see from the photo above the back of the restaurant is modern and there is some seating amongst their many pots. It is also a short drive from the quaint rural market town of Market Weighton which is lovely to have a wander around.

The main draw for me was that they use locally sourced produce. The inn itself was once a coaching inn and it has come a long way from what was once referred to as a “grubby roadside boozer”.

The Cox family bought the grubby pub back in 2003 and have transformed it into a lovely and comfortable place to eat with a homely feel. Their children even help out from time to time and you can tell they have children from the kid’s menu.

I had booked a table for 12 o’clock and we were surprised by the number of cars already there. Don’t worry though as there’s plenty of parking, they even have an overflow car park. We were soon shown to our tables and as mentioned above the restaurant has a homely and comfortable feel to it.

Our drinks order was taken quickly and we honestly could not fault the service. It was run so well and with perfect timing. The waitresses were friendly and seemed happy in their jobs. They made our son feel welcome which we always like to see. It is probably the ‘poshest’ restaurant he’s ever eaten in and the relaxed atmosphere made him feel relaxed. He knew it was different to where we would normally eat but he took it all in his stride.

As you can imagine with multi-awards and a touch of class comes prices that for someone living in East Yorkshire you wouldn’t normally expect to pay, except in maybe Beverley. But that was why we were there, it was a belated Father’s Day gift and for us a special occasion.

As we were visiting on a Sunday we had a different menu than the rest of the week. There were starters such as homemade soup, fishcakes, asparagus and mushrooms. Most of the starters were priced around £10-11. I opted for the seared scallops with pressed ham hock, sweet potato puree, a quail egg, sea herbs and shoots. They were divine, my only gripe was for £11.95 I’d have liked 3-4 scallops rather than the two I had.

My husband opted for one of their two specials which were deep-fried crispy duck balls. These were much better value for money and he found them to be delicious but quite filling. We all had a fresh bread roll each as well which the seven-year-old was delighted about.

Main courses included duck breast, beer-battered fish and chips, a fish pie, roast hake, sirloin steak and more. The main courses were priced around £16-19 with some as much as £24-32. We are trying to be pescatarians unless we are eating locally sourced produce. We found the vegetarian option of a white onion tart tatin to be a bit disappointing so we both opted for roast beef.

We couldn’t resist the sound of their award-winning Yorkshire puddings and beef from the local butcher. Roast beef topside was £16.95, pork and chicken were £15.95 each. The beef was so tender it literally melted in our mouths, the Yorkshire was one of the best I’ve ever had and the potatoes roasted in duck fat with lashings of gravy were delicious. We can highly recommend it. Many of these dishes are available during the week, only the roasts are available on a Sunday.

We were all so full we sadly didn’t have room for dessert. Their desserts are priced around £10 each and had I not been so full I’d have tried the rhubarb and white chocolate cheesecake.

The Little Stars children’s menu had a choice of starters priced at £3.50 each. These included soup, garlic bread, a Yorkshire pudding and more. Their mains are then all priced at £7.00 each. Our son opted for the battered haddock and chips with peas.

Other mains included beef pie, sausage and mash, fish pie, a roast on a Sunday or mac and cheese. There are also three desserts to choose from at £3.50 each. He was given a pretty impressive portion of food and after a bread roll he was too full for dessert (not like him!)

It really was a lovely special treat for us all. We can highly recommend The Star Inn at Sancton.

The Star Inn FAQ & Further Information

Address: The Star Inn, King Street, Sancton, York YO43 4QP, East Yorkshire. Phone: 01430 827269

Category – Restaurant – Indoors and Outdoor seating – Children’s menu is available.

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