please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.
There is no Moosehead sold in this pub as it only tries to cater for those customers with a discerning palate.
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Visited recently to meet up with a chap who used to work for me. Not many customers but good range of beer including Ranmore at standard Surrey prices.
Clarifications:
Comment of "the usual tedious ignorant local English snidery" = An excellent example of this sad but very rare ( in the UK) practice.
"how anyone can suffer loss of sales by not selling something in the first place escapes me" .... You replace a beer you are selling successfully with an obscure, mediocre beer that nobody will buy. Doesn't seem hard to understand.
10 year anniversary of whinging about no Moosehead in UK pubs...... things must be dull back "home" in Canada!
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back again after so long out in the northern bush: yes, I know, cue the usual tedious ignorant local English snidery. Anyway, asked for a pint of Moosehead, and was rewarded with a pint of the local best. Fair enough, says I, what was presented was tasty enough. Let's call it Moosehead then, shall we, and call it a day.
Toddled off into Bookham and admired the 900 year old font that I was baptised in at the local church. Then buggarred off forever
m
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how anyone can suffer loss of sales by not selling something in the first place escapes me...is it my faulty colonial training in logic, or is it just more of the old English silly-blither-passing-for-fact?
Anyway, I'm shocked to hear this place was in fact flogging Moosehead, if only very occasionally, but telling me consistently for years that this was not so. I'll straighten it out next time I'm in. I might take the meal ordering advice to heart, but will give the kingbatterystore4scamfake thing the attention it probably deserves
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I was in a couple of days ago, they were so distracted by the 0.00001% loss of sales due to not selling Moosehead they completely messed up the bill for my meal! Don't order meals of different menu types - the computer says no!
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still no Moosehead on site. I despair
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oh dear
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Good food, beer parking.
Kingbattery Store4battery scam fake counterfeit problem china avoid .co.uk
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now that you mention Watney's Red Barrel...now there was a beer. A local brewer here tried to make a go of it by concocting the stuff, but even us ex-pats could not choke it down. I guess the old 1960s atmosphere was missing. You might remember what those days were like, what with indifferent service, stale crisps, and mods and rockers going at it in the car park.
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Good range of real ale and premium lagers. Service occasionally slow but generally ok. Locals generally recommend it and usually seems busy. Large parking area.
Still don't understand why a UK Surrey pub would serve a mass produced second rate Canadian lager like Moosehead - still it gives the ex-pats something to whinge about (interminably) I suppose!!! It will be Watneys Red Barrel fans next.....
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oh come now, let's talk more important stuff, like soggy batter and the lack of Moosehead. Surely, everyone knows that somebody who orders surf-and-turf in a Surrey pub is asking for a comedic adventure of the first order. I stand amazed that someone would think that a wonderful gastronomic experience awaits a person in any pub in England. Let's talk beer here: Moosehead beer may not be quite the cat's-ass to many, but it is surely just off the goalpost of perfection.
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Maybe the General Manager *did* hand in his notice. Maybe it was that or be sacked.
I don't know who you are ColinManuel with your one comment on BITE, but presumably not from Spirit, or you wouldn't be offering information that Spirit Pub Co head office refuse to give. Or are you one of the new (all male) managers who advertised for 'waitresses' and went against the sex discrimination act for reasons of your own?
On the Thursday the old crew were all there, on the Friday they were gone, and it's not 'silly village gossip', it's what the ex-members of staff told me happened. They wouldn't all leave weeks before term started for no reason at all.
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oh dear, soggy batter on the prawns... can't have used Moosehead in the beer batter mix. Moosehead makes everything OK...really
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FACT- The General Manager handed in his resignation and was not "sacked".
The staff were 90% University staff who have returned to university. Any other comments are just silly village gossip.
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Update: 3 or 4 weeks ago it all changed. From what I understand, there was a problem with the stock-take. The landlord said it wasn't him, they accused the staff. The staff said it wasn't them, and Spirit sacked the manager, and all but one of the staff resigned.
It's not a happy place now. The beer's OK, but the staff are (with the odd exception) pretty jobsworth.
The food has gone back to how it used to be. Went there with my father, aunt, and uncle (despite trying to persuade them to go somewhere else). I had the Surf and Turf. Soggy batter on the prawns, and my medium rare ('please tell the chef I really do mean medium-rare') steak was blackened on the outside and well-done in the centre.
All us (now ex-) locals go elsewhere.
Tried to get an explanation from the Spirit Pub co they replied 'Due to data protection, we are not able to disclose details of our employees but I can confirm that the General Manager and some Team Players have left the business for reasons outside of our control.'
Still worth going for a pint as the beer's not bad, but forget it for food or a friendly welcome, and the interior decoration is, in places, literally falling off the walls.
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I certainly wouldn't go back to this pub, despite the beer's being kept fairly well.
A group of six of us went for dinner on a Saturday evening. Six of us ordered starters, and the six of us ordered main meals with two ordering side dishes with the mains. After a long, long wait five starters appeared - they'd forgotten to prepare the sixth! Following another long wait five mains arrived - yet again they'd forgotten to do one of the orders and also had forgotten the two side dishes. As the forgotten sixth meal had to be prepared from scratch the five "lucky" ones had to go ahead whilst our sixth guest had to wait another long time for her meal. Absolute incompetence!
Yesterday evening we went to the Plough at Effingham, not far away. What a contrast! Delightful meals, great beer, and absolutely professional, friendly service!
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My local (or one of them, anyway). Chef And Brewer place, but they don't push the branding any more so you probably wouldn't notice. It's been through a few changes since I started going there 35 years ago but it's back to being a proper pub again. What used to be the public bar (but is now knocked through into the lounge) is a 'no children' area with a dart board and (unfortunately) a TV. Inglenook fireplace etc and is the oldest part of the pub.
The beer is well kept, generally, and the food is usually good but I did have a rather duff Surf and Turf there once. The new chef seems to understand what 'medium rare' is and can manage to get batter crispy. For the last couple of years everything has been fine. The whitebait as a starter is a meal in itself.
There are four pubs in Bookham and this is the best place to eat. If you want to go a bit more up-market, try the Plough in Orestan Lane Effingham, if you want a more traditional pub (SE England pub of the year) then head for the Royal Oak in Bookham High Street. The Anchor is also a trad pub (oak beams etc) but The Crown lacks atmosphere.
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I'd like to give this pub a higher rating as it has loads of potential that it doesn't take advantage of. It is a short walk from the local station and countryside so makes for a good stop off after a walk with the family, it has a large beer garden, outside seating and heaters for the chillier evenings. However, the rear garden is not well maintained and their dog is constantly using it as a toilet, so your kids can't run freely around without you worrying about them getting covered in dog mess.
However, they do run an annual beer festival with loads of local brews to sample and the food isn't bad. The staff are generally friendly and overall we still enjoy going.
Shame they got rid of the pool table about 15 years ago when it went through a referbishment to make it look more like 'Ye Olde Windsor Castle' rather than simply the 'Windsor Castle'. The owners must think we all want to live in a Disney World version of England, so re-branded the pub with the stupid 'Ye Olde' prefix. Perhaps I'll try joining in with the faux Ye Olde nonsense and try paying for my 'honey mead' with a Shilling or a Groat and see what the landlord has to say!
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back in Bookham again last month, so dropped by for Sunday roast, which was passable. The usual brews on tap, which seemed very nice, but still no Moosehead. I despair that it will ever remain thus.
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Had a very pleasing pint of Boondoggle here this week. I am a huge fan of having separate family and adult only lounges and it was quite peaceful.
Having said that, the barman nearly threw my drink at me as he was in such a hurry to get back to the restaurant.
Not sure I'll bother going back to try the rest of the beers.
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A small pub which has had some recent internal changes. The bar is now in one corner with tables and chairs in the lounge. It has a good trade in food. seating is adequate. I was there for a beer festival which was in a marquee at the front of the pub. They had 30 beers which were in good condition - at least the 8 that I tried. Lounge has plenty of oak beams which look genuine. Well worth a visit but it is a long walk from the station.
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Eaten here a few times now, and I can't really fault it as an evening venue, the beers are always in very good condition and the food is excellent value for money, especially if you download the buy one get one free meal vouchers.. 3 pints of beer and 3 mixed grills for about �30
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Had an excellent pint of Timothy Taylor's Landlord. Hogs Back Brewery Tea and Spring Ale available along with Wells Bombardier...... Tea is usually fine. Pub rates better than score indicates.
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Huge chef & brewer pub. Loads of room inside and gardens at front and rear. Standard C&B fare, nothing special but nothing wrong with it either. Had Charles Wells Bombardier on which was fine and a couple of guest ales which weren't. Didn't try the Adnams.
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gave the OWC one last chance recently. Good gammon lunch. Nothing especially interesting on tap; no Moosehead noted. Had a Coke and quietly departed.
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Slick - Wrong it's not a chain. Wrong - did rate it (and was already 4.5 / 5 and was packed). Wrong not vendetta - so in terms of your relevance to this site, what has New Brunswick got to do with Bookham exactly! Use messaging not a BRITISH PUB REVIEW area.
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say hey DaveT
nice to see you made it here...too bad you had to hit a chain pub in that instant city known as Kanata. Have you rated the pub/beer where you should have, not here at the OWC site? No? Well, so it IS a vendetta against Moosehead and nothing more then, isn't it? If Moosehead is to be tasted at its best, it should be as a draft somewhere in southern New Brunswick.
Anyway,enough of that. If it helps, I must agree that there are certainly enough good lagers at the OWC to make an evening eminently pleasant...Moosehead would only serve to top things off admirably. Take care
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BOOKHAM PUB CRAWL 7
Starts MIDDAY at THE ANCHOR, BOOKHAM
The route:
THE ANCHOR
THE CROWN
YE OLDE WINDSOR CASTLE
Finishes with...
LIVE COMEDY! FOR FREE!
20th SEPTEMBER 2008 from 8PM
at THE DOUGLAS HAIG, EFFINGHAM
Featuring...
IMRAN YUSUF
HANNAH GEORGE
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Hi Slick. Your local friend last tasted Moosehead in the Cheshire Cat, Kanata, Ontario on 14 August 2008. Of the 5 Canadian beers tried it was the worst - not bad but just fairly bland.
There are at least 6 better beers/lagers already on offer in the Windsor Castle so why waste bar space in the pub, or review space on this site, on it?
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Typical family orientated country pub. Chef & Brewer with what looked like a standard menu. Hogs Back TEA and seasonal Summer Ale plus Hen and Courage Best. Star and Leffe also. Summer Ale was nice. Inside all low and wooden beams, large beer garden outside.
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The Windsor is back to form now it has a new landlord and an over 21s policy in place.. much better service, a much nicer mix of people, and more consistancy in the standard of food...
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parkhillian is essentially right of course. Anyone who remembers the days of indifferent food served by surly staff at eye-watering prices can only applaud the general increase in the quality of pub grub in the UK over the last few years.This is a pretty good pub, all things considered.
To be able to enjoy a draft of Moosehead at this pub, without bringing down the approbrium of the local posers, would just about make things perfect.
Last visited on April 25/08. Moosehead last tasted by my local friend...?
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Ye Olde Windsor Castle sums up where the pub trade is taking us. There is nothing necessarily wrong with it. It was quite busy on a Thursday night and all the diners looked happy with their meals.
But that's the problem. Call me old fashioned but I thought restaurants were for people who want a meal, and pubs were for drinkers. As a pub, Ye Olde Windsor Castle misses the mark spectacularly. There is no 'pub' atmosphere at all. All the tables are uniformly arranged for differing sizes of dining parties, there are no stools around the bar for the regulars (which suggests there are no 'regulars' in the traditional sense of the word).
I'm sure many people like this kind of thing. Indeed, I like a pub meal with the best of them. But does the whole place have to be given over to the steak and ale pie brigade? From the outside it looks like a charming country pub. Inside it's a Berni Inn.
Maybe it is better in the summer, when you can sit outside and forget about all the bangers'n'mash being consumed by the old folk within. But the jury's out at the moment.
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Still a nice enough place, I suppose, except for the odd poser making comments about beers that he has likely never tasted. The Tea is rather good, though.
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still desperate for a Moosehead, not that pretty well any English beer wouldn't do instead in a pinch
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xmas eve tickets are now on sale
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still a pretty good place for a pint. Still no Moosehead though
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Relaxing, friendly, and the best pub in Bookham for it's position.
anonymous - 7 Aug 2007 12:25 |
Have lived and frequented pub restaurant for 16 years - this pub gone down hill VERY fast over the last year or so. Today is our last time, had very bad service and equally poor standard of food now last 3 times. Tonight, 3 items were not on menu; 'home made soup' was tinned; chicken and avocado salad - avocado was unripe and came 30 minutes after 3 other meals. Staff were apathetic - no clear Management. An embarrassment for us who were taking friends out for dinner. NEVER AGAIN.
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What can I say, the food is good, the service efficient, the beer drinkable (though ale choice limited), the garden / outside area pleasant, car parking easy and plentiful and usually plenty of seating to be had. Nice and anonymous so you can take your girlfriend there and no one will notice � even your wife who would not go there for a girly night out. Loads of old blokes and 'secretaries' � ahem.
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I think this pub has done extremely well over the last 12 months.. the staff are all very friendly and young , they all have a good sense of humour.. its always clean and the food is always good.. i always feel you want a local that you feel comfortable in and with good service , this is it for me .. matthew has done a grand job with a good team i would certainly recommend it here .. on sundays its packed out .. that to me is a sign of a good pub
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I suppose it depends what you're looking for in a pub but as far as I'm concerned this place has really gone downhill over the last year or so. Been in several times over the last few months and it was full of loud mouthed kids. Ok maybe they were all over 18 but I'm not convinced. I might be old-fashioned but I don't want to listen to swearing while I'm eating. I used to go here to eat all the time when the previous people were there and it was a pleasant place to go. There doesn't seem to be anyone in charge any more and it really shows in the attitude of the staff. Maybe if this matthew person spent more time in the pub and less posting on here he might get it back to the respectable place it used to be.
anonymous - 16 Mar 2007 16:53 |
Great pub, lovely staff.. whats the problemo?? i feel so comfy in this place i am thinking of bringing the old armchair in ... the staff have all worked hard and matt has done a fantstic job in there ... its customer orientated and relaxed .. my fav bar
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very nice pub, have been going there since i moved to effingham in 2000, i used to go with my parents until i turned 18, now i have had many a good night down at the winsor, great pub, keep up the good work
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Hello All posters
My name is Mathew and i am the landlord of the ye olde windsor castle, And have been for the past 18 months. With respect to the ales and the festive ales, over the xmas period we received a forced drop from our brewery as the xmas point of sale, was sponsored by rosey nosey and winter warmer. We did receive quite a large forced drop of the above ales.
Therefore meaning that we had to lose our full range of hogsback and courage best whilst we sold through the festive ales during january. I can only apologise for this and give you my word that we will be stocking hogsback and other ales for my time at the windsor.
With respect to the outside refurbishment we are spending 54k to sparkle the business, we have installed a new kitchen, painted the whole of the business, added additional lighting removed older bric a brac new carpet and some new tables and chairs. The outside is having an extended patio heated and lit jumberallas and new 8 seater fixed seating and picket fencing. All to add to the experience of the windsor.
As i said my name is Mathew and your quite welcome to pop in and say hello or leave a comment on here for me. If you have any ales that you would us to trial then i am willing to do as much as i can to stock these.
I appreciate your comments and hopefullywe can move the business forward.
anonymous - 16 Feb 2007 17:49 |
nice to hear the place has returned to the way I remember it...quite the turn-around in just one week, though. Now all they need to do is replace the Beck's with Moosehead: I hear that it is rated better.
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Returned to the Windsor Castle after the last visit and found things much improved. Four real ales were back on tap and there were now sufficient staff serving to avoid delays. Pub was also busy again which is a good sign. Food prices slightly above average but several people were eating and meals looked well presented.
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Pub has changed hands recently and is now awful. 4 weeks after Christmas the normal beers are still out of stock so there are only two awful Christmas novelty beers to choose from as real ale. Last time I went in there was one girl serving who was stressed and miserable as customers complained about the long queues. The pub was infested with foul mouthed 18 year old yobs with a sad line in witty banter. I sat next to a window still boarded up after the "New Year Trouble". Probably the worst pub I have been in.
If the previous visitor thinks Canadians would pimp their daughters for a pub like this then things must be desperate over there!
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will everyone please just settle down. Where I live (Ontario,Canada) some people would cheerfully pimp their daughters for a chance to have a pub like this within walking distance of home. As for the edibility of the food,well,let's just get real for a moment and try to remember that this is England after all. It's a nice quiet place to down a jar or two of what England does make better than anywhere else. It's just a pity they don't serve Moosehead lager.
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i work in this pub and if there is such a problem with the food i myself and the rest of my collegues normally go to our manager or duty manager to discuss the options of this and there is always a check back during your meal in which u should be asked "is everything ok with your meal" and in the even everything isnt then we will fix it. I used this pub as my local for 5 months before working there and found it a delight and a friendly place to be and it is even working there I travel 3 miles with a bus and train service which does not run on sundays to work there! and with regards to the service thing its not bad. its a new service you need time to get into routine it cant be done over night so whats the problem i think you will find every CHEF & BREWER in the country have done this
anonymous - 31 Dec 2006 00:13 |
When did it become a restaurant? Been in there twice recently and took forever to get a drink at the bar - all the staff were busy hovering around tables to take food orders. When I did eventually get a drink and sit down I kept getting asked every 5 mins if I was eating! Can I not just sit and have a drink in the pub anymore?
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We tried this pub for the first time recently. We will never be going back because of the following
1. I ordered the mixed grill (ok i was hungry!). I asked for my steak medium rare. It was pretty much rare when I got it. The chicken if you could call it that, was a shrivelled lump. The rest was ok but not wonderful. Not impressed.
2. My fianc�e's burger was grim. No that it being kind - it was disgusting. It was supposed to be Aberdeen Angus. It was so chewy and tasted horrible. God knows where they got it from.
3. Food is over priced for what it is. It is not a gourmet restaurant!
We complained to the waitress who said that she would have to talk to the manager. She did not seem at all interested in what we had to say.
Do not visit this pub!
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I have always found this pub and its staff helpfull and friendly , whenever we go there tey are polite and always ready with our regular jug of soda and bottle of wine.. the pub is clean and ice place to eat or for that quiet drink.. i have never sat in te pub with a lot of screeming kids ..its a lovely country pub and i highly recommend it
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This pub used to be the centre of the universe until they changed it into a family food type pub.
It had big gardens filled with people from many different places. The place was buzzing.
I just cannot go there now as they managed to completely destroy one of the most happening places ever.
Now there is no point travelling to this place unless you are a family and want that kind of place.
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Tried it again as we'd been told it had changed hands. Menu still the same. Ignored when I tried to order food in a largely empty bar in favour of later arrivals. Left and won't be going back.
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Quite unfriendly staff, overpriced 'average' food but lots to choose from. Good desserts though!
Would have been nicer without the screaming kids on the table next to us. Maybe with such a large non-smoking area they should make part of it adults only!
Might go back if I really couldn't be bothered to cook and it was a nice enough day to walk down there.
anonymous - 27 Apr 2005 16:46 |
This is our local, since it is the only walkable pub with a non-smoking area.. Actually, the non-smoking area is now about 80% of the place so thumbs up on that one.
Recently started doing guest ales again. Food is patchy and very over-priced. Vegetarian selection is abominable.
Big gripe with all Chef and Brewer pubs is the ordering system which takes ages for everyone... always big queues to get anything.
Otherwise, vaguely friendly staff.
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Bland bland bland - food ok, decor ok, beer ok, lacks character. Big garden but they even took out the kids play area - obviously too exciting for the huge chain that took it over. The place people go when they don't want to be spotted....
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A good pub for a winter's night, great beer, they have a selection of good whiskys and superb (if a little pricey food). outside beer garden looks a little utilitarian (benches arranged in rows, no plants, just grass... etc.
Inside the decor's nice, very old pub and there's usually only quiet music which is nice for a quiet sunday drink.
It also has bonus points for being easy to walk to! :)
I - 27 May 2004 22:26 |
Used to be an awesome old local before being refurbished into a crummy Harvester style trough for suburban drones and their fat, ungreatful wives and offspring.
Tom G - 10 Mar 2004 15:29 |
No attempt to segregate noisy families with small children from people who want to go there for a quiet lunch. More like a branch of Happy Eater than a pub. We will not go again unless we can be assured that some action has been taken.
Julie Batchelor - 22 Nov 2003 13:58 |
There is a very old part of this pub, but the large part is newish. Plenty of good real ales, which ultimately are the reason to go out drinking, right?
Good food, definitely not a "cosy, friendly" environment. Decor is actually quite attractive and conducive to comfort.
Ray
Ray - 11 Oct 2003 13:54 |
Dull. Looks like it is historic, but I am not so sure.
Mike - 30 Sep 2003 17:29 |
Past land lady was an abomanation but recently sacked, all new staff now hired,Food still pricey.
i like the relaxed atmosphere
Local Youth - 22 Aug 2003 16:56 |
You can drink here? i thought it was a restuarant!! Save this place for taking your girlfriends parents out for lunch...
Matt Le Ross - 2 Jul 2003 12:47 |
Clicky locals. Nah...keep driving.
Gerald - 2 Jul 2003 12:33 |
Roast dinner, this weekend just gone, tough as old boots! Decor could do with a good clean also!
Pants!!!
Ian - 6 May 2003 16:05 |
Extremely dull and lifeless Chief and Brewer pub which thinks it's a restaurant. The food is OK but is a bit pricey. If you've been to one Chief and Brewer you've been to them all. Boring boring boring...
Angus - 20 Apr 2003 13:49 |
Used to work here. Was once quite nice. Now fairly awful, can't seem to hold on to any staff for longer than a month.
Could all do with a clean.
Matthew - 20 Apr 2003 10:54 |
