It was lunch time and I just so happened to be at a loose end in the Harston area. I don’t get over this side of Cambridge enough, so I knew it was important to make the most of it while I was here.

A place I have had my eye on for a while is the Queens Head, a beautiful historic pub frequently recommended by the Cambridge Foodies for its popular Thai food menu.

Entering the building, we are greeted with two rooms. A small nook with a charming bar on one side and a large restaurant area, decorated in a smart contemporary style, in the other. The room is a mix of cream and wood, with lots of windows bringing in natural light, making it a very pleasant place to be during the day. There are a few Thai ornaments dotted around the restaurant area but you don’t really get the “authentic Thai feel” some may be looking for. This is very much an old English pub serving Thai food… but that is A-OK with me! 👌

We spotted a “special lunch time offer” on the menu for £11. This comes with your choice of main, starter and rice for a set price.

For prawn and duck expect to pay an extra £2.

Being in a very unimaginative mood, both my guest and I ordered the green and red Thai curry.

My guest ordered the fish cakes, as a starter and I ordered the chicken satay, for mine. These came out with the mains, presented beautifully on a square ceramic plate with garnish. It was visually pleasing and had a lot of colour that really jumped off the bright white plate. At this point, I was thinking how much of a step up this is from the supermarket meal deal 🤣

We were both in agreement that the Thai curries were well executed. Portion sizes were decent and came generously packed with crispy vegetables (aubergine, bamboo, green beans, basil, red peppers and chili).

I was impressed with the quality of the beef in my curry. Not only was there a generous amount in the curry but it was also soft and tender. I would definitely recommend it. 

The rice portion was modest but fair for a lunch portion. It was well cooked and gave a soft sticky texture that done the job.

As part of the lunch menu, both our meals came with two starter options. Both my chicken satay and the fish cakes had a rather delicate flavour and a slight soft rubbery texture. They were by no means offensive in any way but didn’t particularly stand out either. With that said, for £11 to have the option of a starter for lunch was a really nice touch and it made the dining experience a little bit more interesting than just having a single portion. It was certainly a welcome and completed the promotion nicely.

Conclusion

The Queen’s Head pub offers great value Thai food in a beautiful surrounding. The curries were both the star of the show today and really stood out as the strongest part of the meal. The service was prompt and we were able to have our lunch easily within our lunch break, making it a competent and reliable place to pop by if you so happen to live or work in the area.

I didn’t think the starters were quite up to scratch when compared to other Thai restaurants in the area, but will be enough to satisfy most people (including myself). The curries themselves stand shoulder to shoulder with any other Thai restaurant and I highly recommend giving them a try, especially at £11. What a deal!

Thanks for reading