On a chilly winter evening, what better to do than relax with friends and eat loads of delicious comfort food?

With its dark, cosy surroundings, chattery buzz and friendly service, The Preston Ember Inn in Wembley is just what you picture when you feel like some pre-Christmas indulgence.

Whether you just fancy a pint, or you want a slap-up meal, a comforting pub is the best place to go during the festive season.

The pub promises to be a "home away from home", and as my flatmate and I ate our body weights in cheese and wine, that's exactly where we felt, and exactly where you want to be at this time of year.

Croxton Manor Cheddar Melting Pot

We started off by ordering a bottle of Rioja and ordering one of the sharer-plate starters - Croxton Manor Cheddar Melting Pot (£6.49); with the weather outside totally freezing and after both coming straight from work, we felt it necessary to go straight for a huge vat of melted cheese.

The oozy cheddar and fresh bread was a wonderful way to start the meal, and went really well with the wine we ordered. As it's a sharing plate, designed for two, there was the perfect amount of food to get you excited for the rest of the meal without completely spoiling your appetite, and the mixture of bread and crudités for the cheese meant that there was something different for both of us to enjoy.

Beef and Red Wine Lasagne

Afterwards, my plus-one had the Beef and Red Wine Lasagne (£7.49) which she said was rich and delicious, and the perfect amount of food for a main course. It came with garlic bread and a salad... perfect winter comfort food.

For my main, I chose the Sweet Potato and Bean Burger (£7.29); being a seasoned veggie, I usually judge a restaurant based on its bean burgers, and this one didn't disappoint.

It was a crunchy mix of beans and chickpeas, and the bun itself was really nice; I usually like a little bit more veg thrown in, but you can't really argue with the price of it!

After the mains we were both stuffed to the brim, but decided to share a dessert. In hindsight this was probably a mistake and would lead to us having to roll home, but they all looked incredibly tempting, and what else is Christmas about than over-indulging yourself?

Veggie burger with chips

The dessert menu looked incredible, filled with decadent favourites like chocolate sundae and salted caramel cheesecake.

I do think I made a bit of a mistake with my dessert-ordering however. The Eton Mess (£3.99) was delicious, rich and tangy, however after all of the cheese and carbs from our previous courses, it felt a little much, and was a little cream-heavy for my taste, so I could only manage about half.

The fruitiness went so well with the wine we ordered, and the flavours did follow really well from our previous courses, so perhaps next time I'll take it a little easier with the starters and main to fit this in!

Eton Mess

Overall, we found that The Preston was the perfect spot for a freezing December evening; rich, indulgent food coupled with a cosy atmosphere to put you in the Christmas spirit... And with very reasonable prices, there's no excuse not to treat yourself to a meal here during the festive season.


Food: ****

Value: *****

Atmosphere: ****

Service: ****

Overall: ****

Essential Info

Address and contact details: The Preston Ember Inn, 161 Preston Road, Wembley, HA9 8NG - 020 8908 9794

Opening hours: 11.30am-midnight daily

Total price of meal and wine for two: £38.75

Have you been to The Preston Ember Inn in Wembley? Tell us what you thought in the comments below or Tweet @WhatsOnGWL.