please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.
On the main street. One local ale (sold in aid of Ukraine) v pleasant indeed. Good quality lunch very much enjoyed. Recommended.
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Looks as if new owners/ managers have taken over but not sure as I use this pub infrequently. All I know is that I have paid the Nelson my last ever visit! 2 pints £9!
I hate having the piss taken out of me and that's what they are doing when they charge these ridiculous prices for offering absolutely fuck all.
goodbye
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3rd and last pub from the 2016 GBG and this is by far the most historic but as a pub I found it lacking a bit.
The area the Nelson is located in is lovely, there's 19th century Almshouses next door and a very fancy golf course up the hill...though to be honest Farnham is a lovely town anyway, however this was the first pub I visited that I felt an outsider in, not in a threatening way just that I'm clearly not from Farnham and it seemed like all the punters here were!
5 hand pumps each with a different ale, I had a pint of Surrey Nirvana but it was wasn't a great pint, a reduced score for keeping the ale.
To the rear is a small courtyard garden with decking and seating for around 25, the canopy gave good shade from the sun.
I mixed feelings re my visit to this pub. Will I return? I'm unsure if I'll ever return to Farnham...however it is a nice looking historic pub...try it for yourself.
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Excellent evening. The staff are so good. Beer choice was Taylors Landlord, Rev James from Brains and the winner for me, Andwells Gold Muddler. Beer quality was good and the food comes in large portions. Very historic place and full of character and people!
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Amazing pub with loads of history. Friendly staff who chat and converse as much as you want to; they even try and find you a table when you turn up without notice. Good selection of beers and of food, and the food was of the highest quality. They said "See you again" as we left - and indeed they will!
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Under the ownership of Tom this pub has greatly improved. The staff are friendly, the food is good and the ale is fine (although still room for improvement - not a great fan of Andwells!). If you are in Farnham then this is worth a visit!
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This pub has an appealing atmosphere, perhaps because it is such an old pub. It is worth a visit especially for the location.
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Finally tried here after years of believing it was over 25s only (apparently I was wrong) and having moved away before the age bar was reached and was very pleased with the whole place. Drinks are of top quality, all the ales are well kept and presented, excellent to find Tanqueray being served the RIGHT way (cucumber and ice, slimline and no citrus please). Tidy garden kept clean but could try harder to make it more interesting and a lovely heritage interior. slightly manic on carnival night, but that's to be expected. Food appears well portioned and rapidly delivered although I've yet to sample a proper meal.
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Regularly used to visit this pub on Friday evening / Sunday afternoon. Recent visit was most disappointing. Beer choice was poor as was quality. We didn't eat this time as food has been disappointing in the past. Pub seems to have lost it's way since the one member of staff who was interested in the beer and the locals has left.
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Following my last bad review (Feb 09) I recently decided to drop by this pub again. Pleased to say it has improved a great deal with four ales on tap (Landlord, Winchester, Alton's Pride & Hobgoblin). Having sampled all four the quality was very good. The interior is back to being more aligned with that of a pub rather than a restaurant and the service was fine. Unusually for a town centre pub it is now a relaxing place to have a drink, meet friends and read the papers. Didn't try the food as it wasn't being served at the time of my visit. I'll be going back.
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Big food portions. Decent beer choice. Old style interior. Can feel slightly stuffy if crowded - otherwise good.
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Large food portions, saw a football match here.
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lovely pint of dazed and confused fff landlord on and altons pride. good too see beer sorted out. try it.
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Went for Sunday lunch for third time in four months. Staff are great - cheerful and breezy but food arrives promptly and its very high quality. It isn't cheap mind but there you go.... Gravy was a bit salty but meat etc was excellent quality.
Beer is superb. I have had Reverend James and Deuchars IPA here and always good - served with a head (sorry but Northerners need that!!)
I really like the atmosphere in here and its pushing Hop Blossom for best in Farnham centre
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Went for dinner at the Nelson a couple of nights ago as the menu at the Shepherd and Flock had shrunk and didn't have anything we fancied on it. The baked camembert to share was fabulous but �8.25 for 3 overcooked prawns in garlic butter was a sign of what was to come.
My husband's main course sirloin came without half the ingredients shown on the menu, when we mentioned this to the waitress she muttered something about thinking it was from a different menu. Before she got this rectified we found that the steak was very well done throughout despite it being ordered as medium rare. My husband sent it back and after quite some time was served a blue steak that wasn't even warm 2mm in. This went back and he finally got a medium rare steak on the third attempt.
Our friend's burger was good but served with a fraction of the chips it normally comes with (maybe this 'other' menu the waitress mentioned was the 2 for 1, however this theory didn't prove true when we got the bill). My beef wellington was good but with rather tough pastry.
The owner did offer us one free dessert but we didn't think this was sufficient as the 3 attempts to get my husband's meal right had left him eating alone and the other 2 of us with cold food as we'd tried to slow down so we had something left when his arrived!
On paying the bill my husband did complain and was given his main course free.
This is such a shame as whenever we've been to the Nelson for lunch (usually burgers) it's been lovely. I refuse to use the one of the unnecessarily large range of chain restaurants in Farnham as I want to support local businesses, especially pubs. However it feels like the Nelson is over stretching itself. Either get some new chefs or be realistic about what the existing ones can achieve.
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Where to start without boring everyone to tears?!!
1.4 out of 6 meals served with several ingredients missing.
2. Sub-standard steaks at a vastly inflated price served on side plates and smothered in french dressing. A dish of vegetables on the side, potaotes missing but nowhere on a side plate to put them anyway!
4. Food either undercooked or burnt.
3. The manager was completely unapologetic and blamed his waitress for not mentioning that some ingredients were not available, and his butcher for providing poor steaks!
Avoid this pub that is posing as a restaurant at all costs.
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I agree with all the comments below about the staff, service etc. We won't be going back again because the special offer is now half portions and the free glass of wine was mixed with fruit juice!
Watch your bill because it is never added up correctly and always in their favour.
I don't see the point in doing these offers and then being off with people. Surely the idea is to be so good that people will wan't to return
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I'm all for supporting local businesses but to compete with the chains the Nelson has to deliver something over and above. Probably best to take the critism on board and improve rather than just rant on!
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Repeat after me .... this is not a chain!!
Don't expect generic food, pushy waiters offering you side salads
with every meal or matching uniforms.
This is not pizza express, or Zizzi's, this is a REAL English
restaurant, complete with HOME MADE food, not boil in the bag,
freeze dried rubbish.
This is an honest, family run, character pub/restaurant, where you become a local, a face, not a cover, or a statistic.
What ever happened to supporting the local buisnesses in your area
instead of brandishing them, comparing them to corperations.
If you like something orignal, unique and different every time
go to the Nelson, if you like Pizza, Pasta, boring service and
the same old sh*t then bugger off to a chain, because no1
likes wingeing old farts!!!
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If he were alive today I think Lord Nelson would rather have lost his other eye than look at the shambles this place has become. Been in a couple of times over the years and everytime something has let this place down. Either the beer is off. the staff are off or the food is off. Well in future I'm off....to another restaurant.
Given the location and history of the building it makes sense to convert it back to a proper pub with a food option. We can only hope........
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I went to the Nelson last night for dinner with my boyfriend. I have eaten there a few times and always enjoyed it. However, last night was not enjoyable.
1. Waitress was visibly annoyed at my request for a a vegetarian menu, then stood over me whilst I tried to find a main from the pitiful 2 or 3 options rather than leaving me with the menu.
2. Ordered a starter I have had before, Goats cheese with lemon zest and asparagus, this time is came out missing half its usual ingredients - i.e. the bread it sits on.
3. Overheard the same waitress telling the next table about knife and fork etiquette to show you were finished eating. WTF?! Could she simply not ask if they had finished rather than try and impart her obviously amazing intellect on paying customers.
4. Ordered a main 'veg & goats cheese pie with potatoes' - it came out with salad on the plate and a side bowl of grey boiled veg not including potatoes. Who eats salad with a hot pie? Hmm
5. Paid in cash 46 pounds in total, gave 50 to the guy - he said thanks and put it in the til. Hadn't intended to leave a tip, but its not my style to ask for the change. THE CHEEK!
Absolute shambles on the food, and service was appalling. Wont be rushing back anytime soon, which is a shame.
The very haughty girl serving should be fired, it's obviously way above her station to be working in a pub.
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I went here on Saturday with my 8 year old son. I asked if they were serving food and if there was table service. I was told yes to both questions. We sat down and we were asked what we wanted to drink. My son asked for a lemonade and i asked for a pint of T.E.A. Our drinks arrived, I had a pint of T.E.A. and my son was given a pint of IPA!!! I said we were celebrating my birthday and we were after a dessert. We were given 3 different menus to choose from. The staff didn't even know what food was available as our choices were not available. The staff member then advised us to co to Cafe Rouge.
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Nice pint of TEA but only moderately busy for a sunday lunch. Glad to see the beams painted back to black!
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Traditional english pub, does soom good food, very dark inside, but quite a relaxed pub.
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Went to this pub for the first time, to listen to the jazz. Myself and two friends had food, my main dish (homemade fish pie) was incredibly salty, followed by creme brulee, which arrived with a thick gooey top which I returned, I was then presented with the same pudding minus the top! When I said this wasn't satisfactory the landlord whipped it off the table and grumpily said he'd take it off the bill. As he walked away my friend said hardly the right answer, he turned around and came back and was abrupt with her. All in all I agree with a previous post that he's just like Basil Fawlty
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I went in there to here the singer on Sunday night.
Although the food was not as bad as some of the earlier postings here portrayed, it is not somewhere I would go if it wasn't for the music!
The service was swift and pleasant, but the tables were very close together. One couple moved, as they felt too "hemmed in".
There was a simmering row going on between the landlord and landlady, which seemed to be a clash of their atitudes.
anonymous - 19 Nov 2007 14:58 |
Popped in here recently. Attractive pub, though the layout emphasises its restaurant aspect. Had a decent pint of HBB (I think). Staffed seemed friendly. There's a very small outside area at the rear
blamm - 18 Jun 2007 13:23 |
Enjoyed a pleasant pint or two in the Nelson last week. Nice relaxed atmosphere, very cosy and just....errrr..nice
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My wife and I were passing through Farnham recently to visit a sick relative and wanted to get a quick bite to eat and a drink. From the outside this looked a nice old-fashioned pub. We went into the bar area on the right-hand side and were quickly served by the landlord or manager. I had a pint of Hogsback TEA, a beer I'd not encountered before as I don't often visit this part of the country, and it was quite good. However, I thought that a charge of over �17 for a pint, a mineral water and two sandwiches was a bit steep. We were asked if we wanted to open a tab but I preferred to pay cash. The guv'nor disappeared shortly afterwards and was replaced by a barmaid who was polite and efficient (despite the rather off-putting nose ring) . My doubts about the value of the food were enhanced when it arrived - both my wife's brown and my white bread were from supermarket sliced loaves, something that I've rarely seen in London pubs for years. While my wife's was OK, if nothing special, mine was very dry, just on the verge of being stale. Unfortunately we were pressed for time and didn't have the time to argue about the quality of the food. Then, as we were leaving, the barmiad chased us out into the street and accused us of making off without paying, because the guv'nor had apparently forgotten to ring up my cash! Not a pub I'll be intending to visit again soon.
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Spending an evening in the Nelson is very much like being in an episode of 'Fawlty Towers'when you meet the owners Andy and Crissy or is it Basil and Cybil
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I took my son & wife here for lunch. Under cooked burgers are not a good thing. The owner started to swear at me when i complained about the uncooked meat. Advoid at all costs. The service was fantastic though.
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I like this pub - has a good selection of beer and wine and I've had some good nights here. More of a restaurant than a pub though (gastropub is probably the technical term), hence the bar area is small and crowded. Annoyingly the restaurant area can be quite empty by comparison (probably because the food is slightly over priced for what you get). Shame that they're painted over the wood beams.
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The food is great. Unfortunately this is not really a pub any longer which is a shame as it was an excellent establishment. Well and truly 'gastroed'.
The 'small' bar space at the right hand side of the pub is cramped and has inappropriate furniture. They do have some real ale but it's not a place you'd go just to drink most of the time. The rest of the 'pub' has way too many tables in which makes it very cramped and suggests someone cares more about getting as many people in as possible over diners comfort.
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Alright then Tony my mucker, try ordering just a drink and sit at one of the tables and you watch your "friendly" landlord seeth.
yorts - 29 Mar 2006 18:12 |
One of the busiest pubs/restaurants in the area for a reason, friendly staff, good beer and great food.
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Another pub ruined. I don't approve of the landlord getting his wild up if you don't order food with your drinks. Look into his eyes, you can clearly read his thoughts "F%#* Off out of my Gastro!"
yorts - 17 Feb 2006 20:51 |
This was one of the first pubs i ever drank in and was always a personal favourite. That is until i recently revisited to find such a wonderful building had been ruined by such a silly refurb. I have no problem with gastropubs but historic buildings should be treated with some respect. I could not even reach the bar without turning round and leaving in a state of dismay.
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Spent a thoroughly enjoyable Christmas Eve in the Nelson. Nice comfortable seats, friendly staff and a very warm atmosphere.
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Beautiful listed building with real caracter, was destroyed by silly amounts of white gloss paint, being used all over the wonderful oak beams etc... Apart from that now its not really a pub, its a bistro come restaraunt.
Mat - 8 Jun 2004 11:46 |
This spit-and-sawdust, red-carpeted monstrosity has recently been transformed into a whitewashed, oak-beamed 'gastropub' in the middle of Farnham's Castle Street. Food is very good, certainly not 'pub food' as per se. Good wine list, short on beers though. Nice courtyard at the back for summer drinks.
Helen, Farnham - 25 Mar 2004 11:47 |
