please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.
Without doubt the best pub food i've had in years. In fact i don't recall eating restaurant food as good as this. Its safe to say i love this pub the only negative is i don't get to go there enough. Friendly landlord/landlady , proper locals who will quite happily sit and chat with you. This pub has had a chequered past but now it couldn't be more different. Great beer well kept,two. lovely log fires. A proper old fashioned pub..
|
More than expeected of our group turned up for Sunday Lunch but that was no problem to the licencees.Space was found for everyone and the Roast was excellent.
|
I decided to pop in and have a look and very glad I did. They have my two favourite beers on Adnams Bitter and Woodeforde's Wherry, and both were in fine fettle.
This was my first visit to the this pub as it has been open, shut, then open again, then shut and now open again. Inside it is lovely a really nice old fashioned pub feel. Very nice welcome from the staff as well, which is always good to get. There were four hand pumps all with beer, the two just mentioned are the house regulars the other two being guest ales. On this occasion they had Saxon Gold and Red Herring, both very tasty beers.
They serve food, not everyday of the week so check first. Several people were eating while I was there and a large party arrived as well. The food looked excellent and the speed with which the customers dispatched it I reckon it must have tasted very good as well. I plan to try their food so will update once I have. I can see this pub becoming a bit of a regular haunt of mine as its not far from home, accessible by bus and does excellent beer and provides a warm welcome. What more can a man want? I wish them all the best.
|
My new local, it's at last a decent watering hole after a chequered history with great food too.
Ian and Sandra are a lovely couple and have transformed the Elephant back into a proper good pub.
Well kept beer (free-house), really good food and becoming more and more popular.
So glad to have it back!
|
Having had it's up and downs over the years this is once again a cracking pub with excellently kept beer, delightful tucker and very friendly and professional owners. Check it out.........
|
Should be nicknamed the PUB with NO beer
|
Hurrah!
The reopening of this once very popular local is always worthy of a celebration. A very pleasant couple and family have invested in providing the people of Eyke a vital community venue.
One of the best kept pints of Adnams around, hopefully some more local ales will pay the E and C a requisite visit, do the same and support your local!
|
Having recently moved to the village I googled the Elephant and Castle to find the telephone number to enable me to book a table for their advertised Sunday roast. I was concerned with what I read on this site over the past couple of years but as the last review referred to new ownership thought we would still give it a try. We were given a warm welcome, had a lovely dinner and our toddler was well catered for with a highchair and childrens cutlery being provided. There was prompt service and well kept Adnams on draught. Bar nibbles provided for Sunday lunchtime drinkers was a nice touch. We will most certainly be revisiting on a regular basis. If you live in a village use the pub or lose it! My husband loved being able to have 4 pints and walk home for an afternoon snooze :-)
|
I notice there have been no reviews since the new people took over. Just goes to show that people are happier to leave bad comments than good ones.
|
I think this pub is the best it has ever been. The landlord and his family are very friendly and also the bar staff no wat they are doing. It is a old traditional pub and i hope people in the village will go in there more often ova wise it wil close dwn and everyone will moan that they dont have a village pub. i hope they do well in the near future .
|
I am sorry to say I cannot agree with the comment made in Oct 2009. I am a regular in the pub and find the current landlord and his family a very friendly bunch who always make you feel welcome. They serve better beer than we have ever had, have entertainment and are in the pool league. They have gone out of their way to make the pub a clean, warm and friendly environment and have a good, although maybe small, crowd of regulars. The pub is open daily from 4pm onwards, except on Saturday when they open at noon and Sundays when they open at 6pm. Regarding the quality of the beer it is better now than it has been in a long time. Yet again somebody in the village is not happy with the pub but obviously they dont go in there very often.
|
My god, this place is even worse!!! the new people are unfriendly the beer is shocking (that is if they have any) the landlord is ignorant and the place is never open. What a shame, its doomed. I wouldn't go there if you paid me.
|
I wish I could edit my post, but I cannot.
My final line - And you are right - I didn't go back in after that. Why would I? The place was a dump. - is a bit harsh.
I would like to have removed the last sentence.
|
Enough is enough I am sick to death of people telling me and giving me print outs and copies to view this site, for further updated slander.
Is this a site for views on pubs or people? A lot of these reviews have been slanderous for many years against the pub and its owners, it is bad enough being slatted off in other pubs by ex customers, ( even though I am no longer at the pub) and along with this site it is clear that we were very disliked from the beginning. Who ever is writing these comments you have won, you have now made me feel ashamed of who I am and the pub. I thought I was coming here for a better life!
If this vendetta does not stop I personally will take further action. I m currently having these reviews removed hopefully to allow the pub to move forward, if a new owner can be found. (For the sake of the village.)
|
>>The pub has been blamed and boycotted by one regular (by plastering his excuses and blame on the pub ,on `Face book`) for his own arrogance. because he would not buy drinks back and was punched by another customer.
I guess you mean me. I would say it was ignorance rather than arrogance. Ignorant because I didn't know this chap, had never met him before, did not know he had bought me a drink, did not know he had asked for one back. Fist thing I know is he is telling people that "I'm going to get it".
As for posting an update to my FaceBook profile, that can only be seen by invited friends. So, if you're one of them, you'll know what I said and if you're not, you have no idea. My update went after three hours - as they always do - when I update it. That;s haw facebook works.
And you are right - I didn't go back in after that. Why would I? The place was a dump.
|
Yes I agree what a great pub this used to be, the little extras after closing time we got with a pair of thongs wrapped around a certain part of the anatomony. When we could send the wives home on a Sunday lunchtime, giving the excuse `that the kids were tired1, and then when they had gone, we would be all over the landlady like a rash. Yes those were the days!.
I agree with localad9, this pub or the owners have been targeted from day one. A group of regulars tried to set up a syndicate to try and buy it off of these owners, they had only owned it a few weeks, the ex landlady and a regular were going to try and buy it back even though it was not for sale. Only a couple of years ago the landladies son in law was asked by a regular if he could afford to get rid of the owner. (Why were these people hated so much?) The pub has been blamed and boycotted by one regular (by plastering his excuses and blame on the pub ,on `Face book`) for his own arrogance. because he would not buy drinks back and was punched by another customer. How about the lates & arriving late and staying till 2-3 o'clock in the morning. Were these ladies lazy then?. Being driven home by them at obscene times in the morning because we were too drunk to drive. With regards to the droppings in the pub garden, were these the dogs or customers? The credit that was given when we were broke or had forgot our bits of plastic, I know for a fact that a lot of these loans were never repaid, this credit (even though against the law) was given on trust.
Rumours are that one landlady has been accused of stalking, writing nasty letters. I was told by one of them that she had once been threatened by one of her customers, that stated if she was not careful his wife who was very influential and could have her beer supply stopped. I have heard them being bullied into barring people just because these regulars did not like certain people coming into the pub. These licensees were strong enough not to be bullied, and ignored the requests (threats). To be honest though perhaps the bullies should have been barred .`What planet are these people on? I popped in one day after retuning from a football game to have a quiet pint only to hear a customer bragging on how he would like to stick his willie right up the arse of the landladies daughter (I must say though she is very nice ) I did not appreciate this as a young child was sitting near. This poor young girl what must she have thought. The pub used to be visited by people who have some form of physical disabilities, I overheard nasty comments from some regulars, ridiculing these people and one tried to make himself sick while sitting at the bar. Very funny ! The pub lost more regular custom. again . ! With regards to the landlady touching her dog then serving beer, I would be more concerned about the other parts of a customers anatomony I have seen put in the glasses.
Needtocomment is moaning about an ill fitting door!, the pub is inundated with flies in the summer from the neighbouring farm and no matter what is put in place to eradicate them, did not work, you want this as a food pub ?Would you want to eat here?
One of the landladies said once she could write a book, what a seller that would be, but I think she would be too professional to disclose confidential information. Even though Suffolk boy says there is no professionalism Lets hope there is! The pub has unfortunately got a reputation for drug taking. I remember one of the landladies Staffies nearly died, after retrieving an illegal substance from the pub garden. As far as I know the current owners have never reported their customers but tried to deal with the problem themselves risking their licence and lively hoods, and saving certain reputations. We also want to remember how well our kids were looked after, toys etc were bought for them by Barbs (the landlady) to keep them amused, while we could have a drink or two.
The pub was run by incompetent old ladies was it, who will go bankrupt in 6 months? Well you have achieved what you set out to do from day one, they have gone. It makes me feel ashamed to say I live here and have drank with these regulars and classed them as my mates. I used to feel proud to say I was Saxon, I am not so sure now. What kind of people are we? No wonder the owners feel ashamed to say they owned such a pub, I am surprised they suffered it and us for so long. I apologise ladies for these people! Please do not tar us all with the same brush. Yes I agree with Needtocomment, it is a disgrace to pubs, no wonder the owners shut it. The previous owner had a nervous breakdown,
At least these ladies are only being treated by their doctors for depression, I bet they are wondering what the hell made them buy such a pub. (dump)
I have heard these ladies have returned to nursing (how ironic) Good on you girls x x x, you have not lost hope in us all. We are not all perfect including the licensees but now you all have got what you wanted, lets allow these people to try and rebuild their lives after it has been destroyed by immaturity, selfishness, and nastiness, why keep kicking them when they are down I think some of us should think ourselves Bloody lucky don't you?. A note to those who have had the pub boycotted so you can buy it cheap if it goes to auction (yes I have heard the rumours too)
Lets hope the pub does reopen even though it has the reputation some of you have given it.
|
This pub in my opinion has been targeted for three years on how to get rid of these landladies. Even before these ladies moved in the pub, they were labelled the `Dykes from Eyke`. I have visited the pub on numerous occasions only to find some customers prouncing around the pub with their testicals hanging out, one young frightened couple never returned . On one occasion I visited the pub and when I asked where the landladies were I was informed that they had gone out for the day.The landladies had entrusted their business to a local who found it extremely funny when other locals were play fighting with the coal buckets on their heads, destroying the pubs property and extracting their faeces in the pub garden. No wonder these poor ladies could not make a go of the pub thanks to support like that.
|
I agree with suffolk boy, the place was run into the ground through incompetence, it used to have a loyal and prosperous following.The people who took over killed the spirit, then people stayed away because of their and the ''son in laws'' arrogance and perpetual bragging,when infact they did not know what they were doing. It ended up dirty with flat beer and run down furniture.The garden was a minefield of droppings and the place was cold and uninviting.I hope someone takes over soon and it gets back to being the place that it was.The regulars would soon go back if they felt welcomed which in the months leading to its welcomed closure(just to get rid of the owners) was severly lacking.
|
This pub has been closed for two months and there i8s still an a board in the street stating that Saturday is free pool night.
That is indicative of the levels of professionalism and laziness that has been experienced over the last couple of years.
|
It's no surprise it has closed down. The surprise is that it lasted so long. I was in the first night they took over and I said they would be bankrupt in 6 months. It took nearly 3 years to kill it which shows just how strong it was in the first place.
The landlady (originally ladies) have no idea what a good pub is let alone how to run one.
The closure has been blamed on the recession, but it is more to do with the competence of the owner. This pub was a gold mine when they took it over and could be again.
Hopefully it will go to auction. There are a few people expressing an interest if it does.
|
According to the local 'paper, needtocomment has got his/her wish and this pub has now closed down.
|
On my first visit having moved to the area i made the mistake of asking the landlady ''how things were''. Well i had her life story how the locals were not supporting her, the villagers only wanted it for convenience but didn't go in, her money troubles and impending financial ruin.To say i am not suprised, she spent all the time outside the ill fitting door smoking, or rubbing her foot(i had the whole operation story)then touching the glasses,the dog jumping up and barking, god what a dump.This place is a disgrace to pubs.In my opinion the sooner it shuts the better, if i wanted to have a quiet pint this wasn't the place to have it, talk about moan.The locals are right to stay away.
|
We are new to Suffolk and decided to pop into the Elephant. We must admit it did look a little tired from the outside and could do with a little decorating, but we went in. There were 5 adults and 4 kids, the drinks were good, reasonably priced and we had a lovely afternoon. We were left to our own devices and well looked after when required. Can't wait to go back and enjoy the garden in the summer!
|
Lovely hot day. I thought I'd pop along here for a lunchtime pint, but even though it is the middle of May, they are still doing the "winter opening hours".
I.e. they don't bother opening 'till 4PM.
This really is a very pale imitation of the pub it used to be when Biddy ran it.
Come back Biddy! In fact come back everybody! Where are you all now?
|
Mixed bag?! The beer festival was a roaring success with 10 kegs of outstanding ales to choose from and a Bar-B-q in the afternoon�.sat in the beautiful garden before venturing inside to dance the night away with the live band and 80 others.
Went back a week later and the atmosphere was completely the opposite had a nasty pint of ale, took a turn and was then lectured by some breeders! Talk about chalk and cheese, pick your evening with great care and ask for a fresh pint.
|
Note to pub_critic......Get your information correct before you post mate. The landladies kids are in their 30's, need to go to spec savers! I've been there several times and it's been great!
anonymous - 1 Aug 2006 17:00 |
I've read the comments of the previous posts and I think they're well out of order! We heard it had been taken over and went to welcome the landladies to the village. I have taken my family and kids there on several occasions, and i have found the 2 said landladies to be the nicest 2 ladies i know, my kids love it there, it's really family friendly. They even have a toy chest for the kids to play with while my hubby and I are necking one of their lovely pints. (which I must state I've never had a problem with)The dog they have is lovely too, it's a real character. They have a great beer garden and I'm really looking forward to bringing my mates down for the fabulous beer festival they've got planned on the 11th till the 13th of August. I say it's a great pub and your a fool not to visit.
|
A note to anonymous, eykechap & pub_critic - what planet are you from? I have been to this pub several times and found it to be quite pleasant. The new owners are very friendly.
Beer is great, conversation is interesting!
anonymous - 1 Aug 2006 12:57 |
Awful!
I stayed at the campsite just up the road. I was warned not to go in there by other campers and the proprietors, but I thought they were just being offish.
Why didn't I take their advice.
Crap beer, crap conversation, no atmosphere, dump.
anonymous - 23 Jun 2006 11:37 |
This place is even worse now. It has been taken over by two incompetent old ladies (one's not too bad to be honest though).
I've seen beer that you can't even see through been served up. The beer is crap at all times though.
The conversation is absolute drivel. I don't want to know that "I've got dislocated knee caps" or "I've got healing hands" or any of the rubbish that gets spurted over the bar.
Avoid this place!
|
A real dive. If you want the pub dogs to jump on your lap and slobber all over you while the Landlady's kids play pool, then this is the one for you. I wouldn't give them the satisfaction of spending my money in here again. If you want to waste yours, go ahead!
|
