The subject of this review, the Rising Sun Pub, sits atop Highwood Hill in a leafy, pleasant part of North London. It is surrounded by many large, impressive houses, further down the hill are paddocks where horses roam freely and so it is in prime position to sate large appetites and absorb deep wallets of the surrounding clientele.

The owner, who took charge of the pub in May 2009, used to be a partner of the North London pizza/pasta chain “La Porchetta”, so disappointingly named as it never, in any of the branches I visited, actually served its eponymous dish (which is boned belly/shoulder of pork, stuffed, rolled and roasted). He and his family have been operating since May 2009 and they serve a mixture of Italian dishes and some traditional pub fare.

The pub has been redecorated and the former store room converted into a small dining area, with the dining area spruced up, but the bar area has been preserved in the style of an “old man’s pub”, as my ever-so-trendy brother described it. The pub is deceptively large but retains its cosy feel, exposed timber beams enhancing the aesthetic. I ate there on a Wednesday evening with my family to as we were having a “farewell” meal for our aunt, who was visiting from the USA.

Now, eating with family can be a happy or horrendous experience (with my family there is no in between), I didn’t foresee that if you reveal to them that you intend to review the restaurant, they will bombard you with observations and criticisms; “We had to wait 10 minutes for menus”, “the wine was not poured for us”, “the waitresses’ hair is not tied up” and my own, which was, “they’re playing Whitney Houston, and loudly”. Given the increasing frequency and aggression of the comments, towards the end of the evening it began to feel as if I’d been unwittingly morphed from their critical conduit to being wholly responsible for any errors (“Look, James! These potatoes are bruised!”). N.B. Never again review restaurants in the company of family.

The starters were generally well received. They happily accommodated my request for the side dish of Tomato, Mozzarella and Basil salad to be served as a starter and my choice was well rewarded. The Mozzarella was creamy and soothing and provided a happy counterpoint to the olive oil and lemon juice dressing. The tomatoes were firm, juicy and quite sweet, the home-made bread served with it (oddly in a paper bag) was soft and chewy. My youngest sister informed me that the Scallop and Rosemary oil salad was “very good”. The scallops were slightly under-seasoned but otherwise perfectly executed (albeit criminally served without the coral, which caused me to doubt their freshness) and the salad was mere padding that suggested a lack of confidence in the cook’s ability and/or the produce. All other family members tucked heartily into plates of antipasto, which consisted of the typical variety of cured meats, salad, vegetable “confits”, mozzarella and caper berries.

However the main courses were more inconsistently executed by the new chef, who was making his debut in this kitchen, therefore allowing the proprietor a night off from behind the stove. Lamb Steak was overcooked and therefore tough (perhaps not rested sufficiently?) and so the delicacy of the meat’s flavour had been lost. The Veal Chop was pan fried and then roasted, receiving satisfied murmurs of approval from sister No.3 (note, reference to age, not my preference) although she did, in a uniquely British way bemoan the lack of sauce/gravy, even though none was promised.

The home-made venison meat pie was savoured for its rich and tender meat but it was noted that pastry was cooked too fiercely, thus was too dry and crumbly to act as a vessel for and textural contrast to the meat. My mussels were cooked in a typically robust Italian tomato sauce, with garlic and a little chilli. The mussel shells weren’t all especially clean and they had been cooked a little too long, thus some were slightly chewy, but overall it was a passable attempt at the dish. The sauce was mopped up with more of the excellent bread.

All main courses came with a rather lazy effort of mange tout and pappy, and sometimes bruised, “rounds” of what I presume was meant to be sautéed potatoes, although it appeared as if the potatoes had merely stolen furtive glances at the pan, rather than actually engaged in any meaningful way with it. Therefore the potatoes were neither crispy nor fluffy, or stewed gently in olive oil. It seemed to me that they had been pre-prepared, forgotten about, then rushed as the rest of the meal components were ready. The wine list was sourced mainly from Italy and I was informed that the wine chosen by my family, a Tuscan Rosé, had a slight fizz and was bland.

After we’d digested the inconsistencies of the main courses, everyone else politely declined dessert. I too was quite full but, at the point of decision my thoughts turned to my many, many dear readers. How can I maintain my integrity without reviewing all three courses? Of course I couldn’t and so after the waiter (also the proprietor’s son) had espoused the loveliness of his home-made crumble, I felt obliged to try it. The best thing I can say about it is that was made with enthusiasm and love, but the floury, tasteless topping and the stewed apple did not combine to make a good crumble. The apple was a decent balance of tart and sweet (enhanced with brown sugar and cinnamon) but the topping was a powdery, tasteless shambles. Worst of all the custard was not home-made and whilst not all bought custards are awful, this was gloopy and bland. I suppose some comfort can be taken from their honesty.

Overall the experience was okay, the effort was sincere and charming but the food was inconsistent. The meal averaged at £20 per head, for two courses without wine. For two people, three courses and a bottle of wine would come to circa £35-£45 per head which if cooked well, would represent decent value. There was enough merit in the meal to at least give it a second chance, which would hopefully prove that the flaws were a one-off. Consistency is the hardest thing for a restaurant to achieve and I hope, for their and the local’s sake they get there.