"When you see something on our menu, you know it's homemade" - that's the pledge from the chef at Atherton's Pendle Witch pub.
The team at the Witch are signed up to the council's healthy business agenda and now all their meals are freshly made to order on the premises.
Just off Market Street on Warburton Place in the centre of Atherton, the pub is well known as a real ale house - with CAMRA guide credentials going back over ten years - but as long-term landlady Joan Houghton says, she really wanted to give customers something more.
"Everyone knows our pub as one where you can get a variety of high quality beers," Joan says, "and with our new menus we're developing a reputation for offering food that's a bit more special than the usual burger or pie and pint".
Joan brought in chef Jason Baxter whose menus state in detail exactly what he has used to make each meal down to the last calorie. He wanted to produce healthy food so customers could be confident as to precisely what they are eating and how it has been cooked. He's even removed salt cellars from the tables.
"Of course people can have salt if they want it" he says. "But I carefully prepare each meal and ensure unhealthy ingredients like too much salt are kept out . Taste it first!"
Wigan Council's Cabinet Champion for Lifestyles, Cllr Paul Prescott says, "Pub grub has a mixed reputation, but here's a venue which is not only celebrating food but also offering something way beyond basic bar snacks in terms of quality and style. We're delighted to support the Pendle Witch."
The man from head office is happy too. Mike Hiscock from Moorhouses Brewery acknowledges that times are tough in the industry just now. "We're delighted that the Pendle Witch is working with Wigan Council. Being a healthy business is important to us and shows we're committed to giving choice and quality to customers."
The Pendle Witch is open seven days a week with the healthy kitchen serving Monday to Friday lunchtimes.
