YOU'LL have to travel 76 miles before you get a sniff of sea air — to Weston-super-Mare in Somerset, no less — but you can now get fine seafood from Britain and abroad in a quaint, thatched pub in the Vale of White Horse.

The Fox at Denchworth recently decided to hook its customers with a new fish menu. And it seems to be catching on.

Alongside traditional favourites such as home beer-battered cod and salmon are now tiger prawns, Scottish pollock, Cornish mackerel and Torbay sole — plus conger eel and squid for the more adventurous.

Proprieters Stephen Davidson and his partner Emma Morris admit they are taking a gamble.

Stephen said: "We love fish and we wanted to offer our customers the chance to eat some great fish too.

"Much of our fish is from Britain and I'm pleased to say people have really responded to it. Each Wednesday our two chefs contact our suppliers (Haymans Fisheries, in Oxford's Covered Market, and M&J Seafoods) and order their freshest, seasonal fish — and the customers have really embraced it."

I went to The Fox with my other half and our little sprat on a busy Sunday lunchtime. The Fox is famed locally for its steak nights and Sunday carvery, which is served alongside an extensive menu of dishes ranging from chicken and salads to lamb and venison casserole. It was busy. But we were there for the catch of the day.

WHAT DID YOU ORDER?

I chose the cod, prawn and broccoli pie with a herby suet crust (£8.95), my husband chose the fillet of seabass (£12.50) and our little one went for a half portion of the children's homemade lasagne (£3.95).

The food was served promptly, mine with a jacket potato and veg and his with a mustard mash and mushroom and leek fricassé. The little one's dish came with chips and peas and a teaspoon, which was very thoughtful.

I really liked my choice. Usually when I order a pie it has a puff pastry lid, but although the suety crust was heavier and herby, it was also crumbly and, most importantly, covered a deep dish of filling.

My jacket potato was as a jacket should be — large and fluffy with lots of butter. My only disappointment was the vegetables, as the carrots and cauliflower were a little overcooked.

My husband's seabass was a good sized potion and cooked perfectly. He wasn't sure about the mash, although he said that was down to personal taste, but he liked the combination of leeks and mushrooms in the fricassé.

Our little lass, being only two, isn't quite able to give an opinion of food yet (she either eats it or she doesn't) but eat her lasagne she did, along with her peas and chips. (In a nice touch I realised that the chefs had given her a toddler portion, not a children's portion, and it was just right.) The husband was too full for pud, but the little one and I opted for ice cream. Mine was homemade, chocolate with chocolate chunks (£3.95) and kept me quiet until the bottom of the bowl. She had a cute ice cream clown decorated with sweeties (£1.95) and demolished it like a professional.

VERDICT: When I first heard The Fox was branching out into fish it seemed a little odd, but like many of their patrons I'm glad they have. This place works hard to keep its customers happy. I'd recommend dipping in some time.