Who said the

war is over?

Step into the Albion in Chester and order one of its 'trench rations and you'd think that the Great War was still on all thanks to more than 30 years of devotion to the theme. And, as SUSAN NOWAK discovers, the true-to-life menu just soldiers on

This week's feature is all about a theme pub serving theme food... but before you shudder and scrape your plate into the bin, the Albion Inn is the real McCoy. The very best kind of living history. Dating back to the late 1880s, the pub stands at the foot of an encircling wall and is the last remaining Victorian pub in Chester's city centre making it exactly the right era to house one man's passion: the Great War.

'I don't know anywhere else that I could work and indulge my hobby like this, says Mike Mercer, 66. He has spent 34 years in a time warp, lovingly maintaining this street-corner pub, complete with original snug, as a classic First World War boozer.

Decor puts diners in a time warp

The Albion is packed with genuine antique bric-a-brac, some of it not entirely PC in today's climate, such as the original 'Put the Hun on iron rations poster. Even the wallpaper, different in each room, is made by Sandersons from preserved William Morris patterns. 'We've recently re-papered the main bar and the paper we chose was actually designed by William Morris on the very first day of the First World War, says Mercer, who served in the merchant navy before taking over the pub in 1970. His wife Christina adds: 'The place is pretty unique; guides bring groups of tourists to see it. You either love it or you hate it, and fortunately most people seem to love it.

Most people love the food, too, judging by the number of guide book accolades attributed to the pub. And as you might expect, the menu dubbed 'trench rations is based on wholesome cooking from nearly a century ago. Customers dine on thick slices of home-boiled gammon with parsley sauce and pease pudding accompanied by local spuds, fresh Savoy cabbage, carrot and swede.

There is McConickie's corned beef hash ('that's what they called it in the trenches) served with a little bowl of crisp, pickled red cabbage; cottage pie with cheese, leek and potato topping; savoury minced beef and tatties; McSweens haggis; and lamb's liver with bacon and onions in cider gravy. But what's this? Fruity coconut chicken curry with Basmati rice? As enjoyed by crusty colonels who went to India in the days of the Raj, of course.

'When we started serving food, we were really swimming against the tide, recalls Mike. 'Other pubs were getting into chips with everything and with us being in the Campaign for Real Ale (Camra) Good Beer Guide, we felt chips were not conducive to good ale. The two just don't mix, we didn't want the smell or the grease. So we went for mashed potato and it developed into war dishes. Mash goes naturally with things like steak and kidney or sausages you've got to have bangers and mash on the menu in a pub like this, as long as it's done properly.

Mercer's certainly is. He serves Leaning's Lincolnshire sausages from Market Raisen, with apple sauce and mash, and Penrith Cumberland sausage casserole flavoured with redcurrant.

Corned beef's a must-have dish

'Our most popular meal is corned beef hash, just a simple mix of mashed potato and tinned corned beef. In my view, it's the most boring thing in the world because it tastes exactly the same all the way down to the bottom, says Mercer. 'I've tried taking it off so many times but people always ask 'Where's the corned beef hash?' and we've had to bow to what the customer wants. I'm a great believer in 'if it works, don't oil it'.

So the core menu, cooked by his daughter Clare Churchill, has changed little over many years. A self-confessed foodie, Mercer channels his creativity into the daily specials board. On my visit, it offered chicken and bacon risotto with toasted pine kernels, though old-fashioned treats such as Guinness and Stilton pate with pickled pears, and black pepper oatcakes were there too. The place was filled with locals and tourists, regulars relishing the same dishes they'd clearly ordered before.

Glyn Turton, a regular, sometimes does the 'little recitations from war poet Wilfred Owen when Mercer throws one of his 'nights in the trenches. Turton explains: 'The food has been like this for as long as I can remember. Mike takes particular pride in his ingredients. I think the food is very good, and very good value though it baffles tourists occasionally and they have to get a translation.

The frontline serves 200 a week

One product Mercer seeks out is Staffordshire oatcakes from Tunstall or Burslem that are included in Rick Stein's Food Heroes. Like huge wholemeal pancakes, Mercer serves them stuffed with haggis and melted cheese, black pudding, fried potato, diced bacon and melted cheese, or cheddar with ham and leeks.

He serves around 200 diners a week, and is very busy at weekends, but says that a high proportion at lunchtime go for snacks such as the filled oatcakes known as Tunstall tortillas (£3.90) and great British butties exceptionally large freshly-cut doorstep sandwiches at £3.50. Every main dish is the same price, £6.95, be it roast Cheshire turkey with stuffing, cranberry and apple sauce or mince and tatties. Why? 'I honestly don't know, I keep asking myself that question, confesses Mercer.

At least it means cost is not a factor in choice, and all get home-cooked food made from quality ingredients, in quantities a war population could only have dreamt of. He is vague on GP, but puts it around 65%, with food and wet sales roughly equal. Though the Albion is highly successful, for the Mercers it is a lifestyle as well as a business they are out to make a living, not a killing.

They are very involved with the few remaining Great War veterans by holding fundraising events. One 107-year-old, who served in the Royal Naval Air Service, has told Mercer about the sort of food folk ate then. It is hardly surprising that he has little time for contemporary pub cuisine. 'There's still a lot lacking in pub food. You have the places that serve junk food, then the gastro pubs that have gone to the other extreme restaurant food in a pub, and at restaurant prices.

Next battle plan

Mike and Christina Mercer are working hard to complete two bedrooms so that they can start offering B&B accommodation early next year. Both will have a luxury that was unheard of during two world wars en-suite bathrooms.