Black Dog: North Donside Road, Aberdeen

WITH a wedding to save for, I’m under strict orders to spend less than a skint miser during the credit crunch.

In fact, it was only after I threatened to cook that my fiancee agreed to a pub meal.

But on our tight budget, I had to find somewhere value-tastic – and I struck gold with this Bridge of Don eatery.

Skipping the starters (another sad sign of the times), the missus plumped for the sizzling half roast chicken (£4.49).

As it turned out, it was half of a rather large chicken, and it would have been a tough ask to finish even before she opted for the topping of BBQ sauce, diced onion rings and cheese (an extra £1.50). It was delicious, though, with the moist meat complemented perfectly by the oozing cheese and rich, almost spicy BBQ marinade.

Safe in the knowledge that she’d eaten so much there was no way she’d manage pudding, I suppose I should have chucked the savings into the wedding fund – but where’s the fun in that?

The much tastier choice was upgrading my planned rump steak to the 10oz rib-eye (£7.49).

It came perfectly cooked, with just the right amount of red tinge and the knife positively sliding through the meat.

For a steak of that quality, it was outstanding value, and it got me thinking ... I wonder if they do wedding receptions?