please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.
Great pub in the country, good food, good beer, hurrah ! Mind you, the landlord's a nutter :-D
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I’m not sure what to make of meurglys iv review because I’ve had a very different experience. I must admit I’m not a regular visitor but have eaten in the Yew tree maybe 6 or seven times in the last couple of years; most recently being beginning of October. It may be that peoples’ expectations are different or that they have difficulty mixing with people they perceive to be of “different class”. I’ve always been treated very well and found all of the staff extremely friendly and accommodating. The food isn’t Michelin star but it’s very nice and, let’s be honest: this is just a country pub !
I would happily recommend anybody to try this place and I’m confident they wouldn’t be disappointed.
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"ilovecountrypubs77"'s impassioned defence of this over-rated pub, which does not accommodate (please check spelling) the basics of good customer service, smacks of the paid-for nature of full entries in the "Good Pub Guide".
A more recent visit was just as slapdash, dilatory and frankly disappointing. I hope that the pub does survive - and if it captures the undiscerning and the ovine then all the better for other, more worthy establishments.
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I wasn't sure I was writing this review against the correct pub given "Meurglys" rather empassioned critique below but yes, the mention of the "Tim's Pub" sign on the door assures me I am speaking of the same establishment. I am delighted to assure any readers of this note that the Yew Tree certainly deserves the accolades kindly granted by the Good Pub Guide and its discerning readers - I am a repeat (and very regular) visitor to the Yew Tree and will continue to be unless forced to leave the South of England for any reason! The homemade food is varied and always well presented - if one has particular requirements the chef/landlord goes to great lengths to accomodate (better to give him some notice though). Personally I would far rather wait 45 mins for a properly cooked meal rather than 5 minutes for a microwaved pre-packed dish - but "horses for courses" as they say. With good company 45 mins fly by before you know it! Yes the pub does get very busy (hooray for those of us that would like it to remain open) but the staff are always incredibly helpful and do their best to keep everyone fed and watered in a timely fashion. Keep up the good work Yew Tree!
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Any pub that has a wooden sign on the door advertising "Tim's Pub" might raise suspicions. Previous visits have veered from the good to the barely-acceptable. Littlecon's comment below would be fair if it was actually true - it is not good enough to stand on its own as a restaurant and the pub functions are clearly hit-and-miss.
What can't be forgiven is poor customer service - no indication of the length of wait for food and then no apology or attempt to make the customer feel that they are important. The best part of 45 minutes waiting in a very noisy dining area, with no effort made to keep people up-to-date, or, given the length of time elapsed, to placate by offering drinks or nibbles - and then made to feel that greasy meat, dry "dauphinoise" potatoes are somehow superb, rather than the epithet awarded of "adequate", is extracting the proverbial.
The Triple fff house beer is fine - the Bowman Swift One was not at its best. Clearly the accolades handed out by the "Good Pub Guide" have gone to this place's head - delusions of adequacy are far too generous an assessment. Reading the reviews this is rapidly becoming the nightmarish country cousin of the Wykeham Arms in one of its snootier pre-Fullers incarnations.
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Any pub that has a wooden sign on the door advertising "Tim's Pub" might raise suspicions. Previous visits have veered from the good to the barely-acceptable. Littlecon's comment below would be fair if it was actually true - it is not good enough to stand on its own as a restaurant and the pub functions are clearly hit-and-miss.
What can't be forgiven is poor customer service - no indication of the length of wait for food and then no apology or attempt to make the customer feel that they are important. The best part of 45 minutes waiting in a very noisy dining area, with no effort made to keep people up-to-date, or, given the length of time elapsed, to placate by offering drinks or nibbles - and then made to feel that greasy meat, dry "dauphinoise" potatoes are somehow superb, rather than the epithet awarded of "adequate", is extracting the proverbial.
The Triple fff house beer is fine - the Bowman Swift One was not at its best. Clearly the accolades handed out by the "Good Pub Guide" have gone to this place's head - delusions of adequacy are far too generous an assessment. Reading the reviews this is rapidly becoming the nightmarish country cousin of the Wykeham Arms in one of its snootier pre-Fullers incarnations.
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Visited on Saturday 20 July with Mrs Monk. We were staying in the area and looked for decent pubs with real and food. We weren't disappointed by the Yew Tree, bit of a bind to find, it's in the middle of nowhere, but for £2.30 a pint (not a misprint) it's worth it. Two ales on; the triple f house beer and the other one escapes me. I stuck to the triple f which was excellent, as was the food. Ale and food were both good value and the staff though busy were very efficient and friendly which was a refreshing change from most London pubs' service ethos. 7.5/10
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Lovely tranquil pub with nice staff and nice customers. I've visited on a few occasions in the past and not been disappointed yet. We had had a fair sized lunch and so only ordered a selection of starters. Very nice food, very reasonably priced. Thoroughly recommend.
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a restaurant not a pub
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Albeit that the car is a constraint when it comes to quaffing, it is sadly the only way one will ever get to enjoy the delights of remote rural gems such as this, which is buried deep in the Hants countryside but is well worth rooting out. In Winter, this place is a real winner, with its hearty welcome from landlord Tim and the cosy, comforting interior that just wills one to venture in and not leave for a protracted period; instead imploring indulgence in a boozy session in the self-delusional belief that it's the only way to stay warm and fend off the unpleasant dark evenings.
The place might've been found virtually empty on a Sunday evening, were it not for a crowd of suitably-oiled - if not altogether bronzed - Aussies, who appeared to be well-known to the landlord and so I took for locals (or pals of someone who was). Plainly their afternoon had been occupied by one of those lunches that just doesn't ever draw to a natural close. The coupling of "booze" and "Aussie" is not always a civil one, but happily these were rather more well-heeled exceptions to that rule, staying jovial but never straying into rowdiness, and despite the occasional wine spillage, they lent a sense of congeniality to proceedings.
Tim took time to have a chat with me and my friend, and we both found him informed and savvy. I imagine he runs a good ship here. His ales numbered only 3, but that sampled was kept well (Alton's Pride by Triple F on this occasion), and the blackboard promised further choices of note from local brewers including Surrey's Hog's Back and Hampshire's Bowman.
Food was not being served and so I can pass no judgement on its variety or quality - but I would be surprised if it was always as dubious as the last commentator describes. I would say don't rule this pub out on the strength of that alone.
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Having done some internet research on pubs not too far from Basingstoke as we were meeting some friends who live south, while we live in the other direction. The Yew Tree rated highly, their website is great so I had high hopes. I'm sorry to say we were royally disappointed. We went for lunch last Sunday (17th October) having booked a table. The pub was virtually empty at the time (12pm), and also very cold. The young man who served us wasn't particularly friendly or welcoming (although the even younger blonde girl was nice) and it took quite a while to get the board with the menu on it to us. I chose the roast lamb, two of our party ordered the steak & ale pudding and one chose the ham hock. When the food came, my lamb was inedible. It was tough, overcooked and clearly not the best quality as well as being a very small portion in comparison to what my friends were having. It was swimming in gravy. I'm very surprised that any chef worth his or her salt would have been happy to serve that to a customer. When I complained, the young guy couldn't have been less bothered. His face may have cracked if he'd smiled. I asked him if I could have a better piece of meat, and he mumbled something about that being it but I could have the shoulder of lamb instead if I liked. Not really what I wanted but I said ok as by this time my friends were all tucking in to their food. I was told it would be a 5 minute wait. 15 minutes later it arrived. Again drowning in gravy (as were 2 out of the 3 other dishes on our table). I was left to eat my lunch while my friends had all finished. Two of us ordered desserts, both of which came on one of those biscuity things, both of which were inedible also, although the ice cream was lovely.
All this while we were shivering as it was so cold (yes I know, why have ice cream then.....)
Tim, I'm really sorry but we won't be coming back and we won't be recommending either. Perhaps your regular chef was away, perhaps the lad who served us was having a bad day, perhaps your heating wasn't working, but it wasn't a happy experience.
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What a fantastic pub. There's not much more to add that hasn't been said. Friendly, knowledgable staff with a good sense of humour. There are several well kept local brews and the food is fantastic. Phone ahead for a table, it's very popular and rightly so. Even their website is a good read! A nice atmosphere that makes you feel very welcome. How could it be better? Move to within walking distance of my house please!
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Been to the Yew Tree many times for food or just for a drink in the last 12 months. The pub is in a great setting, surrounded by fields, cricket pitch and alongside some pretty cottages, it is the perfect area to take the dog for a walk and have a pint and some food afterwards. Tim the owner and all the staff are always very welcoming and up for a chat, good choice of local brews and beer is always in good condition the food is excellent. It is a proper rural pub (quiz nights, locals at the bar, bar food etc) and is well used by the local community, a really nice welcoming feeling to this pub. i'd highly recommend it.
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Visited this evening. One of the best pub meals ever. OH had the biggest ham hock in the world and the price was very reasonable. Will have to go back to try the rest of the menu. Well worth a detour for!!
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Visited on 5th August 2010 on recommendation from one of my colleagues and was not disappointed. A traditional inn, a bit in the middle of nowhere. Staff very polite (some time since the wife and I have had anyone say "Good Evening Sir, Good Evening Madam" on arrival), friendly and smartly dressed, landlord chained to the kitchen and busy but still had time to talk to us on his way past! Beers well kept and refreshingly inexpensive, good range of food and good-sized portions. Nice atmosphere, doing a lot of things very right - even the website is kept updated with the latest menus and events.... a lot of licensees should go here and see how it should be done. Highly recommended, and will certainly revisit.
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Great little pub in the middle of deepest, darkest Hampshire. Very friendly and welcoming staff, beer and food were excellent. Recommended.
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Very much out in the middle of nowhere but friendly locals and staff and a decent drop of Keystones Sola made the effort worthwhile.
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SImply the best pub in the area, beats any neighbouring competition by a mile for atmosphere, excellent food, vale for money and a very jolly landlord. Not to be missed!
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This pub is a bit off the beaten track but well worth making the effort. The food is simply wonderful and the landlord is keen to make sure that it is served at it's best.
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A great pub and superb landlord (that's you Mr Manktelow-Gray)
One of The industries finest. Who else could win such accolades ie:
lLicensee of the year -The Mason Arms Devon
Pub of the Year- The good pub guide-The Wykeham Arms 1998
GO FOR IT TIM!!!
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Proper pub with decent ales that serves excellent sandwiches with a varied and excellent menu. Cosy inside bar with tables, plus a more formal restaurant area on the other side of the bar. Both drinkers and eaters made welcome. Highly recommended.
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Very pleasant and friendly with helpful service. Would definitely recommend.
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Extremely pleasant pub deep in the mid Hants countryside. The location is idyllic, the large yew tree partly shading the pub, the garden on a slight bank with elevated views of the surrounding fields and (after the hedges are cut) the adjacent cricket pitch. Always a choice of local(sih) beers kept in tip-top condition. A great place to spend a summer's afternoon or a winter's evening immersed in the pub's dim cosiness. Splendid food too.
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Visited on a dull January evening to find a warm cosy atmosphere - open log fire, very friendly Licensee (Tim); good selection of ales, and a menu full, varied and reasonably priced. Didn't eat there on this ocasion, but have heard excellent local reports on the food.
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