please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.
Popped in here a couple of sunday evenings ago, all the bar staff were in a huddle and I had to wait to be served even though I was the only person at the bar. The carvery was still being served, though there was more food on the floor than anywhere else and I sat and watched members of staff walk past many times sometimes treading on the food but making no attempt to clear it up. There were kids running around which is a personal hate of mine, where are the parents!!
Nice pub but going downhill.
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Our 8 mile walk around the north of Woking was punctuated by lunch at the Cricketers.
Definitely echo the comments below. This is a food orientated pub which happens to sell beer. The pub is long and narrow at the front along the bar with a restaurant section at one end. On the Thursday lunchtime we were there it was reasonably busy. It is a pleasant environment.
The beer is Shepherd Neame - they had Whitstable Bay, Spitfire, Masterbrew and Kent's Best. Between the five of us we tried pretty much all of them. The problem is - telling the difference. They all have this "golden summer" appearance so beloved of some brewers these days. And the taste is pretty much the same for all of them. The beer or the pub - I don't know - but it's pretty unspectacular drinking. And �3.70 for a pint of Whitstable Bay is fairly steep.
The reviews below give the food good marks but my Pig and Cheese Burger frankly wasn't up to much. The burger was 6oz but was in a very dry bun. The amount of cheese and bacon in it was small so eating the thing was a bit of an effort ( perhaps designed to make me drink more). The chunky chips were also very dry. I can't eat coleslaw so asked for none to be served. It was replaced with - nothing. The "side salad" was a joke - one circle of onion, one small gherkin and a bit of tomato. And this unedifying pretty small meal set me back �10.95 - not good value.
Having said that, one of my fellow walkers had a pie which he said was very good.
The young lady who served us was friendly and efficient.
The Cricketers is owned by a PubCo, Barons Pubs. This probably explains the high prices, profit maximisation being the order of the day. I doubt though that the Cricketers will be getting much of their profit from me in the future.
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Seems to be mostly focused on the restaurant side of the business than just being a pub, but having said that the beer seems to be in excellent condition - much better than the Good Beer Guide listed Crown just down the road. Nice beer gardens for sunny days too.
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Popped in early evening last Saturday with some chums and the place was mainly laid out as a restaurant with groups at tables in paper hats etc. eating their dinners, which was a bit of a shock to the system. Not therefore really that pub atmosphere that I like. Having said that, the Shepherd Neame Kent's Best was in excellent condition and we spent a pleasant hour at the bar. Probably more foody than pub these days but that seems to be the way we're headed...
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Totally loved this pub. Great carvery and nice outdoor area for kids to play. Really efficient staff too and very polite. Will go back for sure. Like to try pubs that are connected to see if standards go across the board, not sure if this is a one off but will def try any sister pubs if there are any.
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Not been here for a while, but they seem to have upped their game, staff better trained and more attentive, appears to be working as it was full, excellent carvery on tues night, downside is that there is only Shepard neame beer....ok if you like the stuff i suppose. Rekon they're trying to compete with the Red lion at the other end of the village!
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Went to the village day here on sunday 12th september, what a fantastic day, outside bar serving shepherd neame beer, outside hog roast, burgers,sausages, big tent with stalls inside plus donkey rides, all in aid of charity, well done The Cricketers, the place was rammed.
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Great carvery on sundays! Its really popular so nab a table a soon as one is free. Fantastic garden with kiddies play area with a climbing frame with a slide attached. Good parking. Very nice inside. They have jazz nights on monday or tuesday, jazz isnt my thing so a rock/pop band would make it more appealing to me.
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soooo much better since it had a mini makeover, now a lot brighter and the loos have been refurbished, atmosphere in gents now breathable again!
only downside is the beer is all from shepherd & neame 3 beers that taste the same ...none of them good
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Visited a few times at lunch times; Nice location particularly in the summer. Friendly staff and good beer.
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I recently visited this pub for the Monday jazz, for the first time in many months. It has improved, in that the unfriendly manager was not there. Has he left?
The jazz was well supported.
Drinks in this pub still seem to be overpriced, compared with other Woking area places.
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The only flaw in the business plan is to have loss making "entertainment"?? .
If as you say, you are locals you must have also observed that there are many more non jazz fans in the pub on the other 6 nights of the week than there are jazz fans in on mondays.
You have obvoiusly not noticed that it is the festive season, so those rowdy tables could have easliy spent in one night what you spend in a year, lets not lose sight of the fact that pubs are profit making businesses. Not that i am biased in any way, but the sound of people being happy and enjoying themselves will always be preferable to the monday night insult to our ears.
Luckily things will change next year and perhaps varied musical entertainment will be on the cards, folk nights, rock nights, blues nights strippers, comedy nights etc
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For the last few years we have been eating, drinking and enjoying jazz at The Cricketers almost every Monday evening. We spend about 2000-2500 pounds per year and we attract others to join us at our table, two of whom now eat there regularly. Last Monday evening was ruined by an excessively large party making the inevitable deafening noise, with no care for other customers or for the musicians. We cancelled the table for next week because it is clear the same will happen again and that its regulars are not the priority customers for this pub.
The pub manager's business plan (if there is one) is deeply flawed. He can fill the side area every Monday with jazz fans so it is counter-productive to put large one-off parties there. He has the front area and the snug empty on Mondays so that is where the extra customers should be seated. If he has to split them between tables then that is all to the good, as the two end groups on a long table cannot communicate and it is very difficult for the middle back customers to get up to relieve themselves.
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This is a good pub that unfortunatly seems to be going downhill. The interior is drab and is well past its sell by date, it could do with a full refurb before its too late! The beer, staff and food, as always remain excellent.
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had lunch on friday 14th november, attentive staff, had a lovely homemade sausage casserole and a good pint spoiled by an expensive shopping trip to toys r us !
ham73 - 18 Nov 2008 21:07 |
You must have been on a rare evening jbsjazzer, staff at this pub are great, they remember not only names and faces but what you drink too, friendly locals and very good live music, don't miss the chance to see Lisa Kwei there.
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Nice place for a drink (especially on a sunny day). Food is average.
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Good pub for jazz, but spoiled by the surly attitude of the manager, who does not seem to like the music.
Bring back Joyce!
Very expensive drinks, even for Woking.
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Recent BIG bonus is the female solo singers (Lisa Kwei last month and Victoria Bee Bee 24 May 08). Lisa was great and add that to the food and beer... a very enjoyable night!
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Large pub with period features although watch out for the low ceilings! Friendly staff and good beer including Old Speckled Hen. The sofas were a bit grubby but plenty of room to find a seat elsewhere. Also easy to find being right on the village green.
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Jazz night on a Monday is fantastic. It can be difficult to get a seat. Staff somewhat humourless. Has good beer garden for the summer. Is in a traffic backwater so is quiet.
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Tried this pub for the first time on a Friday evening in late September. Following the recent negative comments we were a little apprehensive. The restaurant was very spacious, comfortable and with a good choice on the menu. We were impressed with the service which was very attentive. We very much enjoyed the food and at �35.00 with drinks included we thought this good value for money. All in all a good experience and we will definitely return again.
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good place if you want a dirty glass, the bar seems to be full of them most times i visit. Bar staff spend too much time chatting to each other instead of serving. Food was good but now varies in quality/quantity, stella usually served flat and you never get a full glass of bitter.
anonymous - 30 Aug 2007 17:09 |
A pint of Youngs Bitter was well kept and tasted better than some I have had in "un-tied" pubs. However it was �1 more expensive than the cheapest pub price I have paid!
Food was good but, restuarant priced for what was basicly pub food.
The speed of service was better than the last time I was there. For realy good service they should get Joyce serving more often!
anonymous - 29 Aug 2007 10:18 |
Friendly pub, nice locals, waiting time can be an issue. food variable - seems to depend on who is in the kitchen, would love to recommend it all the time but just can't be sure you'll get a consistently good meal.
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Prices here seem to include "Waiting Time", like taxis! The queue at the bar is proportionate to the high price for drinks.
The jazz is, however, great.
anonymous - 20 Jun 2007 09:51 |
I had good pints of 'Youngs' bitter, which were well kept and served.
This pub had, under the previous management, a good selection of malt whiskys, but they now only keep two of the commonly found distileries. There was no demand, so they stopped selling the others!
anonymous - 13 Dec 2006 10:29 |
Jazz nights are now better, since they have moved the position of the band. They now play at the far end of the former dining area, so avoiding the need for diners passing across the front, between the band and the audience, when moving from their table to the bar, etc.
A good move!
anonymous - 8 Dec 2006 10:16 |
This is my local since moving about a 5 minute walk away and I have to say it satisfies my needs entirely! There is a huge garden, huge portions of food and Adnams Broadside permanently on the bar... and a bar manager who knew what i would be drinking on my 3rd visit!!! what more can you ask for!!?
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I was worried about the ceasation of the jazz too, but unfortunally it's going to continue.
Food much better since ownership change,still expensive for pub food. Bar service can be very slow at times. Lack of personalities behind the bar. Avoid Monday enenings
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Since my last post in January the Cricks is under new ownership. Everyone is worried about the continuation of jazz on Mondays. Rest assured if it ends we will not only go elsewhere for jazz, we will boycott the pub altogether. On Friday evening we had dinner there for four adults and one child. Since the new owners took over, there is no separate restaurant so it is bar meals throughout, which is fine with us. The menu is substantially different, although some old items continue. Everybody seemed to enjoy their meal and 4-year-old Stella enjoyed the garden with swings, slide and other children. We will continue to rate it 8 for now.
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A good pub for Jazz on a Monday night.
Gets very crowded when a good visiting band is playing. Quite expensive for even the Woking area. Food menu is of variable quality, but with care a good meal can be eaten.
anonymous - 5 Apr 2006 11:23 |
We go to live jazz at The Cricks most Mondays, eating there first. There is a good atmosphere, livelier when Joyce is on duty, and the pub is open on days when others are closed, e.g. Christmas day and Boxing day. Real Ale includes Young's Bitter, Fuller's London Pride, etc. and there is an extrensive range of wines by the glass. Joyce assures us that the food is cooked on the premises, not just re-heated, and I can certainly recommend the potato skins and the Berkshire chicken. Special offers are often available, the current ones using vouchers collected in December. It pays to be a regular !
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nice food great carvery on sundays i go here often and every time have a nice meal staff are cheeky whaich creates a great atmosphere ales are nic and wine are good selection
davep - 14 Sep 2005 23:56 |
